Omicron anecdata?

[Laura Corin]

Family tally: my four siblings have all had/have Covid.  My sole surviving parent has also had it.

Children and cousins: three out of five tested positive.

The Office for National Statistics, which does random tests, estimates that 70% of people in England have had Covid at least once.

Husband and I have not yet. 

Out of the tally, one has serious Long Covid.

Edited April 25, 2022 by Laura Corin

[Kassia]

I'm not sure if this is the right place to post this question or not.  I apologize if it's not.

MIL has covid and says she will quarantine for 5 days after testing, which will be Wednesday, and then wear a mask.

Symptoms are like a bad cold.  She already doesn't wear a mask correctly (always under her nose) and I suspect it will be even worse if she can't breathe with the cold symptoms.  

Should we tell her to test again before leaving the house and make sure she's not still positive?  I'm hoping that she won't anyway since she still has symptoms and doesn't feel well but I don't want her spreading it.  Five days just doesn't seem long enough.

 

[KSera]

1 hour ago, Laura Corin said:

Family tally: my four siblings have all had/have Covid.  My sole surviving parent has also had it.

Children and cousins: three out of five tested positive.

The Office for National Statistics, which does random tests, estimates that 70% of people in England have had Covid at least once.

Husband and I have not yet. 

Out of the tally, one has serious Long Covid.

☹️  Your family’s tally falls along the lines that keep thinking of the respect to my own family and long Covid expectations.  The odds would seem to say that if all of us get it, one of us would end up with long-Covid. I don’t like those odds.

55 minutes ago, Kassia said:

Should we tell her to test again before leaving the house and make sure she's not still positive?  I'm hoping that she won't anyway since she still has symptoms and doesn't feel well but I don't want her spreading it.  Five days just doesn't seem long enough.

Five days isn’t long enough for most people, but it seems near impossible to get most people to do anything differently than that now that that’s what they requirements are. We just had that situation in my extended family where an extended family member took day five to mean they were then safe to go visit a severely immuno compromised older family member. No one was able to get him to test or cancel. He did mask, but I have no idea with what. We will have to hope he didn’t spread it. 

[KSera]

5 hours ago, Ausmumof3 said:

For anyone following the hepatitis thing, this Dr is sharing stuff as it comes out from the coming meeting/briefing.

I was just coming to share the same thread. Might be worth us having a separate thread for this topic, though some kind of interaction with past Covid infection is among the working hypotheses. That’s the kind of possibility that worries me so much about just letting covid infect all kids because “Covid is mild” before we know what kind of downstream effects it might have.

[MEmama]

I just found out one of DS's former running mates recently spent a week in the ICU at Childrens Hospital in Boston with heart complications from Covid. 17 years old, serious athlete, top condition…now his running career is over and post high school plans are on the line (his health will likely scuttle his plans for one of the military academies). But you know hey, at least it isn’t serious for young people. 😞 

[Kassia]

14 minutes ago, MEmama said:

I just found out one of DS's former running mates recently spent a week in the ICU at Childrens Hospital in Boston with heart complications from Covid. 17 years old, serious athlete, top condition…now his running career is over and post high school plans are on the line (his health will likely scuttle his plans for one of the military academies). But you know hey, at least it isn’t serious for young people. 😞 

This is so scary.  My friend's daughter in high school knows a boy who had a heart attack from Covid.  

[Insertcreativenamehere]

26 minutes ago, Kassia said:

This is so scary.  My friend's daughter in high school knows a boy who had a heart attack from Covid.  

I worry about this with my two high school boys who are both athletes and had Covid in February. 

[kbutton]

5 hours ago, Kassia said:

I'm not sure if this is the right place to post this question or not.  I apologize if it's not.

MIL has covid and says she will quarantine for 5 days after testing, which will be Wednesday, and then wear a mask.

Symptoms are like a bad cold.  She already doesn't wear a mask correctly (always under her nose) and I suspect it will be even worse if she can't breathe with the cold symptoms.  

Should we tell her to test again before leaving the house and make sure she's not still positive?  I'm hoping that she won't anyway since she still has symptoms and doesn't feel well but I don't want her spreading it.  Five days just doesn't seem long enough.

I've canceled on people for far less than this. 

[mommyoffive]

6 hours ago, KSera said:

☹️  Your family’s tally falls along the lines that keep thinking of the respect to my own family and long Covid expectations.  The odds would seem to say that if all of us get it, one of us would end up with long-Covid. I don’t like those odds.

Five days isn’t long enough for most people, but it seems near impossible to get most people to do anything differently than that now that that’s what they requirements are. We just had that situation in my extended family where an extended family member took day five to mean they were then safe to go visit a severely immuno compromised older family member. No one was able to get him to test or cancel. He did mask, but I have no idea with what. We will have to hope he didn’t spread it. 

Taht is what dh and I say all the time.  It could be mild for 6 of us and then the 7 could end up with long Covid.  It makes us still beg so cautious. 

[mommyoffive]

4 hours ago, MEmama said:

I just found out one of DS's former running mates recently spent a week in the ICU at Childrens Hospital in Boston with heart complications from Covid. 17 years old, serious athlete, top condition…now his running career is over and post high school plans are on the line (his health will likely scuttle his plans for one of the military academies). But you know hey, at least it isn’t serious for young people. 😞 

That is so sad and scary.  Was he vaccinated? 

[mommyoffive]

[MEmama]

20 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

That is so sad and scary.  Was he vaccinated? 

I don’t know his vax status. 

[mommyoffive]

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update: FDA Approves First COVID-19 Treatment for Young Children | FDA

[mommyoffive]

Clyburn Requests FDA Briefing on Status of Coronavirus Vaccines for Young Children | House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis

[iamonlyone]

I don't want to clog the thread with personal updates, but since there have been a few recent posts about young adults post Covid, I'll share one more update on dd27 (professional dancer and preschool teacher) who is vaxed and boosted, contracted Covid in February, pushed along, and then ended up in the hospital a couple weeks ago for two days.

We ended up flying to her to help her for the week after she was released from the hospital. She missed 2.5 weeks of work (plus the 2 weeks she was flat out in February with the initial Covid infection), and today was her first day back to work since she was released from the hospital. She had hoped to start dancing again this week or next, but it's looking like she will be out for the rest of the season to heal.

She will have appointments with a neurologist to test for POTS as well as working with a pulmonology/cardiac rehab team. She has been on a beta blocker, since she was hospitalized, as her pulse hit 140-180 every time she sat up or stood. The med is doing a good job of stabilizing her heart rate.

So, yeah, it's an awful disease that is unpredictable in its outcome!

[mommyoffive]

Severe hepatitis outbreak among children (substack.com)

[Harriet Vane]

11 hours ago, iamonlyone said:

I don't want to clog the thread with personal updates, but since there have been a few recent posts about young adults post Covid, I'll share one more update on dd27 (professional dancer and preschool teacher) who is vaxed and boosted, contracted Covid in February, pushed along, and then ended up in the hospital a couple weeks ago for two days.

We ended up flying to her to help her for the week after she was released from the hospital. She missed 2.5 weeks of work (plus the 2 weeks she was flat out in February with the initial Covid infection), and today was her first day back to work since she was released from the hospital. She had hoped to start dancing again this week or next, but it's looking like she will be out for the rest of the season to heal.

She will have appointments with a neurologist to test for POTS as well as working with a pulmonology/cardiac rehab team. She has been on a beta blocker, since she was hospitalized, as her pulse hit 140-180 every time she sat up or stood. The med is doing a good job of stabilizing her heart rate.

So, yeah, it's an awful disease that is unpredictable in its outcome!

I'm so very, very sorry. I think it's so much more devastating in someone so athletic.

It sounds like you are doing all the appropriate things to assess and figure out healing and repair. One thing I will add--a very dear friend of mine is a physical therapist and does athletic training as well. Her observation has been that there is no way to hit the ground running from this--she says repair and exercise specifically post-covid has to be "low and slow." 

I am not a dancer, but I do exercise with intensity several times a week, and when I had what I think was covid back in March 2020, I found that I was breathless for many months after. It was hard building back up, specifically because of the quick breathlessness. I was able to get back into non-aerobic activity slowish-but-okay (like weight-lifting), but anything with an aerobic component (going through repetitive motions quickly, biking, elliptical, or stairs) left me gasping and unable to function all too soon. 

[mommyoffive]

COVID antivirals can save lives, but access is still limited. Biden announces plan to change that. (msn.com)

[ktgrok]

On 4/22/2022 at 12:29 AM, vonfirmath said:

The doctor's office is the only place I still see masking

Even when its a little ridiculous. Mask in the public waiting room where everyone is sitting far away from each other. Take the mask off in the doctor's room so he can look down your throat and see what is going on. Then mask on again for the public areas as you walk out

 

When I've been to my regular doctor they have me take the mask off just long enough to look at my throat, and in my nose, so a few seconds, tops, then put it right back on. And they are masked. I I were that doctor, I'd hold my breath while doing that, and I know I try to hold my breath as well, until mask is back on. 

Way better than mask off the whole time. 

And at the derm again the mask came off just long enough to check that part of my skin, then she had me put it right back on. 

It stayed on the whole time at the podiatrist, obviously, and at ortho. Podiatrist is the only place that might not have had a mask requirement, I can't remember. Sort of blocking those appts out of my head, lol. 

[KSera]

2 minutes ago, ktgrok said:

When I've been to my regular doctor they have me take the mask off just long enough to look at my throat, and in my nose, so a few seconds, tops, then put it right back on. And they are masked. I I were that doctor, I'd hold my breath while doing that, and I know I try to hold my breath as well, until mask is back on. 

Way better than mask off the whole time. 

I wished in hindsight I’d declined the mouth check when I (finally) took my unvaccinated kid for his well check. It turned out okay, but if either the doctor or the patient before us had been contagious with Covid, breaking the seal and then putting the mask back on could have been enough to catch it.  Now, truth is, I don’t expect with such a little one that his KF94 is making an airtight seal anyway, unfortunately, so it’s probably not as big a difference as if I had to remove my N95 in there. I get a good solid seal though I haven’t been fit tested so I don’t know for sure. If I were in a high-risk environment I would not want to remove my N95 even if it was only for a few seconds. because then the next breath you take starts with air that has then  gotten inside the mask that is no longer filtered. 

[Harriet Vane]

14 minutes ago, KSera said:

If I were in a high-risk environment I would not want to remove my N95 even if it was only for a few seconds. because then the next breath you take starts with air that has then  gotten inside the mask that is no longer filtered. 

Emphatically yes to this. That is how I was exposed--I lifted my mask in a room with multiple people just to take a quick sip of water, a handful of times over a 2-hour period. One of the people at the table became sick the next day, and I found myself deeply regretting those sips of water. In hindsight, I wished I would have simply stepped OUT from time to time to drink. No exposure and it would have been far more refreshing anyway to be outside for a quick minute. 

FTR I am fine and multiple rapid tests show I am fine. 

[ktgrok]

21 minutes ago, KSera said:

I wished in hindsight I’d declined the mouth check when I (finally) took my unvaccinated kid for his well check. It turned out okay, but if either the doctor or the patient before us had been contagious with Covid, breaking the seal and then putting the mask back on could have been enough to catch it.  Now, truth is, I don’t expect with such a little one that his KF94 is making an airtight seal anyway, unfortunately, so it’s probably not as big a difference as if I had to remove my N95 in there. I get a good solid seal though I haven’t been fit tested so I don’t know for sure. If I were in a high-risk environment I would not want to remove my N95 even if it was only for a few seconds. because then the next breath you take starts with air that has then  gotten inside the mask that is no longer filtered. 

Sure, but it is better to lift it once for a handful of seconds than to have it off the whole time. Way less viral load, if you are exposed. More likely the body fights it off, etc. 

(I had issues with my sinuses and post nasal drip, so it was reasonable to check those areas - when I've been in for a hurt wrist, etc I have not taken mask off, as it wasn't needed)

[KSera]

1 minute ago, ktgrok said:

Sure, but it is better to lift it once for a handful of seconds than to have it off the whole time. Way less viral load, if you are exposed. More likely the body fights it off, etc. 

(I had issues with my sinuses and post nasal drip, so it was reasonable to check those areas - when I've been in for a hurt wrist, etc I have not taken mask off, as it wasn't needed)

Oh for sure. I was just making the point that I don’t like even taking it off briefly inside. Obviously there are times when it might be necessary.

[mommyoffive]

Vice President Kamala Harris tests positive for COVID-19 (wisn.com)

 

Yes, a Rhode Island bill aims to fine, tax eligible residents if they aren’t vaccinated against COVID-19 (msn.com)

 

Most Americans have been infected with the coronavirus at least once, the C.D.C. says. (msn.com)

 

Most Americans Have Been Infected With Coronavirus at Least Once, C.D.C. Says - The New York Times (nytimes.com)

 

More than half of Americans have had COVID About 75% of kids 17 and under have had COVID. Specifically tested for infection induced antibodies to differentiate from vaccines.

Edited April 26, 2022 by mommyoffive

[mommyoffive]

[iamonlyone]

6 hours ago, Harriet Vane said:

I'm so very, very sorry. I think it's so much more devastating in someone so athletic.

It sounds like you are doing all the appropriate things to assess and figure out healing and repair. One thing I will add--a very dear friend of mine is a physical therapist and does athletic training as well. Her observation has been that there is no way to hit the ground running from this--she says repair and exercise specifically post-covid has to be "low and slow." 

I am not a dancer, but I do exercise with intensity several times a week, and when I had what I think was covid back in March 2020, I found that I was breathless for many months after. It was hard building back up, specifically because of the quick breathlessness. I was able to get back into non-aerobic activity slowish-but-okay (like weight-lifting), but anything with an aerobic component (going through repetitive motions quickly, biking, elliptical, or stairs) left me gasping and unable to function all too soon. 

Thank you! And I think you are right. Ballet dancers are used to pushing through and usually have a high pain tolerance, which can be a problem. Dd27 just kept pushing through a couple months of rehearsals and performances until her body rebelled. She had worked all day and showed up for rehearsal the day she was hospitalized!

I'm thankful that her director sent her home and that her doctor counseled her to go to the ER when she was talking with the doctor on the phone and having a hard time making it up the stairs in dd's home.

And, yes, it is hard when it hits an athlete who has trained so hard for so many years. From the beginning I have dreaded this scenario because, of the five of us, long Covid can most affect dd27's life/career. (And to add to the data, two of the five of us have had Covid, dd22 and dd27. Dd22--college girl--was very tired, but functional, for about five days and had sinus congestion.) Dd27 said she will always get available boosters, since obviously her body does not do well with Covid!

Having said all that, we are very thankful dd27 was only in the hospital for two days. Some families' situations are so much worse than ours.

[mommyoffive]

YAY!!!

Pfizer asks FDA to clear COVID-19 booster shot for children ages 5 to 11 - Los Angeles Times (latimes.com)

[KSera]

1 minute ago, mommyoffive said:

YAY!!!

Pfizer asks FDA to clear COVID-19 booster shot for children ages 5 to 11 - Los Angeles Times (latimes.com)

I got prematurely excited because I thought you were saying under 5s. Ah well. Carry on. 

[mommyoffive]

Just now, KSera said:

I got prematurely excited because I thought you were saying under 5s. Ah well. Carry on. 

Sorry.  I think it is so horrible we are still waiting for that.   

[kbutton]

I bump into these FL updates on an evidence-based FB page: https://redemptivehistorytheology.com/florida-statistics-what-is-really-happening-archive/florida-covid-statistics-what-is-really-happening-april-22-2022/?fbclid=IwAR2ElzObfvM5f00zT839OkQ1QoduC2QydioA_3CNrDF4mhtKSxGEil5q9aw

 

[Eos]

Any thoughts on this?  In ten days Dd and I are flying to visit my mother is who vaxxed and boosted as are we.  We will wear KN95s for the whole trip, but should we isolate or test before staying at her house?  We will do the strip-off-everything-stuff-it-in-a-bag-and-shower when we arrive.  Should we go back to wearing safety goggles when we fly?

 

[mommyoffive]

Fauci says U.S. is out of coronavirus 'pandemic phase' - The Washington Post

[Arcadia]

5 hours ago, Eos said:

Any thoughts on this?  In ten days Dd and I are flying to visit my mother is who vaxxed and boosted as are we.  We will wear KN95s for the whole trip, but should we isolate or test before staying at her house?  We will do the strip-off-everything-stuff-it-in-a-bag-and-shower when we arrive.  Should we go back to wearing safety goggles when we fly?

 

I don’t think the rapid test turns positive that fast if anyone catches covid on a flight. Does your mom have good room air purifiers? Have a good flight.

[YaelAldrich]

6 hours ago, Eos said:

Any thoughts on this?  In ten days Dd and I are flying to visit my mother is who vaxxed and boosted as are we.  We will wear KN95s for the whole trip, but should we isolate or test before staying at her house?  We will do the strip-off-everything-stuff-it-in-a-bag-and-shower when we arrive.  Should we go back to wearing safety goggles when we fly?

 

When was Mom's last booster?  How long is the flight?  How many flights and how long are the layovers (and do you plan to de-mask when in the layover airport) ?  I wouldn't do the strip off the clothes stuff.  I usually test every day (in the morning before I greet my parents)  of my visits to my parents now that the numbers are going back up. I also test before the trip one or two days before; isolation not really but there are few situations outside my home that I don't wear an N96 mask.

[kbutton]

3 hours ago, YaelAldrich said:

isolation not really but there are few situations outside my home that I don't wear an N96 mask.

When we travel to visit family, we isolate if numbers are high (order groceries vs. going to the store, don't do crowds with high case numbers, etc.), but we basically just don't do anything where we're without a mask for ten days leading up (we wear a combo of N95, KF94, etc. as we find ones that fit). We don't eat out. We don't eat with other people except spread out outside. 

I think that's superior to testing, and it's going to be hard to immediately test positive for plane exposure.

I would try to eat only in really isolated spots in the airport (and maybe get finger food that you can slip under your mask in small pieces?), and I would try not to eat on the plane. Maybe take a straw for hydration so you don't have to unmask to drink.

[Eos]

1 hour ago, kbutton said:

When we travel to visit family, we isolate if numbers are high (order groceries vs. going to the store, don't do crowds with high case numbers, etc.), but we basically just don't do anything where we're without a mask for ten days leading up (we wear a combo of N95, KF94, etc. as we find ones that fit). We don't eat out. We don't eat with other people except spread out outside. 

I think that's superior to testing, and it's going to be hard to immediately test positive for plane exposure.

I would try to eat only in really isolated spots in the airport (and maybe get finger food that you can slip under your mask in small pieces?), and I would try not to eat on the plane. Maybe take a straw for hydration so you don't have to unmask to drink.

Yes, I feel like we'll be flying exactly as we have for the last year - fully masked at all times, possibly a straw with liquids, only taking down the mask to take bites in isolated places in the airports.  Unfortunately a long flight, but brief layovers.

We still mask K95 in all stores and don't eat out.

[Eos]

4 hours ago, YaelAldrich said:

When was Mom's last booster?

She was one of the first round of boosters, and hasn't received a fourth.  She's 93, in excellent health.

[mommyoffive]

Finally!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

@KSera, here it is!!

 

Moderna asks the F.D.A. to authorize its vaccine for children under 6. (msn.com)

 

 

Moderna asks the F.D.A. to Authorize its Vaccine for Children Under 6 - The New York Times (nytimes.com)

Edited April 28, 2022 by mommyoffive

[mommyoffive]

Pediatric State of Affairs: April 28 - by Katelyn Jetelina (substack.com)

[YaelAldrich]

16 hours ago, Eos said:

She was one of the first round of boosters, and hasn't received a fourth.  She's 93, in excellent health.

May she stay in excellent health! Could you help her get that 4th booster before y'all come?

[mommyoffive]

Costco has 100 N95s for $25

BYD N95 Particulate Respirator Face Mask, 20-count

add 5 of those to your cart

Edited April 28, 2022 by mommyoffive

[KSera]

2 hours ago, mommyoffive said:

Finally!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

@KSera, here it is!!

Moderna asks the F.D.A. to Authorize its Vaccine for Children Under 6 - The New York Times (nytimes.com)

Finally, indeed!  Wonder how long it will take for them to review and if they will approve. Fingers crossed.

55 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

Costco has 100 N95s for $25

BYD N95 Particulate Respirator Face Mask, 20-count

add 5 of those to your cart

That’s an amazing price. I caution people to read the reviews first though, as they sound extremely disappointing and unwearable for many ☹️. Kind of sounds like Costco is just trying to get rid of them as they are nearing expiration date anyway. 

[mommyoffive]

59 minutes ago, KSera said:

Finally, indeed!  Wonder how long it will take for them to review and if they will approve. Fingers crossed.

That’s an amazing price. I caution people to read the reviews first though, as they sound extremely disappointing and unwearable for many ☹️. Kind of sounds like Costco is just trying to get rid of them as they are nearing expiration date anyway. 

Yeah I don't like the straps around the head.  But maybe someone else they work for?

 

 

Under 5’s Vaccine

This evidence also highlights the importance of getting kids under 5 vaccinated. The most recent vaccine timeline has been largely comprised of whispers on the street, but this is what I’ve gathered:

• Moderna: On March 24, Moderna announced that their pediatric vaccines worked. The efficacy wasn’t ideal (48%), but expected with Omicron’s ability to escape immunity. Today they officially applied for an EUA after a few weeks of addressing incomplete paperwork. It typically takes the FDA 5-6 weeks to review everything (It took them 5 weeks to review Pfizer’s 5-11 vaccine), but maybe they will take this opportunity to step on the gas! If they don’t, this would land us in mid-June for the VRBPAC meeting.

• Pfizer: Concurrently, we’re waiting for third-dose Pfizer data. I would assume Pfizer is working in overdrive to get their data analyzed and submitted. I’m a little surprised we haven’t heard anything yet, which is making me a little nervous about the effectiveness of their third dose. Nonetheless, if and when Pfizer turns their data over, the FDA will review it. Because the FDA already has their two-dose data, I would assume this would be faster than Moderna.

So, it’s possible that both vaccines would be reviewed at the same VRBPAC meeting in June. If Pfizer doesn’t submit their data in time, it’s 100% reasonable (and should be 100% expected) that the FDA would go forward without Pfizer. I’m optimistic we will have a vaccine by June.

 

Pediatric State of Affairs: April 28 - by Katelyn Jetelina (substack.com)

[KSera]

16 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

Yeah I don't like the straps around the head.  But maybe someone else they work for?

All N95s will have straps around the head and I actually don’t mind them at all. It’s all I use for indoors right now because I trust the seal from around the head straps better than behind the ear. I like the 3M Aura and V-flex N95s. It sounds like those particular ones from Costco are itchy where they touch the face and the staples from the ear straps are frequently touching people’s cheeks, and despite having very short head straps, people frequently aren’t getting a good fit. It seems that shape of mask, which is how almost all of the KN95s are shaped also, does not fit as many people well as the boat shaped masks tend to. 

[mommyoffive]

1 minute ago, KSera said:

All N95s will have straps around the head and I actually don’t mind them at all. It’s all I use for indoors right now because I trust the seal from around the head straps better than behind the ear. I like the 3M Aura and V-flex N95s. It sounds like those particular ones from Costco are itchy where they touch the face and the staples from the ear straps are frequently touching people’s cheeks, and despite having very short head straps, people frequently aren’t getting a good fit. It seems that shape of mask, which is how almost all of the KN95s are shaped also, does not fit as many people well as the boat shaped masks tend to. 

I have tried Kn95s with the straps around the head and they are just to small for my huge head.  

[mommyoffive]

1 in 5 Educators Say They've Experienced Long COVID (edweek.org)

[Mrs Tiggywinkle]

One of my sisters just got diagnosed with Covid for the third time.  The first in November 2020, the second in Fall 2021, and now.  She’s fully vaccinated and boostered. She also still has long Covid symptoms from fall 2021 including vertigo and parasomia.  There just seems to be no winning. Most of us can’t actually isolate completely(or even at all), and especially not for years on end. 

Edited April 28, 2022 by Mrs Tiggywinkle

[kbutton]

16 minutes ago, Mrs Tiggywinkle said:

One of my sisters just got diagnosed with Covid for the third time.  The first in November 2020, the second in Fall 2021, and now.  She’s fully vaccinated and boostered. She also still has long Covid symptoms from fall 2021 including vertigo and parasomia.  There just seems to be no winning. Most of us can’t actually isolate completely(or even at all), and especially not for years on end. 

That's miserable. 

Isolate indefinitely, no. I can wear a mask indefinitely most of the time, but I can't do that while eating out, etc. That's where I am stuck. I wish people would socialize more with a mask. 

I was in a doctor's office yesterday where the doctor was the only one masked (no staff and nurses were, and they were actively telling people they don't have to mask), and he was only masked because the hospital his office is in says they have to mask. So, my brain was broken over the varied approach within the office--if it's a hospital rule, and he's masking, why is his staff not, and why are they actively inviting people to take them off. Then he said that we won't be virus free because it's man-made. I had no words at that point except sputtering about how numbers are going up. It's one thing to not mask with numbers stable, but when they go up, masks help. He assumed I wasn't vaccinated and therefore worried about getting sick...well, heart damage doesn't seem to care about vaccination status or covid-severity! 

It's all messed up for no good reason.

[Jean in Newcastle]

1 hour ago, kbutton said:

That's miserable. 

Isolate indefinitely, no. I can wear a mask indefinitely most of the time, but I can't do that while eating out, etc. That's where I am stuck. I wish people would socialize more with a mask. 

I was in a doctor's office yesterday where the doctor was the only one masked (no staff and nurses were, and they were actively telling people they don't have to mask), and he was only masked because the hospital his office is in says they have to mask. So, my brain was broken over the varied approach within the office--if it's a hospital rule, and he's masking, why is his staff not, and why are they actively inviting people to take them off. Then he said that we won't be virus free because it's man-made. I had no words at that point except sputtering about how numbers are going up. It's one thing to not mask with numbers stable, but when they go up, masks help. He assumed I wasn't vaccinated and therefore worried about getting sick...well, heart damage doesn't seem to care about vaccination status or covid-severity! 

It's all messed up for no good reason.

Yikes. I would look for a new doctor stat. Even if the virus was man made, his statement makes no sense. You can eradicate even man made viruses by not providing a host etc.  

[kbutton]

1 minute ago, Jean in Newcastle said:

Yikes. I would look for a new doctor stat. Even if the virus was man made, his statement makes no sense. You can eradicate even man made viruses by not providing a host etc.  

It's a specialist, and he's really good. I struggle to find doctors who are not rude and condescending, and he's incredibly kind as well as competent. He seems to believe in vaccination. It's just so far right here that it's hard to get anyone who checks all the "right ideas about covid" boxes. Even the ones who do check those boxes are over it. 

I have to have a procedure in a standalone surgery center this summer. The nurse in recovery won't be required to mask, but all the people in the operating room will. I will be unmasked basically the whole time because they don't let you take your mask into or out of the OR (had this procedure last year, so I know the drill). Anyway, he told me when the time comes, remind him, and he'll ask my recovery nurse to mask. So, I can't do much better, and I really wouldn't be surprised if a lot of medical places requiring masking now will not be masking by fall. The CDC does not have our backs.