During the last fiscal crisis of the 1980s Irish sovereign spreads ballooned out also. But that was for local currency denominated debt. Eurobond borrowing by the Irish Government remained at fairly tight spreads despite the high overall debt ratio (higher than today), and the fact that almost half of the national debt was denominated in foreign currency.
As ubiquitous as smartphones are nowadays, people continue to send letters – but mail firms need to evolve to make up for the downturn in postal business, for example, by delivering parcels sent by online mail order companies.