Yes, the switch by the government from nonchalent nothing is happening, to realisation that this is something that needs to be dealt with in a Public Health context panicked people I think. Schools should be shut...

The point isn't the individual risk unless you are in the at risk groups, it is the wave of badly affected that will overwhelm the health system (hence, flatten the curve). People comparing absolute numbers to flu or other diseases aren't really understanding the problem... It is one of statistics and managing the spread and weight of ill effects, not just the number of badly effected. By managing this, you are better able to treat the badly affected. However, this requires that we look beyond our own individual problems and work together, as our little actions contribute to a wider range of unseen effects.

We are also taking precautions to not add to the social burden. Even at our own financial cost. However, we made sure to slowly stock up starting a few weeks ago... And have friends and family that work in this field, and they were advising that this might get out of hand. Again, individual risk is low... However, the large scale effects (the sum of many little things) will be relatively large.