Hidden suffering of coronavirus: Stigma, blaming, shaming

No one should have known Bella Lamilla's name.

But within hours of her diagnosis as Ecuador's first coronavirus case, it was circulating on social media along with photos showing the retired schoolteacher unconscious and intubated in a hospital bed.

Her large, close-knit family watched in horror as a dual tragedy began to unfold: While Lamilla fought for her life in intensive care, strangers began tearing apart her reputation online.

"Knowing she had it, the old lady didn't care and went all around," one person commented on Facebook.

"It was ugly," said Pedro Valenzuela, 22, Lamilla's great-nephew. "It hurt a lot."
"Illness is one of the fundamental fears humans have been dealing with their entire evolution," said Jeff Sherman, a psychology professor at the University of California, Davis. "It's not really surprising they would be hostile toward someone they believe is responsible for bringing illness into their community."