AIBU to not know when to do LFTs now.

[bumblingthrough]

AIBU to not know when to do LFTs now. I should preface with I have anxiety and OCD and I worry a lot about accidentally passing Covid onto someone vulnerable.

I have 2 children, one at school and one at nursery. I mainly work from home, visit the office very occasionally. My husband commutes 3 times a week.

From when LFTs first became available until April 22, we were testing twice a week and coinciding the timing so that we tested just before seeing family or friends, especially older relatives.

Now I don’t know what is expected. I know what the guidance says but I want to gauge what the average person does. Generally we are testing now if any of us have any symptoms, if I go into the office, if we are seeing older family members or socialising with a group of friends inside. But not the default regularity of twice a week i.e. sometimes I might not need to test for a week-10 days.
I feel that maybe isn’t sustainable in the long run, not just financially (although I can and would pay for tests if I thought it was the right thing to do), but also environmentally and when does it end if we are to ‘live with Covid’?

So please can I ask what others do now?

I won't test ever again.

Never, I live my life

I have given up testing since I tested my son and was told to send him to school anyway. Our school guidelines are that if they're well enough to go to school then they go to school, positive test or not. There seems little point in testing and modifying our behaviour when positive DS (and all the other positive DC) is in school and going on coach trips and library visits.

@ATadConfused

These ones?

www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/healthandsocialcare/conditionsanddiseases/articles/coronaviruscovid19latestinsights/hospitals

The overall hospital admission rate of COVID-19-confirmed patients in England continued to decrease to 5.68 per 100,000 people and the intensive care unit (ICU) and high dependency unit (HDU) admission rate remained very low at 0.19 per 100,000 people in the week ending 22 May 2022. Hospital admission rates decreased in most age groups and regions in the latest week.

ICU and HDU admissions are now at their lowest level since June 2021.

Infection levels in the latest week are similar to the week ending 30 January 2021, shortly after the Alpha variant peak. In that week, the overall hospital admission rate was over four times higher (24.71 per 100,000 people) and the ICU and HDU admission rate was over ten times higher (1.96 per 100,000 people, week ending 31 January 2021) than in the latest week.

Between January 2022 and March 2022, when Omicron was the dominant variant, the majority of patients admitted to critical care with COVID-19 had other primary reasons for admission. In March 2022, one-third of patients (33%) admitted to critical care with COVID-19 were admitted primarily due to COVID-19 and two-thirds (67%) were admitted with COVID-19 as a secondary reason. For patients with COVID-19 reported as a secondary reason for admission, COVID-19 may or may not have contributed to the reason for admission.

No one said covid had 'gone away' but its not making people sick in massive numbers

I've gone through the entire thing without taking a test, so I'm not going to start now.

We test when we visit FIL in care home. You can't get through the door without a negative test done on the day of the visit and they won't provide them either. Luckily we stockpiled a few just for this. I was at a concert last week so I'll test today before I see my mum just in case.

Would test if I had symptoms, other than that not at all. I see elderly parents daily and have a kid at school.

Yes they've decreased since January, but that's not what I said. I said numbers were significantly higher now than at the same time last year (a point at which I was hoping we could begin to put it behind us, but then we had the Jan peak).

people on here have basically said 'it's gone away' & liars not testing claiming they never will or have. Not to mention those only testing to see THEIR elderly/vulnerable loved ones, not a care for anyone else.

I am CEV, I do my best to keep myself out of harms way, but people going out & about with covid are not making life easy for those of us who are vulnerable.

it's easy to say glibly 'I'm living my life'. Well, that's just fab, it may end mine, but let's not worry about that hey! As long as they're living theirs.

& no I'm not asking for another lockdown, just a bit of consideration. Glib 'I'm living my life, fuck you' is really nasty.

I haven’t tested since they started charging, I don’t think many people have.

Just spoke to the hospital outpatient dept, a very nice on the ball young chap. He said no LFT needed but not to attend if having Covid symptoms. He confirmed if being admitted or having a procedure then an LFT required. Of course different hospitals might have other rules. 🙂

That sounds straightforward @CherryRipe1

I have to test twice weekly through work.

I always make one of these just before I visit my parents.

I test daily for ten days when I've been in close contact with a positive case.

I tested positive the other day with no symptoms

We test when dc comes home from care home and I do it when visiting
not sure what will happen why we run out and have to pay