Urgent Covid exposure questions.

[KidsHappen]

Someone in my immediate household has had extended exposure to someone who just tested positive for covid 19. He and my dd went to get tested today. They will not get the results for 72 hours. We know that the responsible thing to do is self-quarantine at least until we received results. However, both him, my dd and my dd's best friend who is 7 months pregnant have a summons for court tomorrow,

With this short of notice the information we are receiving is for all three of them to show up with masks at court tomorrow where they may be sent home or the judge may decide for them to stay. The court room is very small and very crowded and the last time we were there we were stuck there all day long with people coming and going the whole time. I am very concerned about the pregnant girl.

Also if their test turn up negative does that mean that we return to our current state of normal of does the whole house need to self=quarantine for 14 days? If one of them is positive and it runs through the whole family, do we self-quarantine until 15 days after the last symptoms of the last person to get ill?

Also, just a curiosity, we have had two cats die in the last month. They were both 18+ years old but they took ill and dies fairly quickly. Could this possibly be related?

Anything else I need to be considering?

[Melissa in Australia]

I would contact the court asap

[Melissa in Australia]

Is there a covid hotline there? 

Here there is a covid hotline you can ring that would be able to tell you how long you have to isolate for etc. 

Edited May 27, 2020 by Melissa in Australia

[Terabith]

That's a screwed up situation, but you clearly have to go to court.  I would wear masks, and I would tell EVERYONE you encounter right away that you have had exposure to covid.  I might even make a sign.  

Honestly, this is the ONE situation where I'd be tempted to ask a doctor about the possibility of hydroxychlorinque.  https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S092485792030145X?fbclid=IwAR2g4ZmW_1hUZzR2XIWlCYAk1mqtew-Y7PnHbrvls3UrRUBLA5F-xL3fEIc

Probably won't be able to get that, but I would start taking high levels of vitamin D, C, zinc, quercetin, and melatonin at night.  I forget the article about that as prophylaxis, but it was like NEJM suggested protocol for health care workers.  

Unfortunately, the negative test doesn't mean anything.  Hate to say it but you guys need to all self quarantine for 14 days.  If someone develops symptoms, it starts the clock over for everyone.  https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/874011/Stay_at_home_guidance_diagram.pdf

[KidsHappen]

8 minutes ago, Terabith said:

That's a screwed up situation, but you clearly have to go to court.  I would wear masks, and I would tell EVERYONE you encounter right away that you have had exposure to covid.  I might even make a sign.  

Honestly, this is the ONE situation where I'd be tempted to ask a doctor about the possibility of hydroxychlorinque.  https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S092485792030145X?fbclid=IwAR2g4ZmW_1hUZzR2XIWlCYAk1mqtew-Y7PnHbrvls3UrRUBLA5F-xL3fEIc

Probably won't be able to get that, but I would start taking high levels of vitamin D, C, zinc, quercetin, and melatonin at night.  I forget the article about that as prophylaxis, but it was like NEJM suggested protocol for health care workers.  

Unfortunately, the negative test doesn't mean anything.  Hate to re allsay it but you guys need to all self quarantine for 14 days.  If someone develops symptoms, it starts the clock over for everyone.  https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/874011/Stay_at_home_guidance_diagram.pdf

That's what I was afraid of. We are all taking the above supplements.

[KidsHappen]

10 minutes ago, CuriousMomof3 said:

How long ago was their exposure?

Could they go to the courthouse tomorrow, and then call from the parking lot if they need to be there at opening?

 

It has been continuous exposure by someone from work. That is a good idea about staying in the car until the judge makes a decision.

[Pam in CT]

Oh dear.

I think I would send ONLY the people who NEED to appear in court (no others to keep company) to the courthouse, with a bagful of masks and documentation of the tests they just took... but also with every courthouse, attorney or other representative, and courthouse emergency number you can find to get instructions on what to do... and have them arrive early and just keep dialing down the list before going in... and then if that doesn't yield a good answer, have go to the official entrance on time and explain to their situation to the security personnel at the entrance.

I can't remember your location, but this is happening in courthouses all across the country. Your loved ones are certainly not the first people to whom this has happened and there are surely protocols in place to protect the court officials, attorneys, LEO and other staff.

 

And yes, afterwards everyone should isolate for 14 days... and I would urge the pregnant young woman to get tested -- I haven't heard about particular protocols for potentially infected pre-natal cases but she should at a minimum be monitored closely.

Holding you all in the light.

[KidsHappen]

3 minutes ago, CuriousMomof3 said:

Has the friend been exposed, or are you worried that she'll be exposed by going to court with them?

They see the friend on a regular basis so if they have it she has already been exposed but if not court will still be a problem.

[Ausmumof3]

Yes yes and yes.  Yes you should continue quarantining.  (Not everyone does but there are false negatives).  Yes you have to go to court I guess but you could ask if you could wait outside the courtroom based on situation.  And yes if you were sick with covid your cats could have had it.  

[Farrar]

I second calling the state or county covid line now if you can to find out what they say about the court situation. I think barring any advance advice that the suggestion to go and call from the car as they go or wait outside is a good one.

And I second that you need to completely quarantine for 14 days, yes. And that the members of your household should isolate from those of you who were not directly exposed as much as possible. If possible, they should quarantine from you. This probably seems counter-intuitive at this point. You've probably all been in each other's  spaces a lot. But even if you've also already been exposed, you do not want to keep exposing yourself and thus increasing your viral load. This is rough because your home may not be set up to do this very well. Just do whatever you can.

[Farrar]

See if your county/city has free groceries for people quarantining because of exposure or illness. Or any other services. Some places have this.

[Pen]

1 hour ago, KidsHappen said:

That's what I was afraid of. We are all taking the above supplements.

 

Quarantine should be 14 days from exposure.   And should ideally be quarantine from each other as well as rest of family and acquaintances and strangers.

masks while not separate at home, and when out

Don’t know about pregnancy, related to supplements, and herbs, but maybe elderberry now. 

I’d also take NAC and thiamine .  And maybe rutin , hesperidin.  (I can’t recall all bioflavonoids thought to help.   ) lots of nutritious foods , low on processed and junk

 

and nitric oxide breathing techniques  

or see youtube on breathing with Patrick McKeown

 

I too would start calling court people, whatever numbers you can find, and arrive early, and try to stay in vehicle while calling to ask what to do

 

[BeachGal]

2 hours ago, Terabith said:

That's a screwed up situation, but you clearly have to go to court.  I would wear masks, and I would tell EVERYONE you encounter right away that you have had exposure to covid.  I might even make a sign.  

Honestly, this is the ONE situation where I'd be tempted to ask a doctor about the possibility of hydroxychlorinque.  https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S092485792030145X?fbclid=IwAR2g4ZmW_1hUZzR2XIWlCYAk1mqtew-Y7PnHbrvls3UrRUBLA5F-xL3fEIc

Probably won't be able to get that, but I would start taking high levels of vitamin D, C, zinc, quercetin, and melatonin at night.  I forget the article about that as prophylaxis, but it was like NEJM suggested protocol for health care workers.  

Unfortunately, the negative test doesn't mean anything.  Hate to say it but you guys need to all self quarantine for 14 days.  If someone develops symptoms, it starts the clock over for everyone.  https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/874011/Stay_at_home_guidance_diagram.pdf

 

Take NAC, N-acetyl-cysteine, as well. Should be okay if pregnant but get a good brand. Thorne and Pure Encapsulations are pretty dependable.

[Pen]

Even if “already exposed” people are supposed to quarantine from each other if possible.  Even husbands and wives, if possible it is supposed to be better to separate during quarantine because of viral load reduction reasons. 

[....]

I'm sorry about your cats!!

I'm not a doctor... but if you saw a couple of my posts a few weeks ago, my dh was exposed in April at work and we ended up getting sick about 4 days after.

Don't panic!  I would limit time reading about it online.  I made that mistake.  I was having severe anxiety attacks that would start in the evening and I think reading people's stupid comments on the internet and news articles did me in.  Maybe take an internet break.

Yeah, you can't go anywhere.  I would start figuring out who can bring you groceries when it's grocery day.  We had to call everyone's work and tell them.  We had only been around one person at the time, but we called her and told her, too. 

We didn't quarantine away from each other.  At the time, that seemed unrealistic.  We have 5 kids, so we were like, "eh, we're all trapped in here together."  We figured we were probably all exposed to it together anyway...living in the same house.  I mean, ten minutes before we found out, dh and I were sharing drinks...he was kissing me, etc.  Ds5 was handing me boogers and climbing all over me.  *rolling my eyes*  Eh, like I said...unrealistic.

Testing - dh had to call several places to get tested.  None of those drive-through places set up by the county or Walgreens would test him without symptoms.  He eventually found a pediatric urgent care center that would test him (he is a big child, you know).  Their website said they tested adults and children during the pandemic.  We paid for it through our insurance + a copayment.  So, if you can't find a place that would test you, try the urgent care centers. 

I cleaned and cleaned after we found out.  I cleaned everything in our entire house.  We dragged our bedding downstairs and washed it.  We wiped down all devices, keyboards, phones, etc with Clorox wipes (we did this every day).  We wiped down doorknobs and light switches.  I cleaned all the bathrooms every day with disinfectant.  I even steam cleaned the carpet (not every day - lol).  Every morning, I spent about 2-3 hours cleaning first thing.  Make sure you have cleaners that actually kill covid (there's some articles about it online).  They said don't use vinegar/water.  You have to use some stronger cleaners.  I think it doesn't like Lysol - if you have any around.  I was walking around spraying Lysol throughout the house a couple of times a day (I realize I sound like a lunatic).  One article said to clean all common surfaces 3x a day, so I did.

I put all of us on vitamins, vitamin D supplements and vitamin C supplements.  

I opened all curtains and let as much light in the house as possible.  I opened the windows and aired out the house at night. 

I tried to keep everyone positive.  I didn't want my kids to be terrified.  We don't need any help in the Anxiety Department here. 

I don't know if we had covid or if we might've caught something else and it was just a coincidence that we got sick 4 days after dh was exposed.  I guess we'll never know.  But, me, dd18 and dd15 ended up getting sick.  None of the boys in the house got sick.  The younger kids didn't get sick, either.  Whatever it was lasted about 3 days and then it went away.  So, it was gone very quickly.  Whatever it was mostly started as a cough...then sore throat, stuffy nose/runny nose, fever, diarrhea.

No, none of our animals (and we have 3 cats) got sick. 

I hope you guys never even get any symptoms and it just vanishes!!  Shoo, coronavirus!!  Leave KidsHappen and her family alone!  

 

[Pen]

Call the lawyer(s) involved as well as clerk of court, Judge’s chambers etc.!

They don’t want to be held in contempt or whatever for not appearing, but also they should for sure not be out in public while awaiting results.  After, if results are negative, they may still be expected to quarantine in case of false negative. 

 

[KidsHappen]

Ok so the court had a tent set up out front where they took everyone's temp and exposure history and then sent the three of them packing to come back again next month. So that's all good. Now we are patiently waiting for the phone call to let us know if they are positive. Luckily we are pretty well stocked here so we can quarantine with maybe one food delivery in that time. Otherwise we will pretty much take things one day at a time.

[MEmama]

1 hour ago, KidsHappen said:

Ok so the court had a tent set up out front where they took everyone's temp and exposure history and then sent the three of them packing to come back again next month. So that's all good. Now we are patiently waiting for the phone call to let us know if they are positive. Luckily we are pretty well stocked here so we can quarantine with maybe one food delivery in that time. Otherwise we will pretty much take things one day at a time.

Good news. At least that worry is off the table.

DS is getting tested tomorrow (apparently he has Covid toes), but the doctor told us that because the tests are unreliable, we should assume he is positive even if it comes back negative. We are quarantining for 2 weeks.

Good luck. May none of you become symptomatic. ((Hugs))

[ElizabethB]

1 hour ago, KidsHappen said:

Ok so the court had a tent set up out front where they took everyone's temp and exposure history and then sent the three of them packing to come back again next month. So that's all good. Now we are patiently waiting for the phone call to let us know if they are positive. Luckily we are pretty well stocked here so we can quarantine with maybe one food delivery in that time. Otherwise we will pretty much take things one day at a time.

That is great that they already had a system in place, very reassuring!  I'm happy for you and the rest of the people in your area!!