Omicron anecdata?

[Longtime Lurker]

10 hours ago, HSmomof2 said:

I’m also having a hard time deciding what to do about a second booster. I’ll be 50 next month. I just had Covid in June, so planned to wait 90 days and hoped a new vaccine would be available in early fall. We’re also traveling in September…..

And for anyone who remembers my ongoing positive Rapid tests……I finally tested negative today a rapid test……day 29 since first positive! 😳  

Wow! That's a long time to stay positive!

9 hours ago, Corraleno said:

My first 2 shots were Pfizer and I chose Moderna for both boosters. There is some evidence that the two vaccines elicit slightly different responses from the immune system, suggesting that mixing doses may give broader protection. And even if that weren't true, I'd still get Moderna for the larger dose.

I would not put it off in the hope of having an omicron-specific booster by fall. I think the best-case estimates were that there could be one available in October, but I think November is more likely, and the first doses will likely go to over 65s, so it could be December by the time others are eligible. And frankly by that time we may be dealing with a completely different variant and a BA4 vaccine will not be any more effective than the one we have now, so I'd go for the bird-in-the-hand that at least reduces risk of hospitalization and death. 

Yes, I think I am convinced that going with Moderna is a good choice this time. Last fall, I became eligible for a booster in late September since I'm a teacher. At the point I became eligible, the Pfizer booster had been approved but the Moderna had not. I went for whatever protection I could get sooner and I think that was a good decision. Now that I have the option, Moderna makes more sense. 

9 hours ago, regentrude said:

That was our thinking.  We got the 4th booster recently since we will be traveling and visiting elderly family. So we decided to maximize our protection NOW, however fleeting that may be.

Who knows how the virus has mutated in the fall.

Good points.

2 hours ago, wathe said:

Further thoughts:

This pandemic has been an exercise in making decisions based on imperfect information right from the beginning, hasn't it?  We should all be used to it by now....... (but of course we aren't; uncertainty sucks.  Especially when the stakes are high)

The way I see it, a 4 th booster will provide some protection against the current variant now , and we are in a wave now. Definite reward, near-certainty.  At the expense maybe not qualifying for an omi-specific booster later,   that may or may not be available to me, and that may or may not be effective against whatever variant pops up next.  Boosting now is the safer choice, I think

Waiting for an Omi specific booster leaves me vulnerable now (certainty) and may not bring any future reward at all.  That's a poor bet, I think

These are really good points. In April, I put off getting my second booster since I wanted the protection when traveling (for the first time in two years) in late May. Instead, I got covid and almost missed DD's graduation 😞

[wathe]

Throwing this into this thread, because I think it's where interested boardies will be most likely to see it.  There has been some recent good local momentum regarding fixing air quality.

Toronto Public Library system has started a CO2 monitor lending program.  It's been in the news the past few days.  Peterborough pioneered a similar program in April which has been very successful.  An amazing way make CO2 monitors accessible to anyone.  Private CO2 monitoring is on its way to becoming more mainstream, I think.  At least a much larger proportion of the population has heard of it.

Local cafe has taken up air-quality as part of its branding; displays real-time CO2 data, has HEPA filtration etc.

Local clean air map app initiative - crowd sourced indoor air CO2 readings all around the city.

Edited July 14, 2022 by wathe

[cintinative]

Y'all, this is hard. DH is on day 10 of testing positive but he is feeling better so he is frustrated to be trapped in the basement.  His work doesn't want him to go in if he is testing positive. He is saying things like "being vaccinated and boosted makes you more likely to test positive after 10 days." Is this true?

All along he has felt this whole COVID thing was an overreach. It's been super frustrating having that divide in our house because the kids tend to take his POV.  Now he is the only one sick, and I really don't want to get this, regardless of how tired he is of basement isolation.  He is saying things like he guesses he won't see people for the next year.  Sigh.

Prayers appreciated. 

 

[Kanin]

2 minutes ago, cintinative said:

He is saying things like he guesses he won't see people for the next year. 

My DH exaggerates like this when he's frustrated. It makes me angry. "Well, I guess I'll NEVER share my opinion again!" Things like that. 

[mommyoffive]

12 hours ago, wathe said:

Throwing this into this thread, because I think it's where interested boardies will be most likely to see it.  There has been some recent good local momentum regarding fixing air quality.

Toronto Public Library system has started a CO2 monitor lending program.  It's been in the news the past few days.  Peterborough pioneered a similar program in April which has been very successful.  An amazing way make CO2 monitors accessible to anyone.  Private CO2 monitoring is on its way to becoming more mainstream, I think.  At least a much larger proportion of the population has heard of it.

Local cafe has taken up air-quality as part of its branding; displays real-time CO2 data, has HEPA filtration etc.

Local clean air map app initiative - crowd sourced indoor air CO2 readings all around the city.

How cool.  I of course wish every place would do things like that.  

[mommyoffive]

1 hour ago, cintinative said:

Y'all, this is hard. DH is on day 10 of testing positive but he is feeling better so he is frustrated to be trapped in the basement.  His work doesn't want him to go in if he is testing positive. He is saying things like "being vaccinated and boosted makes you more likely to test positive after 10 days." Is this true?

All along he has felt this whole COVID thing was an overreach. It's been super frustrating having that divide in our house because the kids tend to take his POV.  Now he is the only one sick, and I really don't want to get this, regardless of how tired he is of basement isolation.  He is saying things like he guesses he won't see people for the next year.  Sigh.

Prayers appreciated. 

 

Never heard or read that.  

Yeah I think he is frustrated, but also his previous opinion weighs into this too.    Sounds like his work is doing the most protective thing for the other workers.   

[Jean in Newcastle]

1 hour ago, cintinative said:

Y'all, this is hard. DH is on day 10 of testing positive but he is feeling better so he is frustrated to be trapped in the basement.  His work doesn't want him to go in if he is testing positive. He is saying things like "being vaccinated and boosted makes you more likely to test positive after 10 days." Is this true?

All along he has felt this whole COVID thing was an overreach. It's been super frustrating having that divide in our house because the kids tend to take his POV.  Now he is the only one sick, and I really don't want to get this, regardless of how tired he is of basement isolation.  He is saying things like he guesses he won't see people for the next year.  Sigh.

Prayers appreciated. 

 

I think that he is confusing antibody testing (where a vaccinated person may indeed test positive for antibodies) with an antigen or pcr test. 

[mommyoffive]

How Many Variants And Deaths Are We Willing To Accept, Before We Protect The Whole World? (forbes.com)

[KSera]

5 hours ago, cintinative said:

Y'all, this is hard. DH is on day 10 of testing positive but he is feeling better so he is frustrated to be trapped in the basement.  His work doesn't want him to go in if he is testing positive. He is saying things like "being vaccinated and boosted makes you more likely to test positive after 10 days." Is this true?

 

I’m sorry, this sounds really hard. No, the bold it is not true. I spent that little while yesterday looking over the research we have so far on rapid tests and contagiousness and one of them specifically stated that there was no difference in that correlation (ie positive rapid tests indicating contagious virus) with vaccinated versus unvaccinated people. I’m guessing with the way he’s feeling though, but he may not respond kindly to sharing that research with him. He’s likely to be negative very soon, so hopefully you can get him to hold out in the basement. If not, do you have somewhere you can go with the kids until he’s negative?

[cintinative]

Just now, KSera said:

He’s likely to be negative very soon, so hopefully you can get him to hold out in the basement. If not, do you have somewhere you can go with the kids until he’s negative?

Not really. I suggested that he go on the back porch and work since the weather has been nice.  I know part of it is he feels cramped in that little room.  Hopefully he will test negative soon.

[Arcadia]

5 hours ago, cintinative said:

. He is saying things like "being vaccinated and boosted makes you more likely to test positive after 10 days." Is this true?

 

 

3 hours ago, mommyoffive said:

Never heard or read that.  

 

3 hours ago, Jean in Newcastle said:

I think that he is confusing antibody testing (where a vaccinated person may indeed test positive for antibodies) with an antigen or pcr test. 

He may be referring to this study which shows that symptoms start earlier for vaccinated health care workers compared to unvaccinated, and so they end up testing positive longer.
 

Study link https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.02.01.22269931v1.full

pdf version https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.02.01.22269931v1.full.pdf

“
 

 

Impact of Booster

Crucially, the percent first RAT positive was not uniformly distributed by booster status. Among individuals returning on day 5 for their first test, boosted HCW were nearly 3 times more likely than unboosted HCW to present with a positive RAT (61% positivity among boosted vs. 21% among unboosted). (Table 1 and Figure 2). Over all first tests performed on days 5-10, boosted HCW were nearly twice as likely to test RAT positive: 53% (75 out of 141) of boosted HCW tested positive compared to 27% (32 of 119) for unboosted HCW.

…

Conclusion

Despite the limitations noted, these results indicate that a substantial proportion of individuals with COVID-19 are likely still contagious after day 5 of illness regardless of symptom status. Early liberation from isolation should be undertaken only with the understanding that inclusion of individuals on day 6-10 of illness in community or work settings may increase the risk of COVID-19 spread to others which, in turn, may undermine the intended benefits to staffing by resulting in more sick workers. RAT testing can identify those at lower risk of transmitting COVID and should be employed alongside strict adherence to masking whenever vulnerable individuals are present including the unvaccinated, elderly, and/or immunocompromised.“

[mommyoffive]

With COVID surging, Los Angeles may soon require masks (msn.com)

[mommyoffive]

 

I had heard that Offit was saying that the 4th shot was not needed for most people.  Argh.   Confusing.

 

 

FDA: Don't rush into changing Covid-19 vaccine composition - STAT (statnews.com)

The next round of COVID-19 booster shots, explained (msn.com)

Some federal officials feel the White House should be doing more to increase initial two-dose vaccination rates rather than pushing incremental protection for those already at least somewhat shielded, the Times notes. Speaking with the Post, outside adviser to the FDA Paul Offit described federal officials' current attitude as one of "booster mania."

"I do think [a second booster shot] does make sense for certain groups, but a universal boosting strategy doesn't make sense," Offit said Monday. He also warned of the possibility of "imprinting," when an individual's immune system latches onto one targeted response and struggles to evolve alongside the virus. "As you continue to boost with the same ancestral strain, you lock yourself into that response," Offit continued. "Should there ever be a virus that is truly resistant to protection against serious illness ... you need to start all over again and give that vaccine."

There's also the concern that "by promoting second boosters for all adults now, the administration could weaken its argument for reformulated booster shots in the fall, when it hopes to offer boosters that better combat the latest versions of the virus," the Times goes on

[Jaybee]

I was planning to wait for my 2nd booster until the fall. I keep hearing of people testing positive though, and also reading of medical personnel saying not to wait for the 2nd booster (I'm in my 60s). So I went ahead and got it this afternoon. Moderna after 3 Pfizers. My last booster was in September, then I had covid in February. I have mixed feelings still, though, because it feels now like it is a guessing game as to what is most helpful. I'm not near as confident as I was at first. I guess part of it is the thought that getting boosters every few months doesn't seem like a great idea either.🤷‍♀️ So far, I'm not feeling any side effects other than a little site soreness. Maybe some slight nausea. I have a free day tomorrow, though, just in case. 

[Corraleno]

1 hour ago, mommyoffive said:

 

I had heard that Offit was saying that the 4th shot was not needed for most people.  Argh.   Confusing.

 

 

FDA: Don't rush into changing Covid-19 vaccine composition - STAT (statnews.com)

The next round of COVID-19 booster shots, explained (msn.com)

Some federal officials feel the White House should be doing more to increase initial two-dose vaccination rates rather than pushing incremental protection for those already at least somewhat shielded, the Times notes. Speaking with the Post, outside adviser to the FDA Paul Offit described federal officials' current attitude as one of "booster mania."

"I do think [a second booster shot] does make sense for certain groups, but a universal boosting strategy doesn't make sense," Offit said Monday. He also warned of the possibility of "imprinting," when an individual's immune system latches onto one targeted response and struggles to evolve alongside the virus. "As you continue to boost with the same ancestral strain, you lock yourself into that response," Offit continued. "Should there ever be a virus that is truly resistant to protection against serious illness ... you need to start all over again and give that vaccine."

There's also the concern that "by promoting second boosters for all adults now, the administration could weaken its argument for reformulated booster shots in the fall, when it hopes to offer boosters that better combat the latest versions of the virus," the Times goes on

I think Offit's stance is really off the mark. If the reason we still had millions of unvaccinated adults was because there wasn't enough vaccine to go around, or some people didn't have access for some reason, then of course it would make sense to focus on that group. But the truth is that anyone who hasn't had a first shot by now has made that choice for very specific (and largely political) reasons and is never going to get one.  If Offit has some amazing plan that no one has thought of that can convince millions of anti-vaxxers to suddenly change their minds, then he should certainly share that with the White House. Otherwise it makes more sense to allow those who do want the protection to get a 2nd booster, since there have been multiple studies now all showing that a 2nd booster provides significantly more protection against severe illness and death. 

[wathe]

I got my 4 dose today (2nd booster).  Moderna after 3 Pfizers.  I'm grateful to have access to it.

I'n definitely feeling it more that my first 3 doses: fatigue, myalgia.  So I'm resting  an  wallowing in my immune response - quietly cheering on my immune system to do its thing.

[ktgrok]

9 hours ago, Corraleno said:

I think Offit's stance is really off the mark. If the reason we still had millions of unvaccinated adults was because there wasn't enough vaccine to go around, or some people didn't have access for some reason, then of course it would make sense to focus on that group. But the truth is that anyone who hasn't had a first shot by now has made that choice for very specific (and largely political) reasons and is never going to get one.  If Offit has some amazing plan that no one has thought of that can convince millions of anti-vaxxers to suddenly change their minds, then he should certainly share that with the White House. Otherwise it makes more sense to allow those who do want the protection to get a 2nd booster, since there have been multiple studies now all showing that a 2nd booster provides significantly more protection against severe illness and death. 

THIS!

Like, what the heck? He says we should focus on those who are not yet double vaccinated - as if we haven't TRIED THAT! 

[Laura Corin]

Update on my brother with Long Covid. His liver function figures are now normal but he is still suffering from nausea and times when he can barely get out of bed. He's lost around 14 pounds from an already skinny frame.   He's waiting for the results of a scan to look for other abdominal issues. He has also been referred to a LC clinic.

And now his wife has Covid again and he's developing symptoms. No matter how careful he is in the outside world,  his wife's job in a school poses a continuing risk of repeat infection. 

[mommyoffive]

11 hours ago, Corraleno said:

I think Offit's stance is really off the mark. If the reason we still had millions of unvaccinated adults was because there wasn't enough vaccine to go around, or some people didn't have access for some reason, then of course it would make sense to focus on that group. But the truth is that anyone who hasn't had a first shot by now has made that choice for very specific (and largely political) reasons and is never going to get one.  If Offit has some amazing plan that no one has thought of that can convince millions of anti-vaxxers to suddenly change their minds, then he should certainly share that with the White House. Otherwise it makes more sense to allow those who do want the protection to get a 2nd booster, since there have been multiple studies now all showing that a 2nd booster provides significantly more protection against severe illness and death. 

Yeah, I don't follow him, but saw the article yesterday after someone brought him up on another board. 

[mommyoffive]

1 hour ago, Laura Corin said:

Update on my brother with Long Covid. His liver function figures are now normal but he is still suffering from nausea and times when he can barely get out of bed. He's lost around 14 pounds from an already skinny frame.   He's waiting for the results of a scan to look for other abdominal issues. He has also been referred to a LC clinic.

And now his wife has Covid again and he's developing symptoms. No matter how careful he is in the outside world,  his wife's job in a school poses a continuing risk of repeat infection. 

I am so sorry.   Your poor brother.  Sending some healing wishes his way.  I hope he doesn't get very sick.

[mommyoffive]

Fact Sheet: Biden Administration Outlines Strategy to Manage BA.5 | The White House

[Malory]

15 hours ago, mommyoffive said:

"I do think [a second booster shot] does make sense for certain groups, but a universal boosting strategy doesn't make sense," Offit said Monday. He also warned of the possibility of "imprinting," when an individual's immune system latches onto one targeted response and struggles to evolve alongside the virus. "As you continue to boost with the same ancestral strain, you lock yourself into that response," Offit continued. "Should there ever be a virus that is truly resistant to protection against serious illness ... you need to start all over again and give that vaccine."

Offit is hardly the only doctor warning against blanket booster recommendation. And the idea of "immune imprinting" makes sense and is well documented. My layman understanding is that a body trained to fight against that one type of pathogen over and over again will negatively impact its ability to recognize and fight against other pathogens. 

My own omicron anecdote: My area is getting hit with a lot of new cases. My boosted friends are getting covid now; some for the first time, others for the second time. Friends who are unvaxxed but previously infected seem to escape the current wave. This is true even among people in the same family. 

[mommyoffive]

Covid-19 public health emergency extended in the US - CNN

The Biden administration on Friday extended the Covid-19 public health emergency for another three months.

US Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra officially renewed the declaration, extending it through October 13, 2022.

The emergency declaration has been in place since January 2020, and the latest renewal comes as the Omicron offshoot BA.5, the most contagious variant yet, continues to stake its claim in the US. Daily case rates, though vastly undercounted, are the highest they've been in months, as are Covid-19 hospitalizations and deaths.

[mommyoffive]

Boost now or wait? Many wonder how best to ride out COVID's next wave (msn.com)

[maize]

20 hours ago, Malory said:

 

My own omicron anecdote: My area is getting hit with a lot of new cases. My boosted friends are getting covid now; some for the first time, others for the second time. Friends who are unvaxxed but previously infected seem to escape the current wave. This is true even among people in the same family. 

Not true in my circles. Everyone is getting it, including those previously infected. 

[KSera]

21 hours ago, Malory said:

My own omicron anecdote: My area is getting hit with a lot of new cases. My boosted friends are getting covid now; some for the first time, others for the second time. Friends who are unvaxxed but previously infected seem to escape the current wave. This is true even among people in the same family. 

Real world data is not following this pattern at all. There is a high rate of reinfection now, with the rate higher among unvaccinated but previously infected than vaccinated. It’s hard to study because most places don’t count it as a reinfection if it happens within 90 days  This is a nice piece of recent research though, where they sequenced all the cases in people who go sick again within 60 days, and determined all the ones that were truly new infections. Of those, 76% of reinfections in less than 60 days were unvaccinated. “Rapid reinfections with different or same Omicron SARS-CoV-2 sub-variants”

 

 It’s a blow that previous infection on its own is not very protective, because it means herd immunity is pretty much impossible right now. And a reinfection increases the risk of death  in the six months following by 114% 😔. 

55 minutes ago, maize said:

Not true in my circles. Everyone is getting it, including those previously infected. 

It’s everywhere! I hate it. My youngest finally has his first dose, but I’m dearly hoping we don’t catch it before he can get the second. Had to go in somewhere that felt risky yesterday with an older kid. We were among the only ones masked, and that seems insane right now. 

Edited July 16, 2022 by KSera
Typo

[Ali in OR]

It does seem like everyone is getting it now. In my family of origin, 3 of us 4 siblings have had it and 2 of our 4 spouses. My dad texted yesterday that he now has it and I expect his wife to follow soon. That's most of our family in the last 2 months and we had all avoided it for over 2 years. And we live all over the place--not near each other.

[kbutton]

59 minutes ago, KSera said:

And a reinfection increases the risk of death  in the six months following by 114% 😔. 

When I try to google this, I get some 2021 articles about a 59% increase. Do you have a link for this? I don't even bother posting articles on FB that much anymore, but if I get a really clear one, sometimes I do.

[Malory]

2 hours ago, KSera said:

Real world data is not following this pattern at all. There is a high rate of reinfection now, with the rate higher among unvaccinated but previously infected than vaccinated. It’s hard to study because most places don’t count it as a reinfection if it happens within 90 days  This is a nice piece of recent research though, where they sequenced all the cases in people who go sick again within 60 days, and determined all the ones that were truly new infections. Of those, 76% of reinfections in less than 60 days were unvaccinated. “Rapid reinfections with different or same Omicron SARS-CoV-2 sub-variants”

Thanks for the article. It's not clear to me if the "unvaccinated" in the study have had previous infections. The unvaccinated people in my circle who have so far escaped the current wave were infected during alpha/delta. So I have hope yet that some in the population do have durable immunity. ✌️

[BeachGal]

In my family, everyone has had only two doses of vaccine, Pfizer, and a single case of symptomatic Covid, mild, last winter. Yet, my husband and I and our kids have all been traveling -- Europe, South America, all over the US and taking cruises -- and yet none of us have had any symptoms of Covid or signs of reinfection again. It is a weird virus, for sure.

[KSera]

1 hour ago, kbutton said:

When I try to google this, I get some 2021 articles about a 59% increase. Do you have a link for this? I don't even bother posting articles on FB that much anymore, but if I get a really clear one, sometimes I do.

Looks like the most recent one is a pre-print showing 114%. If I come across others and I will share, as I know that in the past month there was a lot about this:

Here’s an nbc story that includes that and is a better lay article:

https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/coronavirus/covid-variant-ba5-new-york-state-covid-dashboard-reinfection-vaccine/3764774/

8 minutes ago, Malory said:

Thanks for the article. It's not clear to me if the "unvaccinated" in the study have had previous infections. The unvaccinated people in my circle who have so far escaped the current wave were infected during alpha/delta. So I have hope yet that some in the population do have durable immunity. ✌️

Yes, all were people who had two documented Covid infections within 60 days of one another. That was the inclusion criteria for the study.

[Malory]

10 minutes ago, KSera said:

Yes, all were people who had two documented Covid infections within 60 days of one another. That was the inclusion criteria for the study.

Correct, and so it would be safe to assume they were infected during omicron. I was wondering if these people had previous alpha/delta infections. Sorry for not being clear. 

Something else I am observing in my circles, the not vaxxed and never infected people seem to be immune to the current variant as well. Life is not fair. Some do have super innate immunity.

[KSera]

36 minutes ago, Malory said:

Correct, and so it would be safe to assume they were infected during omicron. I was wondering if these people had previous alpha/delta infections. Sorry for not being clear. 

Right, these would most likely all have been omicron. Unfortunately, the news is even worse for people whose previous infection was alpha or Delta. There have been lots of studies showing that infection with previous variance provides almost no protection against omicron variants. Vaccination slightly better but still not much protection from infection. The vaccinated infections though were of course far more protected from serious illness and death. While neither vaccination nor prior infection with Alpha or Delta do a lot to prevent an omicron infection, I think the reason there’s a big difference in the numbers for reinfection, with unvaccinated people being much more likely to be reinfected, is because vaccination plus infection provides the highest, broadest immunity. People who have only had an infection without also having a vaccine aren’t nearly as protected and thus are being reinfected at a higher rate.

A couple links on this:

COVID-19 infection before 2022 offers little protection against new variants, study finds

And in kids 

Study Finds Previous Covid-19 Infection Doesn’t Protect Children From Omicron

😔

[bookbard]

7 hours ago, Malory said:

Something else I am observing in my circles, the not vaxxed and never infected people seem to be immune to the current variant as well.

I'm seeing the opposite - the unvaxed are the people I know who have had it twice in our community, and that's since December 2021 when Covid really went off in Australia. So the 3 unvaxed families I know got it in December and then have had it again in the last few weeks.

The people who haven't got it so far have been people with new babies, probably because they're less likely to go out places. The two other families I know who mask religiously haven't had it either. All vaxed. 

[cintinative]

Does anyone have studies about being contagious past 10 days w omnicron ba5?
 

[maize]

My kids who were infected in April or November last year (Different kids--November would have been Delta, April whatever was going around in April 2021) got this summer's variant and every one of them was sicker than they were with last year's variants.

Infection with earlier variants is not providing protection from current variants, nor are current variants necessarily milder.

[mommyoffive]

COVID reinfection has a silver lining—one that may help tame the pandemic | Fortune

[cintinative]

My husband literally just tested negative yesterday and today my oldest son is sick and tested positive.  I really don't want all of us to get sick, but wow, if we just go end to end like this, it will be really bad. 

In related news, we have used up almost all of our COVID tests plus the ones my friend gave me (she gave me the four boxes sent by the USPS).  So now I need to order more. What is the best place to buy them?

[mommyoffive]

Covid Rises Across U.S. Amid Muted Warnings and Murky Data (msn.com)

[mommyoffive]

Fauci says it's 'becoming more and more difficult to get people to listen' because Americans are fed up with the COVID-19 pandemic and want it 'behind them' (msn.com)

[mommyoffive]

Ghana declares first-ever outbreak of Marburg virus disease | WHO | Regional Office for Africa

[maize]

13 hours ago, cintinative said:

My husband literally just tested negative yesterday and today my oldest son is sick and tested positive.  I really don't want all of us to get sick, but wow, if we just go end to end like this, it will be really bad. 

In related news, we have used up almost all of our COVID tests plus the ones my friend gave me (she gave me the four boxes sent by the USPS).  So now I need to order more. What is the best place to buy them?

I've been able to get them from a couple of pharmacies, including CVS, by calling in advance and having them bill my insurance. If there is a drive through you can do contactless pickup.

[SHP]

44 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

Ghana declares first-ever outbreak of Marburg virus disease | WHO | Regional Office for Africa

No. 

[Ting Tang]

7 hours ago, mommyoffive said:

Fauci says it's 'becoming more and more difficult to get people to listen' because Americans are fed up with the COVID-19 pandemic and want it 'behind them' (msn.com)

I double masked today. I have to go on a big extended vacation with my husband’s family soon, and they’re fine taking risks…as is he… and I just hate it. E.g eating in the hotel breakfast room on our way to the cabin destination. I miss my old life, the one we had before Covid. A premarital question that was never asked was about how you’d handle a pandemic. I honestly don’t think we’d have gotten married if we’d met during this. 

[Ausmumof3]

54 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

Ghana declares first-ever outbreak of Marburg virus disease | WHO | Regional Office for Africa

Also the mystery illness in Tanzania apparently turned out to be leptospirosis which according to health people is less concerning than some things they were worried about.

[cintinative]

9 hours ago, Ting Tang said:

I double masked today. I have to go on a big extended vacation with my husband’s family soon, and they’re fine taking risks…as is he… and I just hate it. E.g eating in the hotel breakfast room on our way to the cabin destination. I miss my old life, the one we had before Covid. A premarital question that was never asked was about how you’d handle a pandemic. I honestly don’t think we’d have gotten married if we’d met during this. 

you are not alone.  I'm in the same place

[mommyoffive]

11 hours ago, Ting Tang said:

I double masked today. I have to go on a big extended vacation with my husband’s family soon, and they’re fine taking risks…as is he… and I just hate it. E.g eating in the hotel breakfast room on our way to the cabin destination. I miss my old life, the one we had before Covid. A premarital question that was never asked was about how you’d handle a pandemic. I honestly don’t think we’d have gotten married if we’d met during this. 

I miss my old life too.   A lot.  I miss the simplicity of it.  I hate analyzing everything.

Sending you some hugs.  That has to be so hard to be married to someone with a different viewpoint on how to handle a pandemic.  I am sorry.  I don't have any advice.   

I envy people who are just out living life like 2019.  Maybe they have had covid recently and aren't worried.  I don't know.  

[Ting Tang]

2 hours ago, cintinative said:

you are not alone.  I'm in the same place

I'm so sorry.  It is tough.  The attitude just seems so disrespectful as a married person.

28 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

I miss my old life too.   A lot.  I miss the simplicity of it.  I hate analyzing everything.

Sending you some hugs.  That has to be so hard to be married to someone with a different viewpoint on how to handle a pandemic.  I am sorry.  I don't have any advice.   

I envy people who are just out living life like 2019.  Maybe they have had covid recently and aren't worried.  I don't know.  

It is so tough.  I envy them a bit, too.  I have a little bit of hope that one day there will be a way to eradicate the type of Covid that leaves people sick and not themselves for weeks...months....but who knows!  Let's just say it is hard to have that loving feeling for my husband.  All I ask is he wear a mask in certain situations.  I'd prefer to avoid the hotel pool, but I am not going to win that battle.  We have a pool in our backyard, and anyone is welcome anytime.  I don't feel the need to risk Covid on my way to a 10 day trip.  It seems stupid.  

[mommyoffive]

 

 

 

 

Nasal vaccines may stop Covid infections. Will we get them soon? (msn.com)

[mommyoffive]

Anyone else need something to worry about?

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