Personal covid experiences

[Matryoshka]

22 minutes ago, kand said:

I take a more middleground with packages than I did early on with this. Instead of quarantining them in the sunlight on a covered porch for a couple days, I now mostly just open them and dump the contents out and then get rid of the packaging and wash my hands thoroughly. my main concern would be if my mail carrier or UPS driver were infected and had transferred virus onto them when carrying them to my porch. I like to leave them outside for most of the day they are delivered before bringing them in, but my DH has a tendency to bring them in as soon as he sees them. I do admit I’ve been more careful than that with a couple packages that have come from hot zones, though. I had an Etsy package from one of the Dakotas, and I disinfected all the contents in that package before giving them to my daughter.

LOL, that's pretty much where I am with mail and packages.  I often try to open with scissors without using my hands too much, but if I do touch a bit I don't worry and just wash my hands thoroughly.  The stuff inside I figure hasn't been touched in long enough that it's fine. 

[MEmama]

2 minutes ago, Matryoshka said:

LOL, that's pretty much where I am with mail and packages.  I often try to open with scissors without using my hands too much, but if I do touch a bit I don't worry and just wash my hands thoroughly.  The stuff inside I figure hasn't been touched in long enough that it's fine. 

This is how I handle it too.

In the beginning I washed grocery packages but gave it up when the data just didn't seem to support it as particularly beneficial. Most of my food hangs out in the pantry, fridge or canning shelves for days before I use them anyway. 
 

I automatically wash my hands right after touching anything from outside the house.

[Mrs Tiggywinkle]

It’s bad enough my local hospital has now requested a refrigerated morgue truck be delivered within 24 hours. To be fair, there is only 4 morgue spaces, but now the funeral homes are backed up.

The deaths are all from one nursing home. We’ve actually had only comparatively few deaths from the community at large, but people at that nursing home are dying in numbers of 5-7 a day. They’re also swabbing all deceased persons and discovering some in the community, unexplained deaths that are Covid positive.

I’m a paramedic and we are so busy at work.  I am exhausted. 
 

A friend who is an EMT at another ambulance service had Covid last month and is still dealing with bilateral pneumonia, fatigue, and shortness of breath. She is in her late 20s with no underlying conditions.  She caught it at work, despite full PPE.

[Pippen]

7 minutes ago, Mrs Tiggywinkle said:

It’s bad enough my local hospital has now requested a refrigerated morgue truck be delivered within 24 hours. To be fair, there is only 4 morgue spaces, but now the funeral homes are backed up.

The deaths are all from one nursing home. We’ve actually had only comparatively few deaths from the community at large, but people at that nursing home are dying in numbers of 5-7 a day. They’re also swabbing all deceased persons and discovering some in the community, unexplained deaths that are Covid positive.

I’m a paramedic and we are so busy at work.  I am exhausted. 
 

A friend who is an EMT at another ambulance service had Covid last month and is still dealing with bilateral pneumonia, fatigue, and shortness of breath. She is in her late 20s with no underlying conditions.  She caught it at work, despite full PPE.

Bless you and others who are on the front lines. May this wave subside quickly.  🙏❤️

[Not_a_Number]

9 minutes ago, Mrs Tiggywinkle said:

I’m a paramedic and we are so busy at work.  I am exhausted. 

How are you feeling, by the way? 

[daijobu]

On 11/28/2020 at 1:37 PM, Not_a_Number said:

Hmmmm. I'll have to think about whether we should make sure to only buy fruit and veggies in boxes. But I do make salad... maybe I should stop for the time being 😕 . Stir fries for veggies? Stir fries ARE good... 

We don't go shopping at all, though. We just get pick up and delivery, because I am NOT setting foot indoors if I don't have to. 

I haven't been inside a grocery store since February.  Here's a recent study from Spain about food hygiene and other behaviors and covid.   https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0013935120311208?via%3Dihub

We wash as much as we can with soap and water, and otherwise wipe down with peroxide.  It's a headache for sure.  

Don't forget to get your MMR vxn!  https://mbio.asm.org/content/11/6/e02628-20

[Not_a_Number]

2 minutes ago, daijobu said:

I haven't been inside a grocery store since February.  Here's a recent study from Spain about food hygiene and other behaviors and covid.   https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0013935120311208?via%3Dihub

We wash as much as we can with soap and water, and otherwise wipe down with peroxide.  It's a headache for sure.  

Don't forget to get your MMR vxn!  https://mbio.asm.org/content/11/6/e02628-20

Those are bizarre numbers and it's not clear what to do with them. Like, I do not believe walking the dog can reasonably increase your chance of COVID, unless you're getting close to other people! And I don't believe wearing a mask does absolutely nothing, like the survey suggests.

Any idea what these numbers are supposed to mean? These are self-report, and it's quirky data. 

[daijobu]

Just now, Not_a_Number said:

Those are bizarre numbers and it's not clear what to do with them. Like, I do not believe walking the dog can reasonably increase your chance of COVID, unless you're getting close to other people! And I don't believe wearing a mask does absolutely nothing, like the survey suggests.

Any idea what these numbers are supposed to mean? These are self-report, and it's quirky data. 

Yeah, I agree, we were scratching our heads over this as well.  

[Not_a_Number]

1 minute ago, daijobu said:

Yeah, I agree, we were scratching our heads over this as well.  

So, it looks like the people who got most infected... lived alone and never went outside. I have NO CLUE what that's supposed to mean. Maybe it's reverse causation? People with a positive test reporting having done less stuff to justify to themselves that they were REALLY CAREFUL and it's not their fault they got infected?? 

[prairiewindmomma]

On 11/28/2020 at 3:15 PM, Not_a_Number said:

I definitely wash... but not like that. I don't know if I should up my cleaning game... 

I am on medication which really hits my blood counts, so I am more cautious out of necessity. 

[Not_a_Number]

Just now, prairiewindmomma said:

I am on medication which really hits my blood counts, so I am more cautious out of necessity. 

You raise a good point, though. I do want to be maximally careful in the context of our pod. 

[Bootsie]

38 minutes ago, daijobu said:

Yeah, I agree, we were scratching our heads over this as well.  

Looking at the study, there were 99 people who had COVID; of those 29 had walked a dog.  I didn't count how many variables they were considering, but with such a small sample size, it is hard to determine anything.  The questions asked if the person participated in any of these activities during the strictest lockdown period.  But, I can't find that they asked about WHEN the person had COVID.  I read quickly so maybe it is in there, but it looked to me like the person could have had COVID before walking the dog.  

[Jean in Newcastle]

Just talked to a local ICU nurse this morning.  They have 59 very very ill COVID patients - twice the number that they had in March (which was our last spike). 

[Guest]

Here's a possible personal Covid experience that has a slightly funny aspect to it. We very recently rented out one of our properties to a young man. He sent dh a message asking if something could be done about the air quality in the apartment and said he felt like it was stale and "hard to breathe". We replied that it seems surprising because no other tenant has mentioned that, and suggested that perhaps the air is a bit stale because it has been vacant for a few months, and we did repairs and such. We suggested cracking some windows to get some air exchange and also suggested that he could get a personal air system of his own. Then, dh said, he didn't reply for days. We wondered if he had been offended by these suggestions.

Today, he got back in touch with dh and said he owed an apology; it turns out he may be positive for covid (no test back yet) and he thinks *that* is why it seemed like it was hard to breathe while lying in bed. 

It makes me think of all those people, complaining that their candles have no scent. 😄 

[Not_a_Number]

19 hours ago, kand said:

Super weird data. I haven’t finished reading it yet, but one of my thoughts on the dog walking was that during the time period the study covered, Spain was in really strict lockdown, and walking the dog was one of the few things you were allowed out to do. I remember hearing on the news of a lot of people using “walking the dog” as an excuse to get out. I wonder if people used that as a time to meet up with others (though being outside, doesn’t seem it would have that strong an effect.) Weird. 

DH said that he expected all self-reported results to be pretty useless and to have random spurious correlations, and I do rather agree with him. Most of these people didn't have tests, either, so... it's really hard to know. 

I feel like we would KNOW if there was serious surface transmission with food delivery. Like, they still haven't found anything like that in the Australia cluster, right? Only people who've lied about working in the pizza shop and people who had been inside it to pick up the pizza. 

Oh, DH also said that "food delivery" might look pretty different in Spain. Like, the grocer's boy may have actually COME INTO your house and dropped off the food while chatting in the kitchen... 

Anyway, I think I'm going to ignore this data, although I'll admit that it's making me more stressed, lol. We get lots of deliveries! 

Edited November 30, 2020 by Not_a_Number

[Pen]

I wonder if dogs could pick up CV19 on feet (or fur elsewhere) and track it home where it could fall off in dust etc and circulate in air. 
 

During a TB outbreak we removed shoes outside and tried to wash dog feet before they came in. 

[wathe]

1 hour ago, Not_a_Number said:

Those are bizarre numbers and it's not clear what to do with them. Like, I do not believe walking the dog can reasonably increase your chance of COVID, unless you're getting close to other people! And I don't believe wearing a mask does absolutely nothing, like the survey suggests.

Any idea what these numbers are supposed to mean? These are self-report, and it's quirky data. 

All correlation, no causation.  I'd guess that dog-walking is a marker for people who found reasons to go out a lot (and socialize while out).  Disinfecting purchases is probably a marker for people who were extremely cautious in general.  I doubt that any of these behaviours (other than living with others) are causal in of themselves.

[Not_a_Number]

1 minute ago, wathe said:

All correlation, no causation.  I'd guess that dog-walking is a marker for people who found reasons to go out a lot (and socialize while out).  Disinfecting purchases is probably a marker for people who were extremely cautious in general.  I doubt that any of these behaviours (other than living with others) are causal in of themselves.

Agreed, but I still don't like seeing it, lol. 

It's like, I know all these statistical tricks very well, and I still do NOT want to see "data" that says that disinfecting groceries is extremely important and getting groceries delivered is bad! Even though rationally I know we have ample evidence that it's not really the case, and I've followed that evidence myself. 

[wathe]

I actually think that the statement, "The most effective hygiene measure was disinfecting products purchased" is quite irresponsible.  Disinfection of products purchased correlated with lower covid rates.  That has nothing to do with its effectiveness, which might well be zero.  "Effectiveness" implies a causal mechanism.  Cause and effect.  I think it's much more likely that product disinfecters were just more cautious in general - more likely to mask properly, stay at home etc, and that those other measures were the ones that were effective.

[Not_a_Number]

Just now, wathe said:

I actually think that the statement, "The most effective hygiene measure was disinfecting products purchased" is quite irresponsible.  Disinfection of products purchased correlated with lower covid rates.  That has nothing to do with its effectiveness, which might well be zero.  "Effectiveness" implies a causal mechanism.  Cause and effect.  I think it's much more likely that product disinfecters were just more cautious in general - more likely to mask properly, stay at home etc, and that those other measures were the ones that were effective.

The whole paper is irresponsible, lol. Watch people stop walking their dogs as a result... 

[wathe]

3 minutes ago, Not_a_Number said:

The whole paper is irresponsible, lol. Watch people stop walking their dogs as a result... 

I am reminded of the Italian mayor on youtube complaining about the sudden increase in the number of incontinent dogs during the Italian lockdown in the spring 🙂

At 26 second mark.

 

Edited November 30, 2020 by wathe

[Not_a_Number]

1 minute ago, wathe said:

I am reminded of the Italian mayor on youtube complaining about the sudden increase in the number of incontinent dogs during the Italian lockdown in the spring 🙂

Hahahaha. Yeah, exactly 😛. 

[Pen]

1 hour ago, wathe said:

I actually think that the statement, "The most effective hygiene measure was disinfecting products purchased" is quite irresponsible.  Disinfection of products purchased correlated with lower covid rates.  That has nothing to do with its effectiveness, which might well be zero.  "Effectiveness" implies a causal mechanism.  Cause and effect.  I think it's much more likely that product disinfecters were just more cautious in general - more likely to mask properly, stay at home etc, and that those other measures were the ones that were effective.

there also might have been correlation of dog ownership/walking with multigenerational families or older people alone either of which demographic might have people who would be at more risk; whereas perhaps there were fewer dogs amongst young adults on their own who also probably have lower risk. 
 

I have asked a relative who is a veterinarian in Spain what he thinks about the dog walking / CV19 correlation. 

[daijobu]

18 hours ago, Not_a_Number said:

 

Oh, DH also said that "food delivery" might look pretty different in Spain. Like, the grocer's boy may have actually COME INTO your house and dropped off the food while chatting in the kitchen... 

 

OMG, I was thinking the same thing!  Then I thought, since when am I an expert on Spanish shopping deliveries?  

[daijobu]

Has the Yankee Candle Phenomenon already been discussed on this thread?

https://www.universalhub.com/2020/maybe-covid-19-testing-sites-should-include-some

[daijobu]

Dd and her BF returned home from college and stayed with us a few days.  (BF just returned to his home.)  They were wearing masks on the flight, but were told to remove them because the flight attendant thought they would exhaust into the cabin.  (The exhaust valve was taped over, but they obeyed.)  We're still wearing masks in dd's presence and she's spending most of her day in her bedroom, but I'll feel much better if I'm still alive for my Secret Santa party in mid December.  

I'm participating in the Chan-Zuckerberg CATCH study, so every day I'm confronted with a symptom list, causing me to dive into hypochrondriosis.  Do I feel fatigue today?  Was that nausea?  Whoo, I feel woozy!  

[daijobu]

17 hours ago, Pen said:

I have asked a relative who is a veterinarian in Spain what he thinks about the dog walking / CV19 correlation. 

Please do!  

[Corraleno]

9 minutes ago, daijobu said:

Dd and her BF returned home from college and stayed with us a few days.  (BF just returned to his home.)  They were wearing masks on the flight, but were told to remove them because the flight attendant thought they would exhaust into the cabin.  (The exhaust valve was taped over, but they obeyed.)  We're still wearing masks in dd's presence and she's spending most of her day in her bedroom, but I'll feel much better if I'm still alive for my Secret Santa party in mid December.  

The flight attendant thought that no mask was safer than a mask with a taped over valve??? 

[Not_a_Number]

2 minutes ago, Corraleno said:

The flight attendant thought that no mask was safer than a mask with a taped over valve??? 

Ah, yes, the level of scientific literacy in the general population. 

[Laura Corin]

1 hour ago, daijobu said:

OMG, I was thinking the same thing!  Then I thought, since when am I an expert on Spanish shopping deliveries?  

Before Covid, grocery deliveries were to the fridge door in the UK. Now it's the front door. 

[Not_a_Number]

1 hour ago, daijobu said:

OMG, I was thinking the same thing!  Then I thought, since when am I an expert on Spanish shopping deliveries?  

He actually read something somewhere about that, I think. But I have no idea how long that lasted. 

[Ausmumof3]

43 minutes ago, Laura Corin said:

Before Covid, grocery deliveries were to the fridge door in the UK. Now it's the front door. 

Same here 

[daijobu]

Dd tested negative, but there's a 20% false negative rate, and supposedly the test is best performed 8 days after infxn, so we'll test her again later.  Meanwhile, more masking at home.  

[Not_a_Number]

Just now, daijobu said:

Dd tested negative, but there's a 20% false negative rate, and supposedly the test is best performed 8 days after infxn, so we'll test her again later.  Meanwhile, more masking at home.  

Fingers crossed she stays negative. 

[Ali in OR]

23 hours ago, daijobu said:

Don't forget to get your MMR vxn!  https://mbio.asm.org/content/11/6/e02628-20

Thanks for sharing. Before the great pandemic, I was worried about the possibility of getting measles. I was born in that 4 year span where they're not sure about the vaccine efficacy. We've had little outbreaks of measles in OR in recent years. So when I was at my doctor's office for something else in summer of 2019, I asked him about it. He said the easiest thing to do was to just get a booster shot, and then he told me that there was a big outbreak in the late 80's or early 90's and that's when they decided kids need another booster--people born before that may not have immunity because they only got 1 shot. I'm glad I got my booster that day!

[YaelAldrich]

One of my daughter's teachers (only a couple of years older than her!) has covid with no symptoms. She was tested last Friday but didn't get results back until today. She went to visit family, some who are very elderly in Montreal. It looks like some of the children who were taught by her on Wednesday will be quarantined until Friday. My daughter last saw her on Tuesday and the doctors in charge of coronavirus at the school say her class will not quarantine. 

Now I'm worried as we tested last Sunday, quarantined (except for her school -sigh) and went to my parents. Now she last saw this teacher on Tuesday. My daughter wears a Totobobo (N96) and stays far away from everyone, but...  We tested today and expect results back in 24 hours or so. 

I don't know where she got covid. This is a tight knit community with a good number of non-maskers (when not required). My daughter had two cases of covid in her class (girls who Hunh out unmasked) in October that no one else caught (the whole school tested before going back). But no one has gotten it recently (who has let others know)...

[Jean in Newcastle]

8 hours ago, Laura Corin said:

Before Covid, grocery deliveries were to the fridge door in the UK. Now it's the front door. 

Same here in the US (at least where I live). 

[Carrie12345]

Ds is awaiting results from his THIRD test after his third known exposure, and he’s sick. Headache, congestion, nausea, fatigue, low grade fever. There was a positive case in his father’s office last week. He’s sick, too.

He’s 1200 miles away. 😔

[Carrie12345]

2 hours ago, Carrie12345 said:

Ds is awaiting results from his THIRD test after his third known exposure, and he’s sick. Headache, congestion, nausea, fatigue, low grade fever. There was a positive case in his father’s office last week. He’s sick, too.

He’s 1200 miles away. 😔

Quoting myself 

His father’s results came back positive this morning. 

[Not_a_Number]

Just now, Carrie12345 said:

Quoting myself 

His father’s results came back positive this morning. 

I’m sorry 😞 

[YaelAldrich]

14 hours ago, YaelAldrich said:

One of my daughter's teachers (only a couple of years older than her!) has covid with no symptoms. She was tested last Friday but didn't get results back until today. She went to visit family, some who are very elderly in Montreal. It looks like some of the children who were taught by her on Wednesday will be quarantined until Friday. My daughter last saw her on Tuesday and the doctors in charge of coronavirus at the school say her class will not quarantine. 

Now I'm worried as we tested last Sunday, quarantined (except for her school -sigh) and went to my parents. Now she last saw this teacher on Tuesday. My daughter wears a Totobobo (N96) and stays far away from everyone, but...  We tested today and expect results back in 24 hours or so. 

I don't know where she got covid. This is a tight knit community with a good number of non-maskers (when not required). My daughter had two cases of covid in her class (girls who Hunh out unmasked) in October that no one else caught (the whole school tested before going back). But no one has gotten it recently (who has let others know)...

We tested yesterday afternoon and got back the results first thing this morning (yay MA!).  All negative. My husband was tested yesterday morning and got his results back in the afternoon (yay Northeastern U!); also negative.  My daughter will test again on Friday to get back into school for next week.  She's on mandatory Zoom school all week.

[SKL]

I am wondering about all the negative tests followed by positive tests.  Is there a time period during which it's useless to test?  Why not just wait until the time when tests are likely to be positive if the person has the virus?

[Not_a_Number]

35 minutes ago, SKL said:

I am wondering about all the negative tests followed by positive tests.  Is there a time period during which it's useless to test?  Why not just wait until the time when tests are likely to be positive if the person has the virus?

Well, there's SOME chance you get a positive early on. It's just not very high. But then if you catch it early, you won't spread it... 

[Not_a_Number]

8 hours ago, Plum said:

That is exactly how my dh described the air in our house, stale and sterile.  He said he would wake up and not know where he was for a second because the whole house had unfamiliar stale air. 

That sounds unpleasant 😕 . 

Is your husband all better nowadays? 

[SKL]

30 minutes ago, Not_a_Number said:

Well, there's SOME chance you get a positive early on. It's just not very high. But then if you catch it early, you won't spread it... 

Well, knowing how likely it's a false negative, I would be careful not to spread it regardless of the early test.

It is concerning if those early false negatives are causing people to go around and spread it.  Do they not tell people that an early negative doesn't actually mean you're clean?

[Not_a_Number]

2 minutes ago, SKL said:

Well, knowing how likely it's a false negative, I would be careful not to spread it regardless of the early test.

It is concerning if those early false negatives are causing people to go around and spread it.  Do they not tell people that an early negative doesn't actually mean you're clean?

Yeah, that's very true. But you know how it is... "precautionary" quarantine and quarantine after a positive just FEEL different to people. I know they would to me. 

But I agree -- they should do a better job communicating how unreliable early negatives are. 

[Not_a_Number]

13 minutes ago, Plum said:

He was able to smell his Earl Grey tea for the first time last week. I think there's some scents that he doesn't fully pick up, but he seems to be getting better with his senses every day. He still feels like his GI tract is not quite right and he has some brain fog. It's not that bad so it's hard to distinguish between age-related forgetfulness and covid brain. 

That definitely sounds like progress!! I hope he keeps improving. 

[kbutton]

My friend that tested positive last week is in the hospital. Prayers are appreciated.

[Pen]

Does anyone know personally (or close degree of separation) anyone with 60-100 ng/mL vitamin D level prior to contracting CV19 who has gotten severely sick with it?

 

[TCB]

2 hours ago, Pen said:

Does anyone know personally (or close degree of separation) anyone with 60-100 ng/mL vitamin D level prior to contracting CV19 who has gotten severely sick with it?

 

I don’t know levels, but I looked after someone last week who was very sick and he told me he had been taking Vit D and zinc religiously every day. Of course not that one person really tells you anything but I thought it was interesting.