Has everyone just given up on social distancing?

[Esbm2015]

It certainly feels that way and is making me very anxious and frustrated.

I’ve been following the rules with my friends when I have seen them and have been working from home.

This morning on a work call many of my London based colleagues attitude was basically that I was being too sensible and that i need to get over my concerns about travelling into the city on the tube and train as there’s nothing to worry about. I still don’t feel comfortable taking an hour long journey by train and bit more by tube - esp as trains were so unreliable and unclean pre-Covid and of what I’ve seen many on board are not wearing masks etc.

Also they were happy to say they are not SD at all with friends and family, just strangers. Many have shared pictures of themselves on social media with no SD at all hugging etc.

I just find it very frustrating - plus I didn’t get chance to say that actually I don’t really care about going back into London for the foreseeable. I’m having a great time where I live right now, even while sticking to the rules and seeing friends. But I was made to feel ‘uncool’ and anxious that am still trying to follow the rules and care about SD!!!! I’m just frustrated at working with people who have such views that they feel they can now do as they wish and change the rules as they see fit! End of rant!

*stopped

Gave up on it ages ago. Life needs to go back to normal completely.

I SD in shops / with strangers.

I don't bother with friends although I am refraining from hugging them so a middle ground has been found there I feel.

We are soon going to be visiting family and I will definitely be hugging them. We haven't seen any of them at all - not even from a distance - since January (live far away) so I don't care what anyone thinks of our decision. The children in the family will be back at school in a couple of weeks where obviously no SD will be taking place (they are both v young) so it would seem ridiculous imo to say they aren't allowed to hug us.

There won't be any photos on social media because we don't use it.

I am still SD because I think the risk is getting back to where it was in Feb

I think that too lattice only this time people are not so worried/scared and think the virus only affects/kills old people, so they may not feel inclined to adjust their behaviour, and are perhaps exhausted by the changes anyway after such a long lockdown.

I agree with @BellaintheWychElm (great name) that its basically meaningless to compare numbers testing positive now with numbers in April. We're now carrying out around 160k tests a day, with high levels of targetted testing in areas of concern. There have been teams literally going door to door testing in places like Oldham and Leicester. In areas where you can make a valid comparison- hospitalisation say - numbers have collapsed

There is no need to freak out. There is good reason to avoid covid. Getting covid is less desirable than not getting covid

But how far do you want people to go to avoid that? Do you want people to avoid hugging their parents for weeks? Months? Years? When does it go from "acceptable restriction" to abnormal and an unacceptable infringement on people's lives?

Not everyone is prepared to live that way, and rightfully so. I social distanced through lockdown and will continue to keep my distance from strangers, but I'm not going another six months without hugging my mum.

We see friends, family, shop, go out to eat at restaurants, we have been on a UK holiday and are spending most of our time outside.

We are careful to respect others space, and use masks when required.

So it is a middle ground for us too. We are happy to be having some kind of quality of life, not doing so much to risk other people's lives and health, but a balance of both.

I continue to SD. In fact I haven’t seen any of my family for 6 months due to shielding. It’s been horrid, but something I’m prepared to do in order to keep my family safe. I still haven’t been to a shop. I get everything online that I need.
I exercise in the great outdoors, as do my children.
We live in a tourist hotspot and it’s beyond crowded with people not social distancing. Shoulder to shoulder with the next person. Hugging and high fiving.

I’m not sure if it’s stubbornness, ignorance or pure selfishness.

@InFiveMins

Gave up on it ages ago. Life needs to go back to normal completely.

This always makes me then as giving up.on SD currently is the surefire way to make it less likely we can get back to normal.

Still social distancing here: don't go to shops, pubs, cafes, etc. (Hated all that before lockdown anyway!)

My furlough has ended and have been back to work for a couple of months now, but I work outside mostly and I'm not as concerned about distancing out in the open.

Only other times we go out is for walks or to tend the allotment. - tend to have a mask visible on walks just to remind others to SD, as OH is considered vulnerable.

Have started seeing inlaws recently - they're not going out except for walks either, and we usually meet outside, no hugs or kisses.

Idiots still saying the mortality rate is lower, or I'm not likely to catch/be affected - social-distancing isn't meant for you....

If you have it and are asymptomatic you could pass it, directly or indirectly, to someone who is severely symptomatic. If you had stuck to distancing, it could have stopped at you, then we're a step closer to 'normality' again.

Social-distancing isn't to protect the healthy, it's to protect the vulnerable. The thing is, the people who are vulnerable to succumbing to C19 seems to be fairly random, so someone seemingly healthy could die, and they have died, from it.

Take some responsibility, not just for yourself, but for the other people on this planet. Not even the planet, just the handful of people you might come across in your lifetime.

I’m not sure if it’s stubbornness, ignorance or pure selfishness.

Some of these presumably plus inability to deal with worry and fear.

I think some people are just sick of it, humans do all sorts of self-defeating things for a bit of enjoyment today.

I believe it is unwise for people to stop SD, but I don't feel surprise at seeing it.

I am a very risk-averse person, there are times I know I have acted in a non-perfect way by being too cautious.

Basically what I'm saying is humans are a bit useless

What we're struggling with a lot is we haven't got a clue what's coming next

@savagebaggagemaster that's awful for your sister :(

I just carry on as normal i.e. mask and SD.

Me and DH had started to go out a bit more. Eaten out under the eat out scheme a couple of times although almost always sitting outside. Also been to a wildlife park a couple of times.

This week though we went into our local town and no one seemed to be distancing. It is pedestrianised so very wide and despite "keep left" signs people were wandering all over the street. I had to keep dodging out of people's way. I wore a mask the whole time we were out because so many people didn't keep a distance.

I hated it and decided I wan't be going back any time soon. I will shop online if I need anything.

Most of my neighbours have never abided by the rules. One is a nurse and she has been having friends round since the start of lockdown. Saw her hugging friends yesterday at her front gate. Good to know a nurse can't be bothered with the rules.

I’m not sure if it’s stubbornness, ignorance or pure selfishness.

I don't really think it's necessarily any of those things. As a species, humans are not meant to social distance. It's not normal to us and expecting people to do it for an indefinite amount of time isn't realistic.

We're a social species - it's normal to want to see your friends and family and to hug them and share meals with them and to spend time in each other's homes and company without having to stay two metres apart.

The impact that social distancing etc. has on some people's mental health is massive and isn't something that should just be dismissed because "Covid". Covid is one illness that has a tiny chance of killing you.

Let's not forget all the other illnesses that are negatively impacted by it and all the restrictions in place - cancer and relevant treatments, mental health conditions, autism and other disorders like it, long term
illnesses - people who require care and aren't receiving it because of the restrictions in place.

There has to be a balance somewhere and I don't think telling people not to hug their friends and family for months on end is either realistic, practical or sane.

People here seem to think that wearing a mask means you can ignore social distancing

I go out to work, maybe a shop for some food, I walk the dog, I sit and chat and do some reading/telly watching on an evening with DH and DD.

To be fair that was my life pre-covid too. I am not a social person, I don't do hugging, I don't like crowds or busy places, I have no local extended family and it has been a joy to not HAVE to travel. SD comes easy for some of us, natural even...

I am now having my daughters friends round to play and going to their houses and not being strict on distancing with them children, though the adults are being more careful. My daughter was suffering not playing with another child for 3 months

I have long Covid too @savagebaggagemaster. Been ill since March. for your sister.

How people talk (or how MNers write) confuses me so much.
OP wrote "just given up on" SD, but then describes "only given up with family & friends". Because most the world is not family & friends, they did not give up SD much at all then.

My weak link are teen/adult DC who are allowed to make their own decisions, plus one works in personal care so could easily catch something off a client. I see one friend as normal & DH sees his mum once a month. I hugged another friend who turned up for emotional support the other day (marital breakdown).

I meant to say that my local town has just reported the highest number of covid cases in the county.

I can understand why people are desperate to get back to normal, but the quickest way to bring about another strict lockdown is to stop SD and not wear a mask.
It is almost guaranteed as the infection rate rockets, we will have to go back to one walk a day and essential food shopping only - no visits to F&. Back to an April lockdown. Not to mention the economic or health outcome if that happens. We will be a dire position as a country. So I think we have to carry on doing our best.

I would consider the consequences to your life of not doing SD etc carefully. Particularly if you need to work, have a mortgage, children in school, elderly parents and all the rest.

Ugh some people are so selfish. Wearing a mask and socially distancing is not a big fucking deal if it slows transmission. Every little helps.

I don’t think we will get a total UK lockdown again but of the virus begins to transmit faster again then local lockdowns will happen. This might even include non essential shops etc so my view is that a bit of short term pain for long term gain is worth it, also I am not a selfish tosser only thinks about myself.

Also just he asked YOUR risk is low doesN’ t mean you Won’t pass it on to the vulnerable.

I'm not SD with close friends and family, so about 15 people.

I am with others.

Yes i have essentially given up.

I went an hours drive with friend last week so we shared a car. I don't hug though.

I had my eyrbrows done this week, hair next week, go to the gym. I need my normality as does my ds.

My ds has met with 2 ither friends one in iur bubble one not- can't expect the 2 boys to socially distance from the other one

Like others have said, feels daft telling nannies they can't hug grandkids when all the strangers at nursery hug them... I've avoided physical contact but am not distancing like at the start, and not imposing it on DS.