At what point would you lock down again?

[Faith-manor]

23 minutes ago, Not_a_Number said:

I think you should, personally. I don't see it as immoral in this case to claim that you're eligible for some reason or another. (Plus, are you sure you aren't? The criteria are quite broad.) 

Well, so think I am eligible. I think our local pharmacies are interpreting the guidelines very narrowly. Maybe they don't have that much vaccine on hand.

[Not_a_Number]

Just now, Faith-manor said:

Well, so think I am eligible. I think our local pharmacies are interpreting the guidelines very narrowly. Maybe they don't have that much vaccine on hand.

Hmmmm. That's hard 😕 . 

[KSera]

26 minutes ago, Not_a_Number said:

I think you should, personally. I don't see it as immoral in this case to claim that you're eligible for some reason or another. (Plus, are you sure you aren't? The criteria are quite broad.) 

For Moderna, you’re only eligible under the immune compromised third dose criteria. For all the people trying to volunteer in order to get their Pfizer booster though, it’s probably unnecessary  for the vast majority to do that just to qualify. Something like 75% of US adults qualify based on BMI alone (the cut off is 25 to make you high risk). 
 

eta: I spent some time last week on a BMI calculator to see how much weight I would need to gain to put me over the guideline 😂. Unfortunately/fortunately, I qualify under health condition instead, so I have no such excuse to eat lots of donuts for the sake of my health 😉. 

Edited October 3, 2021 by KSera

[melmichigan]

4 hours ago, Faith-manor said:

Well, so think I am eligible. I think our local pharmacies are interpreting the guidelines very narrowly. Maybe they don't have that much vaccine on hand.

The Moderna booster will be before the FDA committee on the 14th and 15th of this month. It’s not yet approved outside of the 3rd dose for immune compromised.  A booster dose hasn’t been decided yet. I’m guessing it will have similar guidelines and you’ll be able to get one by the end of the month.

[cintinative]

among the more bizarre things I have heard lately was that a person wears a mask while they are walking around at church but not while seated because they sit in the front. 

When I think about the 700K people that died in the U.S. from COVID, my heart just hurts. And sometimes I feel very alone in that feeling. Some of people on this forum are the only ones I know that truly are grieving with me.  

 

[bookbard]

On 10/3/2021 at 3:28 AM, ktgrok said:

so it's been 2 weeks and my sister just now feels up to washing the dishes without falling over. She developed bronchitis and is on steroids now which are helping. Kids are better, no coughing, no fever, the second one to get sick is a bit fatigued by end of day and doesn't have smell/taste back but the first to get sick has hers mostly back. 

That sounds awful. This was a breakthrough infection, right? Really scary. I hope your sister feels better soon. Your story reminds me that if you have more than 1 kid, it's not just a couple of weeks off if they get sick- it's until all the kids have gone through it, which can be consecutive and take forever.

[mommyoffive]

2 hours ago, bookbard said:

That sounds awful. This was a breakthrough infection, right? Really scary. I hope your sister feels better soon. Your story reminds me that if you have more than 1 kid, it's not just a couple of weeks off if they get sick- it's until all the kids have gone through it, which can be consecutive and take forever.

This really scares me having a family of 7.  It could be a long long time before we could get over it and be able to go out again.  We had a stomach bug rip through our house one year and it was 6 weeks before we could all go out again.  My kids were so little and I wanted to go at least 24 hours from the last one throwing up before getting into the car again.  

[ktgrok]

2 hours ago, bookbard said:

That sounds awful. This was a breakthrough infection, right? Really scary. I hope your sister feels better soon. Your story reminds me that if you have more than 1 kid, it's not just a couple of weeks off if they get sick- it's until all the kids have gone through it, which can be consecutive and take forever.

Yes, breakthrough infection. My older niece was back at school the end of last week, but younger one will be out for almost a month between quarantine when siister was sick and isolating after her own positive test. 

[ktgrok]

DS 22 got back from a concert in North Carolina today. He is vaccinated and had a breakthrough infection less than 90 days ago, but to be safe, given how many people he was around, he is masking whenever he is out of his room for the next week. Will test every few days as well. 

I'm confident he's protected given how recently he had covid, but appreciate beyond measure how careful he's being after what happened last time. 

[ktgrok]

Oh, and my sister says that everything tastes disgusting. Her sense of taste is mostly gone, and what she can taste, tastes terrible. Her kids were the same, they each lost 5lbs in a week. 

[Faith-manor]

54 minutes ago, ktgrok said:

Oh, and my sister says that everything tastes disgusting. Her sense of taste is mostly gone, and what she can taste, tastes terrible. Her kids were the same, they each lost 5lbs in a week. 

Oy! This scares me about my middle boy who is medically underweight. If he lost weight, it would be terrifying. I don't even want to think what covid would do to wreck any gains in metabolic function he had made in the last three years.

[Not_a_Number]

1 hour ago, ktgrok said:

Oh, and my sister says that everything tastes disgusting. Her sense of taste is mostly gone, and what she can taste, tastes terrible. Her kids were the same, they each lost 5lbs in a week. 

Oh gosh. That sounds AWFUL. 

How long has it been since she'd been vaccinated?? 

[ktgrok]

8 hours ago, Faith-manor said:

Oy! This scares me about my middle boy who is medically underweight. If he lost weight, it would be terrifying. I don't even want to think what covid would do to wreck any gains in metabolic function he had made in the last three years.

My older niece is also underweight. She did gain it all back the next week or so, thankfully. Younger niece could use the weight loss, although not like this. 😞

[rebcoola]

Oldest has a sore throat going to get tested soon.  

[mommyoffive]

Yay, the mask mandate got extended in the city we do things in for another month.  I think they really need to extended it like 8 weeks after that or so and let the young kids hopefully get fully vaccinated.  But even after that will rates look good?  I am not thinking  great thoughts  because it will be cold and flu season and cold up here at that point.

[Not_a_Number]

@ktgrok, when was your sister vaccinated? (Wondering about the waning immunity thing.) 

[ktgrok]

8 minutes ago, Not_a_Number said:

@ktgrok, when was your sister vaccinated? (Wondering about the waning immunity thing.) 

Just about 5 1/2 months or so before she had her breakthrough infection. She was a week or so before me, I think, and I had my second dose on March 31st. 

[Not_a_Number]

15 minutes ago, ktgrok said:

Just about 5 1/2 months or so before she had her breakthrough infection. She was a week or so before me, I think, and I had my second dose on March 31st. 

Thanks! 

How's she doing? And your nieces? 

[ktgrok]

1 minute ago, Not_a_Number said:

Thanks! 

How's she doing? And your nieces? 

Older niece is back in school, younger is mostly better. Sister felt great on the steroids at first, from the energy boost, then got the associated insomnia and now is tired again. 

[mommyoffive]

Why do we have waves? And was this the final one? - by Katelyn Jetelina - Your Local Epidemiologist (substack.com)

Interestingly, this Delta wave had a distinct pattern: 2.5 month flare of virus until retreat. We saw the same pattern across the world, too (with a few exceptions). So, why the 2 months? Why does the pandemic ebb and flow in waves?

Why do we have waves?

Why doesn’t the virus just spread and spread until it has no more people to infect? It’s a simple, legitimate question with a very complicated answer: We don’t know. There’s no scientific consensus on why this happens. We hypothesize it’s largely driven by the combination of four factors:

Human behavior: Once numbers start increasing, people start changing behavior (whether they know it or not). Even modest restrictions can bring numbers back down, like masking or cancelling plans. People did take the Delta wave seriously. The Kaiser Family Foundation reported an uptick in vaccinations due to Delta, hospitals filling up, and knowing someone who got seriously ill or died due to Delta. Human behavior plays a big role in wave patterns.

Social networks: This plays some sort of role too (and I think the most interesting). As people see their regular contacts and these networks reassert themselves, Delta runs out of places to go. This is highly dependent on how and where people mix. As we all know, schools just started, which would open social networks (not limit them). So this may only play a limited role with Delta.

Seasonality. During non-pandemic times, most coronaviruses are seasonal. Other viruses, like the flu, are seasonal because of climate patterns (and human behavior). It’s not a coincidence that our largest COVID19 wave was during the Winter months. But, again, this doesn’t fully explain all waves, as we had some during the summer months too.

Levels of Vaccine and/or Natural Immunity. As more people become immune, spread slows and the virus eventually stops because it runs out of people to infect. We, no doubt, saw this with vaccine rates and Delta. Highly vaccinated states, like Vermont (70% population fully vaccinated), came out relatively unscathed. As far as natural immunity, we saw this in Michigan. Michigan was hit hard with Alpha in April, which likely provided some protection against Delta. But Michigan numbers are starting to increase now, so we need to keep an eye on this.

[mommyoffive]

‘This is a crisis’: Tens of thousands of children affected by pandemic-related deaths of parents (msn.com)

[mommyoffive]

University of Maine Covid cases: How the system kept cases down as they surged throughout the state (msn.com)

[Matryoshka]

34 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

University of Maine Covid cases: How the system kept cases down as they surged throughout the state (msn.com)

What this article also fails to mention when comparing success in dampening spread on campus vs. rest of Maine is that the vaccination rate in Maine they state is not the full population - total population both shots is only 68-69%, vs at the university where virtually everyone is eligible, so when they say 88% of staff and 97% of students, that is indeed counting everyone, so the rates are much further apart in real life.  If the vax rate is in the high 90s (figuring way more students than staff), then we're seeing that a vax rate that high of *everyone*, not just kids 15+ and pretending like younger humans don't exist and aren't virus vectors, does work.  So let's hope those younger kids get their jabs soon!!

[Not_a_Number]

54 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

‘This is a crisis’: Tens of thousands of children affected by pandemic-related deaths of parents (msn.com)

The article is right that this reverberates through societies, too. Like, these numbers aren't anything like this, but the fact that a TON of people lost fathers in the former USSR in World War 2 is a huge part of the culture there. 

[kbutton]

2 hours ago, mommyoffive said:

‘This is a crisis’: Tens of thousands of children affected by pandemic-related deaths of parents (msn.com)

Those figures are through June, which means it's worse now that Delta is taking out it's fury on the the parenting age crowd. 

My great-grandfather survived being ill from the 1918 flu, but his father died. He was the oldest child and was middle school age, IIRC. It definitely changed the trajectory of his life and had at least some influence on his children's lives. I have heard hints in family lore that social repercussions definitely made a difference in the decisions people made (lingering physical effects, economical stuff, etc.). 

[Spryte]

I don’t know where to put this, but someplace around here I’ve posted that DH’s vaccinated uncle had Covid and our unvaccinated neighbors recently had covid. Updating here (and only stating their vaccination status because it applies to this thread):

Neighbors (early 40s and late 30s) got out of the hospital after a week long stay. They both received remdesivir and dexamethasone, and it was pretty touch and go. He’s been on oxygen, hime for a week or so, just finished the dexamethasone and … is back at the ER now.

She’s fatigued and having joint pain. Their mother in law who has been caring for the kids now has Covid.

DH’s uncle had it the same time. He’s older, maybe late 60s/early 70s. Was vaccinated early on, and got sick just before boosters became available. Says it was worse than malaria, believes the vaccine saved him, but still thought he might not make it. Had monoclonal antibodies, which made him able to walk in hospital (arrived unable to stand), and he only spent maybe 4 days in hospital, now up and working in his wood shop.

[kbutton]

3 minutes ago, Spryte said:

I don’t know where to put this, but someplace around here I’ve posted that DH’s vaccinated uncle had Covid and our unvaccinated neighbors recently had covid. Updating here (and only stating their vaccination status because it applies to this thread):

Neighbors (early 40s and late 30s) got out of the hospital after a week long stay. They both received remdesivir and dexamethasone, and it was pretty touch and go. He’s been on oxygen, hime for a week or so, just finished the dexamethasone and … is back at the ER now.

She’s fatigued and having joint pain. Their mother in law who has been caring for the kids now has Covid.

DH’s uncle had it the same time. He’s older, maybe late 60s/early 70s. Was vaccinated early on, and got sick just before boosters became available. Says it was worse than malaria, believes the vaccine saved him, but still thought he might not make it. Had monoclonal antibodies, which made him able to walk in hospital (arrived unable to stand), and he only spent maybe 4 days in hospital, now up and working in his wood shop.

I am glad your uncle-in-law was able to get the antibodies. I hope the neighbor recovers. The return ER trip doesn't sound good at all. 

[ktgrok]

2 hours ago, Matryoshka said:

What this article also fails to mention when comparing success in dampening spread on campus vs. rest of Maine is that the vaccination rate in Maine they state is not the full population - total population both shots is only 68-69%, vs at the university where virtually everyone is eligible, so when they say 88% of staff and 97% of students, that is indeed counting everyone, so the rates are much further apart in real life.  If the vax rate is in the high 90s (figuring way more students than staff), then we're seeing that a vax rate that high of *everyone*, not just kids 15+ and pretending like younger humans don't exist and aren't virus vectors, does work.  So let's hope those younger kids get their jabs soon!!

THISSSSS!!! Honestly, I REALLY wish they would stop publishing numbers without context - and always put it into the context of the total population. 

3 hours ago, mommyoffive said:

‘This is a crisis’: Tens of thousands of children affected by pandemic-related deaths of parents (msn.com)

I can't even read this right now, with my sister in the hospital. I just can't...ugh. Her ex is not qualified to raise her kids, nor does he likely want to. Those kids are a big reason he divorced her, from what I can tell. I'd have to fight him for joint custody or something. 

If I wasn't worried about needing to drive I'd take the dog's thunderstorm xanax. 

[Faith-manor]

1 minute ago, ktgrok said:

THISSSSS!!! Honestly, I REALLY wish they would stop publishing numbers without context - and always put it into the context of the total population. 

I can't even read this right now, with my sister in the hospital. I just can't...ugh. Her ex is not qualified to raise her kids, nor does he likely want to. Those kids are a big reason he divorced her, from what I can tell. I'd have to fight him for joint custody or something. 

If I wasn't worried about needing to drive I'd take the dog's thunderstorm xanax. 

Katie, my heart goes out to you and your sister! I have three great nieces who are with their father, and need to be. If he got covid,the and died or was so disabled he could not care for them, I know the state would give those kids back to their mother, and the thought makes my blood run cold. But, my dh is 57, and the youngest is 3. He is not prepared to work to 72, may not even be in good enough health to do so, in order to raise them. My niece is truly negligent, incompetent, and unstable. My hope is if something happened to their daddy, one of her older brothers would fight for those kids. It is also possible they could just end up with her, then into foster care within months because of her inevitably screwing up in a very big way. I don't like the sound of that at all.

There aren't enough foster homes in a normal year so this pandemic has created a national nightmare exponentially speaking. I fear we may end up building orphanages again. So many kids do not have grandparents or aunts and uncles in a position to take them in, and it is just scary to think about.

[ktgrok]

1 minute ago, Faith-manor said:

Katie, my heart goes out to you and your sister! I have three great nieces who are with their father, and need to be. If he got covid,the and died or was so disabled he could not care for them, I know the state would give those kids back to their mother, and the thought makes my blood run cold. But, my dh is 57, and the youngest is 3. He is not prepared to work to 72, may not even be in good enough health to do so, in order to raise them. My niece is truly negligent, incompetent, and unstable. My hope is if something happened to their daddy, one of her older brothers would fight for those kids. It is also possible they could just end up with her, then into foster care within months because of her inevitably screwing up in a very big way. I don't like the sound of that at all.

There aren't enough foster homes in a normal year so this pandemic has created a national nightmare exponentially speaking. I fear we may end up building orphanages again. So many kids do not have grandparents or aunts and uncles in a position to take them in, and it is just scary to think about.

It really is scary. In our case, the older girl is 9 months younger than my DD11 and the younger girl is 3 weeks older than my DS9, so  no issue there. And not that I think this will happen, but with the new house we'd be able to house everyone, maybe by closing off part of the loft for an extra room, whatever. 

But a year ago, no way. And most people are in that situation, not the one we are in now. 

[Spryte]

50 minutes ago, kbutton said:

I am glad your uncle-in-law was able to get the antibodies. I hope the neighbor recovers. The return ER trip doesn't sound good at all. 

Ugh, they just admitted him again.

My heart is so sad for those kids.

[cintinative]

@ktgrok I am so sorry to hear about your sister. When did she go into the hospital?

[ktgrok]

20 minutes ago, cintinative said:

@ktgrok I am so sorry to hear about your sister. When did she go into the hospital?

This morning, around 10 I think. She was shaky and having trouble talking and felt like she was having a stroke. I'm praying it is just withdrawal from the steroids she was on or low blood sugar, but we don't know. CAT scan was negative, they are transferring her from the free standing ER to a full hospital to do an MRI later today. 

[cintinative]

4 minutes ago, ktgrok said:

This morning, around 10 I think. She was shaky and having trouble talking and felt like she was having a stroke. I'm praying it is just withdrawal from the steroids she was on or low blood sugar, but we don't know. CAT scan was negative, they are transferring her from the free standing ER to a full hospital to do an MRI later today. 

Praying right now for her.

[ktgrok]

1 minute ago, cintinative said:

Praying right now for her.

Thank you. I'm concerned, because if it was just low blood sugar I'd assume they'd know that by now. I hate getting 4th hand info. 

[AbcdeDooDah]

My DILs dad was admitted yesterday with double pneumonia. On oxygen. My  son got married less than 2 weeks ago and her dad was  diagnosed 4 days after the wedding. 😓

[AbcdeDooDah]

Aaaaand my husband just called from work.  He was exposed a few days ago with a coworker(and DIL's dad on the 26th) who tested positive. He feels terrible today, is coughing light headed  and his pulse ox is consistently 92,  though he said he is not having trouble breathing. 

He said he's going to the hospital after work if it drops below 92.

Edited October 7, 2021 by AbcdeDooDah

[cintinative]

Prayers for your husband and DIL's father @AbcdeDooDah

[ktgrok]

41 minutes ago, AbcdeDooDah said:

Aaaaand my husband just called from work.  He was exposed a few days ago with a coworker(and DIL's dad on the 26th) who tested positive. He feels terrible today, is coughing light headed  and his pulse ox is consistently 92,  though he said he is not having trouble breathing. 

He said he's going to the hospital after work if it drops below 92.

Um, why is he at work? Low o2 plus coughing and potentially contagious...why is he at work?

[AbcdeDooDah]

1 minute ago, ktgrok said:

Um, why is he at work? Low o2 plus coughing and potentially contagious...why is he at work?

He's the only one there. 

[melmichigan]

Sending positive thoughts for your sister @ktgrok, and for your family @AbcdeDooDah.  Please keep us updated.

Our local health department orders were all pulled a week ago because of threats to funding if they remained (you can look up the politics associated with this mess).  Our local cases are climbing and our positivity is now 12%.  I saw pulmonology today and they said to be extremely careful. 😒

[AbcdeDooDah]

DILs dad is on the monoclonal antibody treatment right now.

[rebcoola]

Wow sorry for all of you. It's a good reminder that this is not over. 

ODD's symptoms went away in a day and her test was negative.  

[AbcdeDooDah]

I didn't realize what thread this was. I saw someone post about a family member. Sorry if this is in the wrong place. 

[cintinative]

9 minutes ago, AbcdeDooDah said:

I didn't realize what thread this was. I saw someone post about a family member. Sorry if this is in the wrong place. 

I don't know if there is a thread for that anymore but we are honored to keep your family in our thoughts and prayers. 

[Terabith]

54 minutes ago, AbcdeDooDah said:

DILs dad is on the monoclonal antibody treatment right now.

How is your husband feeling?

[AbcdeDooDah]

3 minutes ago, Terabith said:

How is your husband feeling?

He said he feels "off." Not sure what he means by no breathing issue but then says he's light-headed. Very fatigued. He's not off until 630. It's 230 here. 

[Mrs Tiggywinkle]

One of my best friends, who was my work partner for seven years, is in the ICU with Covid and septic shock.  He is vaccinated and has had Covid a year ago. 
No underlying conditions. He’s young 50s.  Works as both a paramedic and for the medical examiner/coroners office, so a lot of exposure despite masking.  
 

Edited October 7, 2021 by Mrs Tiggywinkle

[Ausmumof3]

4 minutes ago, Mrs Tiggywinkle said:

One of my best friends, who was my work partner for seven years, is in the ICU with Covid and septic shock.  He is vaccinated and has had Covid a year ago. 
No underlying conditions. 

I’m so sorry to hear that 😞 

[Ausmumof3]

1 hour ago, AbcdeDooDah said:

I didn't realize what thread this was. I saw someone post about a family member. Sorry if this is in the wrong place. 

There’s no wrong place I don’t think.  I’m sorry to hear about your DILs dad.