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Original poster

Is there anyone who doesn’t think they had covid last winter

264 replies

Sosickofasshats · 29/10/2020 22:36

no trolling or trying to be clever, almost every single person I know thinks they could have had it last year. I was in hospital for a virus which caused breathing difficulties in December. I feel like I’m losing touch with relaity

OP posts:
Spidey66 · 30/10/2020 07:20

I had a cold last winter, but definitely only a cold. Don't know anyone who had anything else.

Skigal86 · 30/10/2020 07:22

I was ill late Jam/Early feb, couldn’t get out of bed for three days, fever, headache, the worst cough I’ve ever had and a sore throat which took two weeks to shift, I don’t specifically remember losing my sense of taste but I know I was quite reluctant to eat, so possibly that too. I was extremely breathless for a long time after that if I walked too quickly and got very tired quickly. So I definitely feel that it’s a possibility. I was on mat leave at the time and had been at a baby group where the woman I sat next to’s husband had just come home from working in Asia. I’d be really interested to compare school and college attendance from Dec-feb last school year with previous years and see if it’s any higher than usual.

Youandmeareluckytobeus · 30/10/2020 07:22

Unless I"be been totally asymptomatic, I don't think I had Covid last winter (or since).

Lockheart · 30/10/2020 07:26

Something nasty went through me and my housemates like wildfire in late Jan. All of us were off work at the same time, which is unheard of! Although we all felt utterly awful, had coughs and temperatures, it only lasted 3 or 4 days which makes me think it wasn't covid. One of my housemates is convinced it was.

ODFOx · 30/10/2020 07:28

There was a horrid cold going round last winter that did cause a tight chest and dry cough which dragged on for what seemed like weeks. It may even have been a coronavirus. It wasn't COVID 19 though, as there wasn't a spike in hospital admissions or deaths.

whatkatydid2013 · 30/10/2020 07:34

It’s possible anyone had it but unlikely. OH and I both had several of the known symptoms (fever, cough, headache, fatigue) in late February after a family trip to Gran Canaria staying in a resort with people from all over Europe. It could have been covid but other viruses are also available and many have similar symptoms. I don’t suppose it really matters one way or another given it seems you can be reinfected.

Lazysundayafternoons · 30/10/2020 07:37

I believe we had it in February, but it wasnt just a sniffle.

The four of us all had to go to the doctor in the space of a week (ds went 3 times) and we were told we all had a virus, but all had different symptoms.

Ds had really high temp, severe headache, was told viral ear nose throat and sinus infection. Slept constantly and hardly ate for a week and a half. Temp was so high I thought would have preferred if he was admitted to hospital.

Mine started with really severe sore throat (dr said viral) and a strange cough lasting six weeks. It really knocked me really hard, the fatigue etc. It was worse than other times when I've been hospitalised with tonsillitis.

Dp had severe headache which he also went to the doctor for as it was so bad.

Dbaby had chest infection like symptoms.

All in the same week, all a virus, but all different symptoms.

I believe we got it from a colleague who returned from China in Jan and was subsequently in and out of the office sick with a virus for weeks after.

In March when testing was available, the person I sit beside at work tested positive.

Mistigri · 30/10/2020 07:42

There seems to be a though that if you haven’t been il you can’t possibly have had it.

If you live in an area with low incidence, you haven't travelled to places with high incidence, you don't have friends or colleagues who've had it, and you haven't been ill: it is highly unlikely you've had it.

Confrontayshunme · 30/10/2020 07:42

My DH had an awful respiratory virus which caused him to take his first sick leave in 11 years in late December. Cough lasted over a month. I thought he might have had it, but his employer (hospital) antibody tests him regularly, and he has never had any.

thecatsthecats · 30/10/2020 07:48

I've had people confidently tell me I haven't had it.

Except I had 100% classic symptoms at the beginning of April followed by classic long covid symptoms that persist now.

bambooplant · 30/10/2020 07:58

I had a cough and a cold in December that started on Christmas Day, I later tested positive for covid this year. So no, I don’t think I had it. I had a regular cough and cold. MIL is insistent that she had covid in November. I work on a covid ward and saw some of the first ever cases at the beginning of March so no I don’t think anyone in the UK at least had it before then, otherwise we would’ve seen hospital beds fill up like mad amongst other things.

Witchend · 30/10/2020 08:03

I think it is people being hopeful.

There was an interesting case of a choir on the BBC who had a member come back from China, I think even one of the hotspots in January/February time.
He went down with a bad cough as did about 90% of the choir, plus as well I think the landlord of the pub they drank at afterwards, several regular drinkers and some of their family members.

It sounded a pretty dead cert it was Covid.

They did antibody tests on them and found not a single one was positive, proving beyond reasonable doubt that it wasn't covid and must have been another illness.

funtimefrank · 30/10/2020 08:04

Dh and dds has horrible respiratory illness over Christmas last year, worse dh has been in years. But where we are a really nasty one did the rounds - we had loads of people off work, half the kids class was out etc.

I catch every thing. Every bloody bug going, I'm notorious for it and I get properly ill with the mildest colds. So i find it hard to tell! Feeling crap is normal for me in the winter months.

That said I did have 'something' in late February. Awful sore throat, went off food as it tasted of nothing, spiking fever, aches, malaise, headache. Week 2 of it developed into a chest/cough thing where I had a lot of stabby pain around my bra strap. I had a bit of a runny nose though and back then it was very much 'sore throat and runny nose mean it's just a bad cold'. My boss (who I'd been in a warm car with for half an hour as well as sat next to) was ill too - same kind of symptoms but much worse than me and was told probable Covid. His daughters class just back from Italy on a skiing trip.

I think I probably just had a bad cold tbh. I'd be interested in an anti body test but I can't be bothered to pay for something which may not be accurate given the length of time anyway.

LostAcre · 30/10/2020 08:05

I had colds last year, but nothing out of the ordinary.

There’s always the possibility of an asymptotic case, but I’ve no reason to think I’ve had Covid.

I wouldn’t count on antibody tests as a way of telling that someone’s had Covid in the past either.
I have a family member who works in a hospital, his hospital did a load of antibody tests on the staff, and he said that there were quite a few people who’d had positive Covid tests who had negative antibody tests.

OverTheRainbow88 · 30/10/2020 08:06

Both my kids were hospitalised overnight with unexplained temps in Jan of 40+ for 4 days, followed by the weirdest rash and then the whole family coughed

Spelunking · 30/10/2020 08:11

I think I have had it in March. My body ached, my chest hurt, my throat did a bit, I slept a lot, was a bit dizzy, I had a dodgy stomach and was off food. It was before the other symptoms like loss of smell were announced so I can’t remember if that happened. My friend at work and his wife were both tested (as they were caring for his elderly mother and she had it) and they were both positive. His wife had the exact symptoms I had but he said he wouldn’t have even known he’d had it - apart from having the shits one morning! Obviously I’ll never know if I did have it but if it was I didn’t get it too badly. I’ve had worse colds to be fair.

Ihg27 · 30/10/2020 08:12

@Witchend

I think it is people being hopeful.

There was an interesting case of a choir on the BBC who had a member come back from China, I think even one of the hotspots in January/February time.
He went down with a bad cough as did about 90% of the choir, plus as well I think the landlord of the pub they drank at afterwards, several regular drinkers and some of their family members.

It sounded a pretty dead cert it was Covid.

They did antibody tests on them and found not a single one was positive, proving beyond reasonable doubt that it wasn't covid and must have been another illness.

Loads of people who have provided positive COVID test have subsequently tested negative for antibodies
BigButtons · 30/10/2020 08:14

I had a horrible cold type virus a month ago. Pretty sure it wasn’t COVID though. I don’t know a single person who has had it/ knows they’ve had it.

gingerbreadfox · 30/10/2020 08:15

My DH thought he did but was randomly selected to do the antibody test and turns out he hasn't had it

Mistigri · 30/10/2020 08:19

We don't really know how long antibodies last so how useful the serology tests are is debatable.

A friend in Paris was ill last March. She's a teacher. Husband and kids ill at the same time. They all had antibody tests in August: she was negative, her husband positive, one child borderline, two other kids negative. The odds are that they did have it, but it's impossible to know for certain.

Witchend · 30/10/2020 08:20

@Ihg27
Certainly, that happens, but the chance of all 50 or so people who apparently had it doing so is so unlikely.
If 10% give a false negative and it's nowhere near that high then the chance of 50 being negative is (1/10)^50 or 1 time in 1000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000 which is, as I said, beyond reasonable doubt.

Sheknowsaboutme · 30/10/2020 08:22

I havent been ill since November 2018 when i had the flu. I had no idea what planet i was on. Hallucinations, high temp, shivers, lost weight. It knocked me for months. Took me 6 months to get back running again, and i used to run 30 miles a week. And I’m still not up to it.

I don’t know anyone who’s had covid

SonjaMorgan · 30/10/2020 08:26

None of my immediate family or extended family have had any symptoms yet. I think this is why some of my family members haven't followed rules and have continued mixing.

TasslesandFringes · 30/10/2020 08:27

Nope didn’t have it

Ihg27 · 30/10/2020 08:27

[quote Witchend]@Ihg27
Certainly, that happens, but the chance of all 50 or so people who apparently had it doing so is so unlikely.
If 10% give a false negative and it's nowhere near that high then the chance of 50 being negative is (1/10)^50 or 1 time in 1000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000 which is, as I said, beyond reasonable doubt.[/quote]
In this test 74% of those giving a positive PCR test showed antibodies.

The time between the positive test and the antibody emery’s was short ( a few weeks). If done months later I guess the figures would be much lower. Doesn’t mean those people wouldn’t have a good T cell response and produce antibodies again if exposed to the virus’s gain though