To ask if you are still avoiding covid?

[Sleepyinnewyork]

I know it’s everywhere but are people still avoiding seeing friends / family if they know it’s definitely covid? Or is no one worried anymore?
I feel like I wouldn’t want to put myself in the line of fire knowingly as it’s made me bed bound twice - not seriously ill or anything but like a flu - but I don’t know if I’m over the top about it given that it’s now just everywhere in the community anyway.

"Not a big deal" when seven million people have died from it? That's taking callousness to a new level.

If I believed that I had any contagious illness then of course I would avoid other people or wear a mask. If I have something very mild like a light cold and I'm due to visit a friend or someone is due to come to my house, then I warn them beforehand and give them the option of changing our plans.

I know two people whose lives have been severely impacted by Long COVID so I still avoid it when possible.

@Growlybear83 but that's simply not an option for a lot of people these days, especially with the cost of living

"Fret about Covid"

If you were a carer for an adult child with multiple health conditions or lived with an older person with, for example, a history of strokes, then you might "fret about Covid" too.

I hope you are aware that catching Covid increases your risk of strokes, clots in the lungs, cardiac issues, cognitive impairment, vascular issues and the potential for developing Long Covid and Parkinson's disease - which may force you to give up work, or render you unable to care for yourself or your family. Your children, if you have them, may be too ill to return to school if they develop Long Covid.

If you are on Twitter/X you would know that far from a "little pocket of people" who strive to avoid catching or passing on Covid, there are a great number of people who continue to actively avoid exposure to Covid.

Ask yourself why A & E is still overwhelmed. Why GP surgeries are reporting sustained levels of absences amongst clinical and admin staff. Why elective surgeries are being cancelled due to staff ill health.

You sound very ill informed.

This- covid/flu/any other random snotty virus. I try to not catch it and not pass it on if I d have it. I still perform essential tasks but don’t test

I'm confused by how much cost of living plays into avoiding someone when ill instead of seeing them socially. Ditto for giving them a choice instead of dictating to them whether they should risk catching the illness?

Avoiding work etc. some of us have no choice but to go in when sick

So if you had symptons like cold flu etc and tested for covid and it was negative you'd still go to your elderly mum?

I realise that some people would find it hard not to go into work if they think they have Covid and don't feel too unwell, but at the very least in those circumstances I think they have a moral duty to test and warn colleagues so that they can choose to keep their distance, and it's not exactly difficult to wear a mask. I'm self employed so I don't have the luxury of paid sick leave, so being ill has a huge financial impact on me, but I would still do everything possible to avoid infecting other people, including losing money by not working.

I work in healthcare; it's rife at the moment.

I wouldn't avoid people and wouldn't mind being around people with it. But some of my friends and family still isolate. I guess if you can easily isolate it's for the best to avoid general illness, but I wouldn't go out of my way to isolate unless I knew someone was particularly vulnerable.

I treat it like the flu. I don't test at all anymore to determine if I actually have covid, though I have some family members (who don't live locally, so I don't even see) who are obsessed with asking if I've testing anytime I mention feeling unwell on the phone, always claiming its going back around and I should be off work until I test negative etc.
I am just sensible like pre covid. Covid seems to have split people into people who fear another outbreak could happen or people who seem to now think the flu is not a concern at all because its not as bad as covid.

Yeah, people who still follow medical advice and understand what a nasty virus it can be.

I definitely would avoid it, just like I try and avoid the flu or any other nasty virus. I don't want to get sick and I don't want to pass illness on to others. That's why I've already had my Covid and flu vaccinations this autumn.

@itwasnevermine thought you were replying to @Growlybear83 who said would avoid people where could or wear a mask.

I wouldn't knowingly expose myself to covid the same as I wouldn't expose myself norovirus or flu or chicken pox.

For me it's not just covid. Before the pandemic, I just thought it was part and parcel of living to have to pick up colds and viruses. The pandemic taught me a lot of important things about how to keep myself well, so I do still do them. Over the past 4 years I've had one bout of covid - it was mild, and one cold, that was also mild. It's such a joy not to lose work and sleep as a result of contagious illnesses. I wish people who are out with symptoms would wear masks.

I'm just getting on with my life, although I do have a vaccination booked next week (I'm over 65, with an unwell DH at home). Today in a supermarket I stood next to a lady who was fully masked up and wearing disposable gloves, so clearly some people are still being careful. If I knew I had it I would take steps to avoid people as much as possible.

@Growlybear83 my duty is to me.

I'd managed to dodge covid until three weeks ago. I tested positive, felt horrendous, cancelled everything and went to bed. I had a temp of 40.6, aching kidneys so I didn't have any choice, just descended into sweaty confusion and slept. Off my food for 7 days. Lost 3.5kg. It's taken three weeks to shake it off.

DS caught it and had 4 days off school.

But hopefully that's our antibodies topped up for the winter 🤗

Yes I would try to avoid catching Covid and do my best to avoid passing it on. Same as I've always done with colds, flu and other illnesses that might spread easily. It's basic human decency to take precautions to avoid infecting other people.

Next thing people will be saying HIV isn't a death sentence anymore so it doesn't matter if you don't tell a partner you've got it before you have unprotected sex, they'd just need to take a bit of medication each day if they contract it from you.

What a lovely attitude.

I avoid Covid in the same way that I avoid Influenza, Whooping Cough, Chicken Pox, gastro and all other highly unpleasant viral illnesses.

I tend to avoid people who wear masks to be fair. I assume they don't really want spontaneous interaction, and I struggle to process facial expressions and emotion of masked people quite badly - so I stay away and we achieve a mutually beneficial outcome.