To think I'm the only one still living a distanced life...

[ciarachats]

I'm still strictly distancing, because, well
that's the rules!
But I know very little people that still are.!!

The thing is, I'm so miserable because of it.

I have a 7 month old baby that my mum hasn't held since March. My mum
works around a lot of people and I've not felt like it's a good Idea for her to hold the baby.

I've barely seen friends because the weather is rubbish for outdoor meet ups!

We can't go for coffee because how do you stay 2m away from someone and drink a coffee in a shop together?!
Same for going for lunch or a drink etc.

It's all starting to drive me crazy and I really miss seeing properly.

How long are we expected to keep this up for!!

Should I just stop this now and get back to normal?!

The op has said she is overweight and asthmatic.

Id also like to say im asthmatic and size 20 so am more higher risk than someone slimer and not having asthma, also i would hope their isnt many people saying they r strictly distancing unless they have a condition that would cause them to be concerned. Like cancer or having had major surgery like transplant or something.

OP, from what I've seen and heard in recent news reports, the risk of you or your baby catching the virus is very low (unless you're in a current hotspot and work in a meat processing plant or a textiles sweatshop).

Have a look at the actual situation in your area. Only you can make the decision to relax your distancing with your family or not.

I decided to relax it several weeks ago, so have visited my children and grandchildren, had grandchildren around to my house and have also visited an elderly relative who's in her 90s. It seemed to me that the chances of any of us having the virus and passing it on was very small.

OP you’re being intentionally ridged. You are allowed to go for a meal. Those are the guidelines. So much so the government pay for half the meals on some days!! No one gets out a ruler to see if your 2m apart. Come on now, use your common sense. Or alternatively carry on as you are and be miserable for the next few years.

@80sMum

OP, from what I've seen and heard in recent news reports, the risk of you or your baby catching the virus is very low (unless you're in a current hotspot and work in a meat processing plant or a textiles sweatshop).

Have a look at the actual situation in your area. Only you can make the decision to relax your distancing with your family or not.

I decided to relax it several weeks ago, so have visited my children and grandchildren, had grandchildren around to my house and have also visited an elderly relative who's in her 90s. It seemed to me that the chances of any of us having the virus and passing it on was very small.

There are 16 cases per 100,000 in my area. Population of around 340,000

At the minute we have around 8 new cases per day!!

At the minute we have around 8 new cases per day!!

In a population of 340,000.....the risk is minimal

@SueEllenMishke

At the minute we have around 8 new cases per day!!

In a population of 340,000.....the risk is minimal

@SueEllenMishke

This doesn't take into account the people who are asymptotic and spreading it without knowing!!

This doesn't take into account the people who are asymptotic and spreading it without knowing!!

Still... the risk is minimal. Wash/sanitise your hands regularly, don't touch your face and wear a mask.

Or stay locked away forever 🤷🏼‍♀️

I think you are making excuses OP. That's fine if you dont want to go out and socialise but please don't complain, you are doing this to yourself.

@userxx

I think you are making excuses OP. That's fine if you dont want to go out and socialise but please don't complain, you are doing this to yourself.

I'm not.

I'm bot staying in. I've done plenty.

But doesn't it raise the question if why we still see so many cases daily throughout the uk?

Are people not following the rules or do the rules not work?

Ah so this thread isn’t really about what you’re doing at all. It’s about what everyone else is doing, and why they’re wrong to be doing it.
We’re still seeing a high number of daily cases because people are still having to go out to work/use public transport etc. A large number of cases are in factories, so we need to look into conditions and working practices to see why that’s happening.
In addition to that, we will see additional cases as things open back up, it’s inevitable. The alternative to this is that things don’t open back up, and we see far more severe closures and job losses than we are currently. Recession kills, and poverty kills. Delayed cancer diagnosis and treatment kills. It’s a balance.

@SueEllenMishke

This doesn't take into account the people who are asymptotic and spreading it without knowing!!

Still... the risk is minimal. Wash/sanitise your hands regularly, don't touch your face and wear a mask.

Or stay locked away forever 🤷🏼‍♀️

This is it in a nutshell for me.

It is possible to be asymptomatic carriers of a number of viruses too, many of which can cause severe colds, flu etc. in some other people. Being an asymptomatic carrier isn’t unique to Covid 19, though the media sometimes seems to bleat as if it is.

We do need to be careful, but can’t remain shut off or distanced forever.

OP, this virus is going nowhere fast, you need to learn to live with it. If you're waiting for it to be eradicated, then you'll be waiting a long long time. The reason for lockdown was to stop the NHS from being overwhelmed, not to get rid of the virus.

@userxx

OP, this virus is going nowhere fast, you need to learn to live with it. If you're waiting for it to be eradicated, then you'll be waiting a long long time. The reason for lockdown was to stop the NHS from being overwhelmed, not to get rid of the virus.

@userxx

So is everyone Jody happy to accept the risks? Accept they could get Covid and they could be really ill from it?

Maybe I do just need to accept this and move on?

Maybe I do just need to accept this and move on?

Are you high risk ?

I accept that there are many things I can get seriously ill from. I was in intensive care with sepsis a few years ago. One of my children developed Kawasaki syndrome after a standard childhood virus. Another was hospitalised with scarlet fever. My cousin nearly died of complications from chicken pox.
I will continue to take reasonable precautions to avoid catching and spreading Covid. Just like I take precautions to avoid catching/spreading other nasty viruses.

So is everyone Jody happy to accept the risks? Accept they could get Covid and they could be really ill from it?

Pretty much. Just like we all accept risk everyday of our lives.

I could scald myself pouring my coffee each day.
I could get in a fatal car crash driving to work.
I could trip falling down the stairs and break an ankle (or worse).
I could slip in the shower and damage my back.

We take risks everyday. If you didn't take risk, you wouldn't do anything. However, you have to balance risk with the benefit of doing the "dangerous" thing. So, yes I could burn my hand pouring coffee, but I'd rather risk it and get my coffee. I could get in a car crash, but I can't do my job without a car and I need to work to pay the bills. I could trip falling down the stairs, but I can't live in bed forever. You get the picture.

If you want to live a half-life because you're scared of COVID, go ahead, but at least admit that it's entirely your choice to do so. You miss seeing people and you're clearly struggling with your mental health. So do something about it.

I'm still pretty distanced but I do socialise outdoors and will go into shops if they're not too busy and eat in outdoor settings.

What I dont do is anything indoors for unless I can wear a mask - and I wear a medical grade one, so not v comfortable.

Had a week's holiday this summer, but self catering rather than camping and a remote location so could avoid crowds.

Should add that I have long-haul COVID so have more respect for this virus than most. If others are happy to catch it, let them.

Yes I think a lot of people have assessed the risk and decided that they are happy to do so.

It is definitely an individual choice based on individual circumstances but the rules at the moment are not designed for elimination of Covid they are designed to enable us to get some kind of normal life, the economy moving (particularly the hospitality sector which has suffered) and a balance we can live with in the short to medium term.

Your posts show that actually for you at the moment you are not living with a balance that you can last with for the next 6 to 18 months of life (because that is the honest truth of what the timescale could be and probably a positive one) so you need to find out what it is that you can be happy with.

The situation in terms of treating it and surviving it now is much better than it was in the beginning - it is much better

So is everyone Jody happy to accept the risks? Accept they could get Covid and they could be really ill from it?

But the chances of this happening are really, really low. How do you managed other ( much greater ) risks?

Additionally, I’ve had Covid. It wasn’t pleasant. It was very similar to when I have a bad bout of the flu when I was 17. I don’t want to catch it again, just like I don’t want to catch plenty of other nasty things that make you very ill.

I could slip in the shower and damage my back.

Don’t forget drowning in the bath, apparently it’s more common than a big lottery win.

What part of the UK has had terrible weather this summer? I'm in the South East and it has been fine

Scotland for a start.

Sorry @vanillandhoney but that's such a wanky and misleading post. If COVID starts spreading again then the chances you will get it are far higher than the things you list. Then you have a 1 in 20 chance of serious longterm incapacity (median age for long-tail COVID is 38). And a v high chance of some pretty nasty side effects - a recent study showed that 80% of COVID survivors, including those who had a mild version, were still showing heart inflammation after 2 months.

@Porcupineinwaiting

Sorry *@vanillandhoney* but that's such a wanky and misleading post. If COVID starts spreading again then the chances you will get it are far higher than the things you list. Then you have a 1 in 20 chance of serious longterm incapacity (median age for long-tail COVID is 38). And a v high chance of some pretty nasty side effects - a recent study showed that 80% of COVID survivors, including those who had a mild version, were still showing heart inflammation after 2 months.

That's fine. I'm happy to accept that risk.

Besides, it's not "wanky" to say that people accept risk every single day of their lives. You have more chance of dying from flu than you do of COVID, but the country doesn't shut down every winter.

The only reason people are scared of COVID is because it's new and we're still learning about it. We only have one life. I'd rather take the risk of getting COVID (which for the vast majority of people is a very minor illness) than spend my life hiding indoors.