Any CEV people not shielding?

[SammySueTwo]

After following the press coverage on Evusheld and how the UK government has decided that vulnerable people are not worth protecting, I have seen many vulnerable people are continuing to shield.
I'm on immune suppressants so one of the 500 thousand CEV. Not had my autumn booster yet (but had all 5 jabs - don't know if I made any antibodies.)
I've been reading about people strictly shielding still. With teens this has not been possible for me - now I am wondering if I am being a fool and should stop indoor contact? Articles have made mention of families separating to protect themselves and people living in solo isolation since 2020?
My consultant's advice was to be careful but that people on my medications have had covid and been ok. Of course I could just stop taking them?
I would like to know what other CEV people are doing right now?

I do wear a mask and avoid mixing indoors. I haven't been in shops etc. We have just been on holiday (self catering in the UK) so I did do more there than I have otherwise. I do live with DH and 2 dc who are at school. DH is being careful, the dc are being careful but having a life too.

My dad is mid 80s. COPD and other respiratory issues. Jabbed.
He shielded at the start. Got covid earlier this year and was sent anti virals. Was like a bad cold with an upset tummy.
Hes been back to living his life. He said at his time of life he doesn't know how much time he has so is doing what he wants

That's where I'm stuck - I'm not on chemo but I'm neutropenic as I kill off my neutrophils
My count is pretty shit unless I've taken GCSF so I'm permanently neutropenic

I was supposed to shield (not CEV but chronically ill) but my awful doctors didn't let me know that I should. (The same ones were sending me letters about booking procedures three years after I'd had them done) Only found out once I'd moved house to the other side of London. I'd been teaching and in school with teenagers from the start. (Yes, in school even in the beginning with the vulnerable children - not sat at home 'on holiday'). But then my new school wasn't hugely accomodating so I never shielded there either.

I have a work colleague and he’s currently having treatment for stage 3 bowel cancer. He’s still working Albeit on a part time basis but we work for the NHS and see patients face to face.
He just lives his life, goes on holiday, takes his kids to the park, otherwise what’s the point?
In his words Life is short…

Oh yes, DH & I both WFH. Forgot that!

Shielding ended ages ago officially. I’m immunosuppressive had 4 jabs and just have to get on with everything now.

The reason that my son and I were told to shield wasn’t added to the CEV list until a month or so after shielding began. I was called by the practice nurse to inform me that I should be shielding, should sleep in a different room to my husband, eat meals away from the rest of the family etc.
Her words, which I can still hear her say now, were “If you catch Covid it will be catastrophic”.

My parents chose to shield although not CEV. They went from being people who despite their ages, they’re in their 80s, lived active, independent and healthy lives and didn’t look their ages to now barely leaving the house and being dependent on several of us to shop for them, tend to their garden (gardening was their hobby) and help them around the house.
Prior to this I was convinced my mother would live to be 100, now I think it’ll be a miracle if we still have her at Christmas. Maybe their health would’ve deteriorated anyway but I really don’t think that staying in the house for the best part of two years has helped.
They wouldn’t even leave the house to go to a close family member’s funeral in July ‘20 which obviously had very limited numbers and was socially distanced.

I am CEV, shielded during the first lockdown but I could WFH successfully. However, I missed interaction with colleagues and stopped shielding during the second lockdown and a risk assessment was in place, I was happy with that. I caught Covid a year ago, from my child. I was very, very ill and feared the worst for 72 hours, but rallied and got through it and recovered within six weeks. I am cautious, but won’t let it dictate my life, or that of my family. Life is too short, something will kill me and if it’s Covid, then so be it.

Whilst Evushield sounds great, I will not feel less of a human with some of the rhetoric being used (ie the government doesn’t want to protect CEV patients), and therefore carry on as I am within my comfort zone.

There isn’t a one size fits all approach… and each individual needs to understand their personal risk. A full blood profile shows that I have no immunity against Varicella Zoster, for example, so I’ll need urgent treatment from my immunologist if I come into contact with chicken pox or zoster. That’s my reality, I could hide away or live my life, I have chosen the latter .

How is shielding living? It’s just keeping yourself alive to be miserable, and effectively a life sentence in solitary confinement as covid will never go away.

But then long covid isn't much fun either
Yes I know it's not guaranteed but my body is the one that gets random rare autoimmune diseases
Me being cautious doesn't affect anyone else so I'm happy for people to judge

I have two health conditions where some people with them were considered CEV and others were considered CV. With both of them I fell into the “just CV” group but no one could comment on if the combo made me CEV and my friends and family freaked out, So for most of 2020 and part of 2021 I was shielding - to the extent that when I suggested an outdoor trip out, more than one friend refused because they were worried about the risk to me.
I haven’t shielded since my second jab, with the exception of one week to make sure I didn’t catch it and need to cancel a key appt. And those friends who were to worried about me to meet up aren’t my friends now.

It’s really interesting to hear the range of experience and how people are continuing to live.
I could shield from my children being separated but I want to see them. I strongly believe that they should be able to carry on as normal.
The interview I say was a mother who lived away from her husband and child still.She moved out and lives alone and doesn’t see them.

Most of the CEV (about 2m people) don’t need to shield

The 500,000 most immune suppressed are still urged to follow guidelines similar to shielding (the later version which allows daily outdoors exercise)

Because these are people who form no response to vaccines, and are also likely to become very ill if they catch it.

Unlike the rest of the population (including most of the CEV) they have to rely on other people’s choices. If Evusheld were available, then they could make their own independent choice about protection.

The Tories used to say that “we’re not safe until we’re all safe” but seem to have abandoned this, in terms of protecting the most vulnerable.

Which is a remarkably short-sighted stance
a) Evusheld reduces severe infections by over 90% (including against omicron variants, according to international data, notably Israeli). As the immune suppressed form the clear majority of those admitted to hospital, and also admitted to ICU, think of the pressure that would be taken off NHS if that were reduced that much
b) the immune compromised are ill for longer - this is the ideal breeding ground for new variants. No guarantees that the next variant will be as mild, nor that vaccines would work. That would be a big problem. Can’t guarantee it won’t brew up somewhere, but avoiding optimal conditions for it to do so is in everyone’s interests

It is an interesting thread op thanks for starting it. (All really sensible and articulate responses which is unusual in most covid treads!)
Re the person you mention above in your last post - are they still living apart from and not seeing their own family ? How sad especially for a child. Not something I could do of even allow my partner to do to be honest.

And what is your age/medical situation? Do you have young children?

@CloudPop

Except it can - do you think it magically 'dies' mid air? Why do you think hand washing & sanitising is important?

I've never shielded fully.

CEV and had four vaccines and eligible for anti virals. I was one of those who seemed to bob in and out of CEV and CV status for a while.

I worked from home in the two big lockdowns as my role in school allowed it. But after lockdown one finished I was back in school teaching young children on a daily basis. No social distancing, no masks allowed at the time, only 'protection' was an open window and at that point no vaccine either.

I've since had covid twice- once in October 2020 and again in January 2022. Both times it was almost certainly from school, most likely from infected children.

First time wasn't great and I had complications requiring hospital treatment, and ongoing medication, for that. Second time I felt rubbish but managed to have anti-viral infusion on day 5 which quickly set in and improved how I felt.

Since lockdown one I've been on various holidays, in planes, socialised as normal within the rules at the time, etc. figured I wasn't going to be protected from it working at a school, so may as well start enjoying seeing my family and friends again when we could.

I don't know anyone, including various CEV and CV people, who are fully shovelling now and they haven't fit a long time, bar when activist having very serious medical treatment.

I’ve never shielded, I knew it would be worse for me to not have contact with people and even at the beginning I thought it would only last a couple of weeks so I’d carry on as normal. I’ve had Covid once and it was fine, DH wfh at the beginning to support me but we were both back in work from July 2020

I shielded for the initial period. Now I’m expected back in the office, back at face to face hospital appts, so normal life has resumed. I go to shows, sit in audiences, meet friends, etc etc My mental health took a hammering and covid/shielding was partly to blame, I can’t put myself through it again. I’ve had 5 jabs now and caught covid, which was milder than a bad cold in all honesty.

I'm CEV as is my youngest daughter. We stopped shielding in summer last year, and just lived our lives. When we did get covid I was fine (4 jabs at that point) it was just a mild cold. My dd was hospitalised with it but recovered well. We both were give anti virals.

I'm CEV. I work with a pupil in a senior school, alone 1:1, no contact with others. AND provide her transport. She didn't attend during any of the lockdowns and school were pretty good about testing all the pupils. She was good about doing LFT to protect me.

we still wear masks in the car & have the windows down.

Obviously I can't shield, but I'm still very careful. I have my shopping delivered, I wear a mask in any indoor setting (hospital, chemist, if there's a problem with say 'pay at pump petrol' ). I bought my first takeaway since pre pandemic last week and I only see a couple of friends, mostly in their gardens.

In July I went to one very very important social event where we were asked not to wear masks, but all doors & windows were open & half the event was outside. It was a lovely day & I was very glad I'd gone but was a bit concerned for 1-2 weeks after.

im not at all bothered by not going to the shops/cinema or anything like that.

I miss busy packed pubs, travelling, but it's a compromise I'm still willing to make to not be in hospital or to even have covid at home (I live alone, it's a scary prospect) plus my health is bad enough without adding long covid in!

my health is bad due to a virus I had many years ago, it's a form of long covid I have.

This IS 'living my life' for me & I'm fed up of people (on here) making disparaging comments about those of us choosing to be more careful.

these threads are SO skewed though, because obviously the people who were advised to shield & didn't (or did &!still got it) but died can't post the other side to balance the threads out. So it just makes it look like shielding wasn't necessary.

Another thing about shielding - is a lot of people were taken off the list so to speak. I am on immune suppressants and eligible for anti-virals but I don't know if I made antibodies to the vaccines - I suspect I might have to the first ones as I was in between medications so may have but do not know.
Some immune suppressants have a much greater impact on antibody production than others - I read guidance about withholding them for a period (2 weeks before and after a jab IIRC), mine is a targetted biologic so may have allowed me to make antibodies - I don't know.

It's a question of personal risk and balance. With teens in a 2000 pupil school they bring a lot of bugs home. Mine had covid and were with me in the lead up to getting sick but I didn't have them when they were sick.
I WFH and get deliveries but still have to see the GP etc - and the waiting rooms are full of people with nasty things - last time I went one kid had severe chickenpox and and another vomiting everywhere.
I miss concerts and the theatre and eating indoors. I can't claim that Evusheld would have brought these back for me but I am disappointed about the decision.

It’s a balancing act.

DD4 is CEV. She tends to end up hospitalised if she gets a cold so covid is something we’re very keen for her to avoid as she already likely won’t outlive us.

However, we have other children who needed to go back to school and have some sense of normality back in their lives. Especially as their normal is already different because of their sister.

We’re as careful as we can be. We all wear masks on transport and in busy places. We avoid occasions if we know people have coughs or colds, although frustratingly people are much less up front now at telling us than they were pre-covid. We never expect other people to miss things, but we’ve had a few occasions now of “well we knew if we said you wouldn’t come and my DD/DS wanted yours there and they’ve missed out on so much…” which is infuriating.

DD goes to a SEN school and there are a lot of vulnerable pupils so thankfully there is still a very sensible level of care (sensible as in appropriate for the setting). It does mean higher instances of her being home - teachers don’t come in with colds, 48hr rules are strictly enforced etc - but it’s worked so far.

We’re also very lucky that we have the space that if there is an illness in the house either DH or I can isolate with DD and it not be horrific.

I sometimes put it very bluntly - I don’t see the point in DD having a miserable isolated existence to 15 if she can have a good and fun one to 14, but equally I take enough care to try and ensure that she gets by her next birthday (7).

Me too. CEV. Never shielded.