Light at the end of the tunnel?

[thesnob20]

Is this vaccine the beginning of the end?

Will next year be better?

Will we have a 'normal' Christmas next year?

The uncertainty of it all (I work in events) is killing me.

[thesnob20]

I know no one can really answer that btw...

[wheresmymojo]

My personal opinion (though I do follow things very closely, read the medical papers)

• Yes, it is the beginning of the end

• Things will start to go back to normal next year over time

• Next Christmas will be back to normal

[Lovemusic33]

I would like to think so though I think the next few weeks/months may be tough before the vaccine is rolled out.

[MarshaBradyo]

Vaccine guy said normal by this time next year

Much better by summer

Feels hard atm over winter but will get better

Also fingers crossed re Oxford vaccine

[IcedPurple]

When I heard the vaccine news I was absolutely thrilled. I thought the end was really in sight. Now, 5 days on, I'm feeling low again. It's not that the vaccine news wasn't great - it is! - more that I'm finding the monotony and isolation very hard and even best case scenario, winter is going to be shit.

Like you I have a career which is on hold due to the pandemic and I was chatting with colleagues a few days ago and they were not optimistic about the summer - the busy time of year for us. That depressed me. I could deal with a shit winter if I know spring and summer wil be relatively normal. I couldn't deal with another summer of Zoom meetings.

So I guess you could say I'm still on the Coronacoaster, going from optimisim to gloom and back again on a near daily basis.

[IcedPurple]

Vaccine guy said normal by this time next year

I read that interview too and felt it was a real downer.

This time next year? That feels like an eternity away!

[thesnob20]

@IcedPurple coronacoaster - v good! Wishing the best for our jobs 🤞🏻🤞🏻🤞🏻

[MarshaBradyo]

Iced I know feels back to being onerous again

I feel like I’m waiting on Oxford news this week. Really need of to be good (fingers crossed).

[Qasd]

Umm think far to early to say given natural immunity doesn’t last then how long any vaccine lasts is a big question and one they cannot answer.

I would guess there will be less social restrictions by this time next year because we cannot afford furlough forever so we have to allow people to make their own money but what it means for covid I don’t know.

[Pipandmum]

I think that yes this time next year the vaccine will have been rolled out to protect the most vulnerable, the nhs will be even better at treating those who contract it, and things will be far more back to normal.

[MillieVanilla]

@thesnob20 I'm in events too so I'm bloody hoping so
I received an email from a bride app that said from end of May they've been told to expect restrictions to be more or less lifted due to the vaccine but also the rapid testing that's on its way.
Fingers crossed

[Sunshinegirl82]

I'm optimistic immunity will last at least a year (I'm actually pretty optimistic immunity could be fairly long lasting based on what has been seen in those who recovered from SARS). Even if it's not, boosters aren't really any great shakes and as it becomes endemic will probably only be necessary for those at particularly high risk.

I read the article from the Pfizer guy saying this time next year too. It read to me as though he was only taking into account the manufacturing capabilities of the Pfizer vaccine. I'd expect we will have two, possibly three, vaccines approved December/January so I'd hope we could improve on that. I really think by next Easter things will be very much on the up.

I have mentally written off the winter as something to be endured (in the same way I would with a long series of exams of something similar!) I think once you do that it's actually easier to manage mentally. This too shall pass!

[IcedPurple]

I have mentally written off the winter as something to be endured (in the same way I would with a long series of exams of something similar!) I think once you do that it's actually easier to manage mentally. This too shall pass!

Yes, it will pass. But when? I'd be OK with writing off this winter if I knew there was something to look forward to relatively soon. But 'back to normal by next Christmas'? That sounds like forever! I found summer tougher than now because whereas winter is always quiet for me, the months between May and September is when I make the money and have the fun and socialsing to 'sustain' me for the rest of the year. The thought of another summer like the last one fills me with gloom.

[MarshaBradyo]

Iced it’s one vaccine person though, the Pfizer one. Limited by how fast they can go. If we get more on board it may be faster.

[Toddlerteaplease]

Yes. It's the beginning of the end.

[IcedPurple]

@MarshaBradyo

Iced it’s one vaccine person though, the Pfizer one. Limited by how fast they can go. If we get more on board it may be faster.

I hope so. But even with multiple vaccines available, wouldn't staffing and infrastructure capabilities limit the speed at which they could be administered?

[MarshaBradyo]

There will be a limit but sounds like this time next year was a Pfizer constraint. I can’t know for sure, maybe someone else will, but I’d go with Sunshine’s comment on Easter time / a bit after being better if more come on board.

[whatswithtodaytoday]

Yes, I think we are at the beginning of the end. This time next year to be back to normal sounds amazing, quite frankly. It's likely that we'll have multiple vaccines at our disposal by next summer, plus rapid testing for ticketed events.

Vaccines should give better immunity than the illness itself - that's why two doses are given. It may become a yearly thing for the vulnerable and anyone else who wants it, which is absolutely fine by me.

The winter will be shit, but we will get through it. It's just a series of days to be endured. Try to get outside in the daylight as much as possible, it helps. It's only just over one month until the shortest day, then the days will start to get lighter again. I saw a snowdrop today. Spring will come around just like it always does.

[Northernsoullover]

Personally I think rapid testing will help life go back to normal sooner than the vaccine. The vaccine is very exciting obviously but its roll out isn't going to be quick.

[Sunshinegirl82]

If the vaccine/vaccines are available in sufficient quantity I think they'll throw every man, woman, soldier, pharmacist and vet at it to vaccinate as many people as possible as quickly as possible.

My dr surgery do mass flu vaccinations on a Saturday, they get through thousands of people in only a few sessions. Multiply that approach up and I honestly think we could get large numbers of people vaccinated really quite quickly.

[BlueBlancmange]

@IcedPurple

I have mentally written off the winter as something to be endured (in the same way I would with a long series of exams of something similar!) I think once you do that it's actually easier to manage mentally. This too shall pass!

Yes, it will pass. But when? I'd be OK with writing off this winter if I knew there was something to look forward to relatively soon. But 'back to normal by next Christmas'? That sounds like forever! I found summer tougher than now because whereas winter is always quiet for me, the months between May and September is when I make the money and have the fun and socialsing to 'sustain' me for the rest of the year. The thought of another summer like the last one fills me with gloom.

Even if it's not totally back to normal by next summer, hopefully we will start to see improvements from spring. So assuming that happens people should start to feel optimistic in only a few months time really .

[starfish88]

I think over the summer cases will fall naturally like this summer where cases were much lower as we are all outside, more vitamin D and respiratory viruses generally decline in the summer anyway. But the vaccine should mean that cases don't go back up next Autumn and we stay normal rather than this winter which I agree just needs to be got through now. That's what I'm hoping for anyway.

[Cornettoninja]

I still think that we need to get over this wave and winter is still going to be hard going but when things start getting better with the weather it will continue to get better incrementally as a vaccine is distributed.

When things are better dd (4) is getting a party no matter what time of year - she’s gutted that she’s not getting a birthday party this year.

[tortoiseshell1985]

No.
If you read between the lines the Govt cautious response is very telling. I think it will be a long time before they restore what they have taken away in terms of personal freedoms and civil liberties
I think SAGE will continue to be a heavy and negative influence particularly Whitty and Vallance

[thesnob20]

@tortoiseshell1985 you're cheery! Fog nets crossed you're wrong