AIBU to think this can't go on for a whole year??

[cola2019]

AIBU in thinking that this cannot go on for a year?? My husband seems to think that until there is a vaccine available life cannot go back to normal. I can't envisage not seeing my parents for a year (my dad has cancer so is currently in the sheilding group). He keeps telling me that I need to face up to the fact that we can't see our parents until they have been vaccinated. No shops, no bars, no events, no schools. Surely economically life will have to resume slowly we can't wait till 2021 surely. But as soon as lockdown is lifted and people start mixing then it will spike again.

There is a difference between "social distancing will continue until christmas" and "social distance will continue in some form until christmas."

The later could be as simple as "every thing is back to normal except that gathering of over 5000 are banned" thus limiting most festivals, concerts, sports events. I think this is fairly likely because a lot of large venues have been turned into overkill hospitals.

While techically still a form of "social distancing" in reality this will have fairly minimal effect on the majority of the population if their lives are otherwise going as normal.

Same if restaurants, pubs etc open with only 30-50% capacity - people will just get used to having to prebook well in advance if they want tables , maybe paying in advance to avoid noshows, and maybe not going out to eat as much.

Things like seeing elderly parents etc I imagine will be up to your own risk level in some ways....realistically if you've been shielding and both households have had minimal outside interaction then your chances of passing anything on is very low. Once the lockdown restrictions are over surely popping along to see them even if you sit either ends of a garden is very minimal risk?

Overspill hospitals! Ironic autocorrect!

Also lots of people confusing 'social distancing' with 'lockdown' - they are not the same thing at all.

It is people on the vulnerable list I fear for most. They are at risk from dying but will just be left to get on with it. So will have to go back to work, and many in jobs where social distancing is not possible.

^ Agree with Cantory on that.

I havent got any relatives having cancer treatments, thank God.
Ive got a child who needs to eat, a roof over his head and an education.
Ive got grandparents who are shielding and obviously I would never put them at risk.
Im not planning on seeing them as much as I miss them.
People need to make their own risk assessments and do what's best for their family.
What's best for mine is my kid being in school and me in work.
I work in hospitality so not holding my breathe, but to suggest we should all stay in doors for two years and that that would save lives is just ridiculous and untrue.

@newyearnoeu A lot of restaurants and pubs are not financially viable at a lower capacity.

The lockdown was never about us not catching it, it's about us catching it in numbers low enough to be able to get care. So it's not a case of "lockdown until cure or vaccine". There's a lot of contagious diseases out there without cure or vaccine, we're just trying to make sure people can have a hospital bed etc if they need it. I lost someone to Covid before lockdown, it's awful but we're not going to avoid all deaths unfortunately, just as we can't avoid all deaths from anything else.

Who knows? My mum is in the very vulnerable shielding group whilst I would Love to see nerve wouldn't want to be the one who brought the virus to her ,my dh has underlying health issues ,and my youngest son whilst healthy has complex disabilities with an underlying chromosome disorder and I Have no idea how this could affect him so I'm very cautious.

@bluebells But the OP has. She has a dad having cancer treatment.

And nobody is saying everyone has to stay indoors for 2 years. But someone having cancer treatment with a realistic chance it could go into remission, does need to.

@TheGinGenie Other diseases without a cure do have treatments. We are still developing treatments for covid 19. So yes it is different.

Russellbrandshair they're easing off all over Europe now. Do you think the UK is going to stay in locked down stasis in the ruins of it's economic wasteland while the rest of the world moves forward?

I agree TheGinGenie but we will have to continue to make sure the hospitals do not get over run. Restrictions will start to be loosened but I think there will be another strict lockdown this winter.

Not really, things like flu can kill and don't really have any more treatment than covid does. I do believe we had to lockdown but it's not realistic to believe we will carry on until cure or vaccine.

Oh I agree, there may very well be future lockdowns for periods of time but it won't be constant and for years

@MaxNormal A lot of the easing up in other countries is bringing it to the level of lock down the UK already has. So Spain has just let children go out once a day for an hour. Before that they were not allowed out at all.
We also have an incredibly high death rate and it is still very high.

I listen to FiveLive most mornings as they discuss the current situation in great detail with many so called experts and phone ins

It has been said that until there is a vaccine social distancing will be a thing. This could take eighteen months

Short term I think things will be lifted slowly. Restaurants and pubs won't be the same for a long time. Even if a restaurant was to open and remove every other table, it would probably mean that they can't afford to open as the number of covers has halved

We're meant to be going to Dorset in July but I can't see us going. What will there be to do?

@TheGinGenie Except we have a flu vaccine. You specifically were talking about illnesses without a cure or vaccine. Flu does have a vaccine. Yes on average 8,000 people a year die of it, usually those close to the end of their life.

cantory true but they have plans for further relaxation of measures. They're not staying locked in till 2023 which is the crazy notion I was disputing.

Please don't worry! My sil who transports vulnerable patients has been told to expect school transport to re start 1st June? Just expectations not definitely! Before anyone jumps on me!! I personally think that keeping less vulnerable in for the same amount of time as the shielded is madness! We either need to let the less vulnerable out in stages soon and still protect our shielded community or keep the less vulnerable out a bit later (after the next review) and keep the shielded in longer? But as I know from Mo only the most vulnerable are already struggling with isolation?!

Naughty, Russelbrandshair 😁

Cantory russelbrandshair is implying upthread that anyone who.doesnt lock down until 2022 is a murderer.
Which is what i was replying to.
Of course anyone vulnerable needs to protect themselves as best they can.
Me and my child are more at risk of starving and freezing to death if i cant work to earn money for two years.
What im saying is there will be collateral.
There are people the virus likely wont kill, that starvation, suicide, domestic violence, might.
We need to draw a line somewhere.

Will people starve and freeze to death, do you think, bluebells? I’m terrified now

@MaxNormal Obviously that is not going to happen.

@Wishfulthinking1977 I think the vulnerable group if they are told to just get on with life as normal, will be a disaster. Deaths will increase in this group. Obviously some people are more vulnerable in that group than others. But I do think they are being thrown to the wolves.
There are things you can do rather than say everyone has to stay inside for 2 years. But we won't do anything. Which means it is the poor in this group who will have the highest risk of dying.