At what point would you lock down again?

[Not_a_Number]

2 hours ago, TCB said:

Shane Crotty said that they do not have data yet on immunity if you are vaccinated first and then get Covid but they are studying it. He said it’s possible vaccination may dampen the immune response if you get infected, so it may be different than if you get Covid then get vaccinated. He said previously infected people who get the first vaccine then get really good protection against variants. Of course you have to survive Covid, and hopefully not end up with long Covid to get your immunity that way.

Yeah, I’ve wondered about that. I mean, I’d rather not get COVID at all, lol… but it doesn’t seem like we’ll be able to avoid it!!

[TarynB]

On 9/17/2021 at 3:37 AM, TCB said:

I know someone who got Covid, got vaccinated and got Covid again so it can certainly happen.

Me too, unfortunately. He's 48, active, no health conditions. He got covid in March 2020 and was sick enough to need supplemental oxygen at home, but never got admitted to the hospital, although maybe he actually should have been admitted, IDK. Then he got vaccinated (probably sooner than advisable after having covid) with both doses of an mRNA vaccine (not sure which one) in April-May 2021. And he just caught covid again earlier this month, Sept 2021. He's recovering well now, but says during his second round of covid he felt much worse than the first time.

I wonder if he's one of those people who just don't seem to have good immunity for some unexplained/undiagnosed reason.

And, I personally know only about a dozen people (I have a small circle, lol) who have had covid, one being the guy above, and another who had a breakthrough case. So it feels pretty scary here even though I'm vaccinated.

Edited September 18, 2021 by TarynB
Wrong date

[ktgrok]

And yes, second niece has it too. No fever but coughing a lot and very fatigued. Both nieces and my sister have asthma. GRR. 

(they do have a pulse oximeter, she said it was the favorite toy yesterday as the kids had fun checking over and over, lol)

[Not_a_Number]

8 hours ago, TarynB said:

Me too, unfortunately. He's 48, active, no health conditions. He got covid in March 2020 and was sick enough to need supplemental oxygen at home, but never got admitted to the hospital, although maybe he actually should have been admitted, IDK. Then he got vaccinated (probably sooner than advisable after having covid) with both doses of an mRNA vaccine (not sure which one) in April-May 2020. And he just caught covid again earlier this month, Sept 2021. He's recovering well now, but says during his second round of covid he felt much worse than the first time.

I wonder if he's one of those people who just don't seem to have good immunity for some unexplained/undiagnosed reason.

You mean April-May 2021, right? Cause they didn't have vaccines back in 2020, lol. 

[prairiewindmomma]

Oregon has documented 19,000 breakthrough cases at this point: here is the breakthrough report for this week.

https://www.oregon.gov/oha/covid19/Documents/DataReports/Breakthrough-Case-Report.pdf

 

 

[Longtime Lurker]

2 hours ago, ktgrok said:

And yes, second niece has it too. No fever but coughing a lot and very fatigued. Both nieces and my sister have asthma. GRR. 

(they do have a pulse oximeter, she said it was the favorite toy yesterday as the kids had fun checking over and over, lol)

So sorry to hear that both your nieces have it, but at least they'll know right away if their O2 sats dip 🙂

[TarynB]

1 hour ago, Not_a_Number said:

You mean April-May 2021, right? Cause they didn't have vaccines back in 2020, lol. 

Yes, typo! My bad, I fixed it. Thank you. 

[Spryte]

Gaaaah, feeling really closed in by Covid right now. Just lost an extended cousin, now an uncle has tested positive this morning.

Oldest son and DIL came to visit, and the working around Covid issues was such a PITA. I will feel better in two weeks when they/we are all still healthy.

My mother and IL’s facility has suspended visits due to Covid in employees.

I am really feeling it today, it just feels more claustrophobic somehow.

[kokotg]

On 9/18/2021 at 11:00 AM, prairiewindmomma said:

Oregon has documented 19,000 breakthrough cases at this point: here is the breakthrough report for this week.

https://www.oregon.gov/oha/covid19/Documents/DataReports/Breakthrough-Case-Report.pdf

 

 

Interesting/maybe reassuring wrt waning immunity that the percent of cases that are in unvaccinated people isn't increasing since they started keeping track nearly 2 months ago. 

[ktgrok]

So, one of my nieces tested negative on PCR, the other positive, both are sick. Weird! The one that tested negative is on antibiotics and improving - she's the one with the cough. The one that tested positive had more just fatigue and fever. Who knows? Seems if one had it, they'd both have it, they are very close, often end up sleeping in the same bed, ride in the car sitting next to each other, etc aside from obviously living together. But maybe not. 

[Not_a_Number]

8 minutes ago, ktgrok said:

So, one of my nieces tested negative on PCR, the other positive, both are sick. Weird! The one that tested negative is on antibiotics and improving - she's the one with the cough. The one that tested positive had more just fatigue and fever. Who knows? Seems if one had it, they'd both have it, they are very close, often end up sleeping in the same bed, ride in the car sitting next to each other, etc aside from obviously living together. But maybe not. 

I'd tend to assume both are positive, honestly?? Just that the test isn't catching it... 

[Spryte]

Our neighbor-friends are both in the hospital with Covid. They’ve each been at the ER three times recently. Ambulance took her last night, took him this morning. They have two small children, and a grandma is watching them. 

It just stinks to see both parents hit hard. 

Getting together a kids’ care package today. Snacks and small toys. 

We got together with oldest son and brand new DIL over the weekend. It was absolutely glorious to hang out outside. We masked in the house, and they stayed in our quarantine ready basement. I was kind of hating all the precautions and second-guessing it, but everyone wanted to be careful of unvaxxed 10 yr old. Now I’m glad we were careful. 
 

 

[cintinative]

I thought I'd share this in case people wanted to review it.

https://www.scribd.com/document/526760165/AAP-and-CHA-Children-and-COVID-19-State-Data-Report-9-16-FINAL#from_embed

Children and COVID 19 State Data Report a joint report of the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Children's Hospital Association

[ktgrok]

On 9/19/2021 at 1:48 PM, Not_a_Number said:

I'd tend to assume both are positive, honestly?? Just that the test isn't catching it... 

yeah, we all kind of are assuming that. My sister, fully vaxxed is also sick now. She says, "everything hurts, particularly her skin". She has no fever, but the kids do still. She said she feels like a wuss cause they are taking care of her as much as she is of them. But yeah, sucks. 

[cintinative]

1 hour ago, ktgrok said:

yeah, we all kind of are assuming that. My sister, fully vaxxed is also sick now. She says, "everything hurts, particularly her skin". She has no fever, but the kids do still. She said she feels like a wuss cause they are taking care of her as much as she is of them. But yeah, sucks. 

Remind me--does she have an autoimmune disease or some kind of immune deficiency? I remember you being concerned about her getting COVID before because she works in a school (or am I getting your family members mixed up?).  I am really curious as to how it will work with getting breakthrough COVID with an autoimmune

Edited September 22, 2021 by cintinative

[ktgrok]

10 minutes ago, cintinative said:

Remind me--does she have an autoimmune disease or some kind of immune deficiency? I remember you being concerned about her getting COVID before because she works in a school (or am I getting your family members mixed up?).  I am really curious as to how it will work with getting breakthrough COVID with an autoimmune

She has asthma, but no autoimmune issues. My son has two autoimmune diseases which is probably where you were remembering it from. 

[cintinative]

27 minutes ago, ktgrok said:

She has asthma, but no autoimmune issues. My son has two autoimmune diseases which is probably where you were remembering it from. 

Yes, I am sure that was it. Three of us have autoimmunes and the other has asthma so we have some overlap with both situations.  

[KSera]

28 minutes ago, ktgrok said:

She has asthma, but no autoimmune issues. My son has two autoimmune diseases which is probably where you were remembering it from. 

I saw something yesterday showing having asthma was associated with a decreased risk of hospitalization in breakthrough cases. The hypothesis was that it may be due to the use of steroid inhalers.

[bluemongoose]

7 minutes ago, KSera said:

I saw something yesterday showing having asthma was associated with a decreased risk of hospitalization in breakthrough cases. The hypothesis was that it may be due to the use of steroid inhalers.

Ya this was talked about a long time ago (not about breakthrough cases specifically), but with the same hypothesis. The trouble is, there are lots of asthmatics not on daily steroids, myself and my son included. There was also another Danish? study about women and asthma. It was back in the spring. The basic conclusion, if I remember correctly, was that women over 40 with asthma were more likely to need hospitalization. I wonder if the breakthrough cases vs unvaccinated cases make a difference on that. The study was around the time that the CDC added asthma to the high risk list, so pre-delta and pre-waning vaccines.  I am wondering if they will add asthma to the high risk list again for boosters or not.  

[Not_a_Number]

Schools have reopened here with no huge waves. Looks like I was wrong about that, yay! 🙂 

[Faith-manor]

2 hours ago, Not_a_Number said:

Schools have reopened here with no huge waves. Looks like I was wrong about that, yay! 🙂 

We are starting school waves here. 19 outbreaks so far, four in my county. Mask mandates are few and far between. Sigh.

Edited September 22, 2021 by Faith-manor

[ktgrok]

54 minutes ago, KSera said:

I saw something yesterday showing having asthma was associated with a decreased risk of hospitalization in breakthrough cases. The hypothesis was that it may be due to the use of steroid inhalers.

 

37 minutes ago, bluemongoose said:

Ya this was talked about a long time ago (not about breakthrough cases specifically), but with the same hypothesis. The trouble is, there are lots of asthmatics not on daily steroids, myself and my son included. There was also another Danish? study about women and asthma. It was back in the spring. The basic conclusion, if I remember correctly, was that women over 40 with asthma were more likely to need hospitalization. I wonder if the breakthrough cases vs unvaccinated cases make a difference on that. The study was around the time that the CDC added asthma to the high risk list, so pre-delta and pre-waning vaccines.  I am wondering if they will add asthma to the high risk list again for boosters or not.  

She is not on daily meds, from what I recall. They have more of a reactive asthma that is triggered by upper respiratory infections I think. 

[bluemongoose]

17 minutes ago, ktgrok said:

 

She is not on daily meds, from what I recall. They have more of a reactive asthma that is triggered by upper respiratory infections I think. 

This is the same for my son and I. Mostly reactive type triggered by high stress or illness. We have breakthrough type inhalers, but they are not steroid ones. COVID, according to our drs, would absolutely do a number on us with our type of asthma. I am sure this is not rare. So while it is great that some asthmatics will be covered by their maintenance steroid inhalers, there are a lot of asthmatics that either do not have this type of inhaler or are one of the unfortunates that have unmanaged asthma. With our medical system and costs, there are a lot of these. Inhalers are expensive. I really hope that asthma is included on the high risk list for boosters.

[Spy Car]

The 7 day average of US Covid deaths is now over 2,000 per day.

That's the highest rate since the first day of March 2021.

Bill

 

[Spryte]

We have reactive asthma here, too. Ironically, DS only just got off maintenance meds two years ago. We were so happy then. Now it’s not such a good thing. DD and I both have reactive asthma and only use inhalers when sick now.

[Hilltopmom]

58 minutes ago, Not_a_Number said:

Schools have reopened here with no huge waves. Looks like I was wrong about that, yay! 🙂 

Here in upstate NY we were open for 2 days before my daughters class was quarantined. We are now at the 3 week mark and our whole school building is closed due to so many cases. All 3 of my children are now sick and waiting for test results.

This is with masks required.… 

the big free walk in testing place that was open last year is closed now & the little places can’t keep up- results are taking at least 5 days.

Edited September 22, 2021 by Hilltopmom

[ktgrok]

1 minute ago, Spryte said:

We have reactive asthma here, too. Ironically, DS only just got off maintenance meds two years ago. We were so happy then. Now it’s not such a good thing. DD and I both have reactive asthma and only use inhalers when sick now.

 

3 minutes ago, bluemongoose said:

This is the same for my son and I. Mostly reactive type triggered by high stress or illness. We have breakthrough type inhalers, but they are not steroid ones. COVID, according to our drs, would absolutely do a number on us with our type of asthma. I am sure this is not rare. So while it is great that some asthmatics will be covered by their maintenance steroid inhalers, there are a lot of asthmatics that either do not have this type of inhaler or are one of the unfortunates that have unmanaged asthma. With our medical system and costs, there are a lot of these. Inhalers are expensive. I really hope that asthma is included on the high risk list for boosters.

Yeah, people don't ever think of that kind of asthma. She and I both had it as kids, but I outgrew mine. Had a period in my twenties where I needed a rescue inhaler again a few times, but not since then. I can still remember that feeling though! And they didn't have nebulizers when I had it, so I would get rushed to the doctor to get a shot in the butt of epinepherine. By my sister's time they had nebulizers. 

She outgrew it too...but it's been back the last few years. My guess is her kids getting sick a lot (they get sick a LOT) exposed her so much her lungs got resensitized. 

[cintinative]

I don't know what kind of asthma my DS14 has. When he was young he was on maintenance and rescue medicine via a nebulizer, and then we graduated to the same via inhalers with the spacer, and then to just albuterol as needed. He generally only needs it four or so times per year but it is not necessarily when he is sick. Sometimes it correlates with activity.  I don't even think we have a maintenance inhaler that isn't expired. They are so pricey--probably $400 or more. 

[Melissa Louise]

1 hour ago, Not_a_Number said:

Schools have reopened here with no huge waves. Looks like I was wrong about that, yay! 🙂 

What are the mitigations in place in your school system? 

[Acadie]

I'm not sure how dh's asthma would be classified, but he has both rescue and steroid inhalers. He might not need either one for months, but with URIs, allergies, or cold weather he may need to resume for a few weeks at a time. Before we got a handle on his allergens, he was using inhalers (not sure which one(s) daily. 

For those who don't have steroid inhalers, could it be worth checking with your pulmonologist to see if a prescription for use as needed might have a place in your treatment plan, in the age of Covid?

ETA: I was especially worried about dh early in the pandemic, and had him get refills for both inhalers, before the news that people with asthma were generally not considered higher risk. Then when there were supply issues with steroid inhalers I was really glad to have them in the house. 

 

Edited September 22, 2021 by Acadie

[Not_a_Number]

50 minutes ago, Hilltopmom said:

Here in upstate NY we were open for 2 days before my daughters class was quarantined. We are now at the 3 week mark and our whole school building is closed due to so many cases. All 3 of my children are now sick and waiting for test results.

This is with masks required.… 

the big free walk in testing place that was open last year is closed now & the little places can’t keep up- results are taking at least 5 days.

Eeeeeek. Geez. OK, now I'm worried. 

I am actually not following the NYC school numbers that closely. But I know that the overall Manhattan numbers are staying relatively steady, and I know that the SF school system hasn't had major issues. So that's why I said that. 

[freesia]

3 hours ago, Not_a_Number said:

Schools have reopened here with no huge waves. Looks like I was wrong about that, yay! 🙂 

We are doing fine here just north of NYC.  There are a handful of cases and overall numbers are falling. 

 

Eta: a handful of cases in the schools

Edited September 22, 2021 by freesia

[Not_a_Number]

4 minutes ago, freesia said:

We are doing fine here just north of NYC.  There are a handful of cases and overall numbers are falling. 

Eta: a handful of cases in the schools

Yeah, I haven't seen a spike here, either. 

I'm curious how long that lasts, though. It's possible this works fine with low levels of community transmission but becomes a disaster with higher ones. 

[freesia]

5 minutes ago, Not_a_Number said:

Yeah, I haven't seen a spike here, either. 

I'm curious how long that lasts, though. It's possible this works fine with low levels of community transmission but becomes a disaster with higher ones. 

Yes, I’d imagine so. But I’m feeling encouraged. The numbers are actually going down even with school and Labor Day. Our town is like half what it was a couple of weeks ago. Masking is up in general, but kids are definitely not masking for soccer and outside play. 

[Not_a_Number]

1 minute ago, freesia said:

Yes, I’d imagine so. But I’m feeling encouraged. The numbers are actually going down even with school and Labor Day. Our town is like half what it was a couple of weeks ago. Masking is up in general, but kids are definitely not masking for soccer and outside play. 

Yeah, I'm also feeling encouraged!! I felt QUITE worried before school started, as you all know. I'm delighted to be wrong here. 

Edited September 22, 2021 by Not_a_Number

[Spy Car]

1 hour ago, Not_a_Number said:

Yeah, I haven't seen a spike here, either. 

I'm curious how long that lasts, though. It's possible this works fine with low levels of community transmission but becomes a disaster with higher ones. 

During the summer lull (late June -early July) 7 day average daily infection rate in New York City was about 180.

Now the rate is around 1900.

Bill

Edited September 23, 2021 by Spy Car

[Not_a_Number]

2 minutes ago, Spy Car said:

During the summer lull (late June -early July) 7 day average daily infection rate was about 180.

Now the rate is around 1900.

Bill

Well, yes, we had a HUGE increase when Delta hit, too. But it hasn't spiked further with school opening, and I thought it would. 

[rebcoola]

We haven't had an increase with schools opening. It's been holding steady. Almost like masks actually work really well.

[Not_a_Number]

5 minutes ago, rebcoola said:

We haven't had an increase with schools opening. It's been holding steady. Almost like masks actually work really well.

Yeah. Honestly, I've been surprised how well they seem to work.

[Longtime Lurker]

2 hours ago, freesia said:

Yes, I’d imagine so. But I’m feeling encouraged. The numbers are actually going down even with school and Labor Day. Our town is like half what it was a couple of weeks ago. Masking is up in general, but kids are definitely not masking for soccer and outside play. 

Our numbers have started to go down as well (in my county at least). It is a great  relief. I am so hopeful that the trend will continue!

[cintinative]

So @ktgrok what is this nonsense about the new FL surgeon general  (a doctor.?) thinking the COVID vaccine is “nothing special”? I swear sometimes I don’t understand who DeSantis’ target audience is. 

[KSera]

2 hours ago, rebcoola said:

We haven't had an increase with schools opening. It's been holding steady. Almost like masks actually work really well.

That’s what I was thinking today. I expected masks to continue to help a whole lot, but with Delta, I thought it still wouldn’t be enough to keep outbreaks down. So far, it’s looking like places with strong mask mandates in their schools are doing quite well, especially when coupled with high vaccination rates in the community.

[Not_a_Number]

5 minutes ago, KSera said:

That’s what I was thinking today. I expected masks to continue to help a whole lot, but with Delta, I thought it still wouldn’t be enough to keep outbreaks down. So far, it’s looking like places with strong mask mandates in their schools are doing quite well, especially when coupled with high vaccination rates in the community.

Yeah, I'm totally willing to eat humble pie on this one 😄 . I was wrong. I'm glad. 

[rebcoola]

8 minutes ago, KSera said:

That’s what I was thinking today. I expected masks to continue to help a whole lot, but with Delta, I thought it still wouldn’t be enough to keep outbreaks down. So far, it’s looking like places with strong mask mandates in their schools are doing quite well, especially when coupled with high vaccination rates in the community.

We don't have strong Vax rates and our numbers are not great overall but school isn't making it worse because masking is required.  Tied to funding level required.

[Melissa Louise]

For those with mask mandates in schools, does this include K-6?

We are returning to face to face teaching in four weeks, and masks are not mandated for primary school. 

[Arcadia]

3 minutes ago, Melissa Louise said:

For those with mask mandates in schools, does this include K-6?

We are returning to face to face teaching in four weeks, and masks are not mandated for primary school. 

Yes. Its a statewide policy for California 

https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CID/DCDC/Pages/COVID-19/K-12-Guidance-2021-22-School-Year.aspx

“Safety Measures for K-12 Schools

1. Masks 

a. Masks are optional outdoors for all in K-12 school settings.

b. K-12 students are required to mask indoors, with exemptions per CDPH face mask guidance.   Adults in K-12 school settings are required to mask when sharing indoor spaces with students.  

c. Persons exempted from wearing a face covering due to a medical condition, must wear a non-restrictive alternative, such as a face shield with a drape on the bottom edge, as long as their condition permits it.

d. Schools must develop and implement local protocols to provide a face covering to students who inadvertently fail to bring a face covering to school to prevent unnecessary exclusions.

e. Consistent with guidance from the 2020-21 school year, schools must develop and implement local protocols to enforce the mask requirements. Additionally, schools should offer alternative educational opportunities for students who are excluded from campus because they will not wear a face covering. Note: Public schools should be aware of the requirements in AB 130 to offer independent study programs for the 2021-22 school year. 

f. In limited situations where a face covering cannot be used for pedagogical or developmental reasons, (e.g., communicating or assisting young children or those with special needs) a face shield with a drape (per CDPH guidelines) can be used instead of a face covering while in the classroom as long as the wearer maintains physical distance from others. Staff must return to wearing a face covering outside of the classroom. ”

[Jean in Newcastle]

5 minutes ago, Melissa Louise said:

For those with mask mandates in schools, does this include K-6?

We are returning to face to face teaching in four weeks, and masks are not mandated for primary school. 

In my state, it includes primary grades.  It hasn't been an issue for any of the young children in my neighborhood.  (There are some exceptions for those with disabilities who cannot safely wear a mask.) 

[Melissa Louise]

Thanks. It will be interesting to see the % of students who choose to wear one. I would much prefer it to be mandatory. 

[Ausmumof3]

8 hours ago, Not_a_Number said:

Well, yes, we had a HUGE increase when Delta hit, too. But it hasn't spiked further with school opening, and I thought it would. 

Cases in US and worldwide seem to be fairly consistently trending down.  I expect there will be another winter spike but hopefully not as bad as last year. Strangely deaths in US are still trending upward.  I know there is a lag with deaths but it seems more pronounced this time.

Edited September 23, 2021 by Ausmumof3

[Wheres Toto]

4 hours ago, Melissa Louise said:

For those with mask mandates in schools, does this include K-6?

We are returning to face to face teaching in four weeks, and masks are not mandated for primary school. 

Here it includes child care centers and all children ages 2 and up (or over 2, not 100% sure which).   We have a new surge of "homeschoolers" pulling their kids from preschool over it.