"Only the elderly/immune suppressed are at risk" - attitude of dicks?

[SylvanianFrenemies]

People who say not to worry about Coronavirus, because "Only the elderly/chronically ill/immune suppressed" are dicks.

Some of us fall into these categories. Some love people who fall into these categories. Some have some essence of humanity. Stop using "Only the xxx" to dismiss concerns. Stop conflating it with flu.

Wash your hands. Isolate yourself as required. Err on the side of caution.

YABU = I agree with these dicks.
YANBU = I am human.

@flower1994

I'm with you- I'm not panicking either. That doesnt make me a heartless dick. It makes me aware of the effect of anxiety on the immune system (stress reduces immunity). Panicking solves absolutely nothing. Noone would ever get out of a crisis if they flapped and panicked. Cool, clear headed thinking and sensible precautions are what we need to be doing. If that makes me a "dick" then fine, I'll happily be a "dick". At least I'll be calm dick

Well, I'm the OP, and I'm not panicking. The thread isn't "panic about Coronavirus, or you are a dick".

I almost lost my baby to swine flu. He was just six weeks old.
He already has a weaker immune system due to his disability.
Six weeks on life support in an induced coma and we almost lost him twice.
He's 9 now and hopefully stronger, but obviously his immune system is naturally weaker due to the nature of his disability.

I have stopped watching the news for now and will shortly be withdrawing from all social media.
I don't want to hear any more. I'm done.

I've never typed "dick" so much in my life. I shudder to think what targeted ads I will get.

I'm sorry @Milkwith1sugar44 - people forget the individual stories when they say Swine Flu wasn't that bad.

Most of us primarily worry about our children, so it's reassuring, and evolutionary to be reassured, that the next generation will be ok.

Old people die. So a pandemic that appears to kill mainly the old and sick just isn't as scary as one that takes out the young and fit. (like swine flu). I don't think knowing that old and sick people are more likely to die makes me less human. It's a natural thing to be reassured our children will probably be ok.

Milkwith1sugar44 I'm really sorry to hear about your boy. this is why these threads are really unhelpful sometimes - you don't need to keep seeing and hearing about it when I'm sure you're already aware and to keep seeing these horrifying statistics other posters are putting. try pay them no mind and stick with the facts and statistics that the professionals are putting out

@Milkwith1sugar44
I'm so sorry about your son. If its safe to do so (check with GP) make sure you both keep your vitamin C up. They have been treating CV victims in China with intravenous vitamin c and in studies, vit c has been proven to assist with recovery of pneumonia and various other viral lung conditions.

I still don’t understand where you’re getting 9% from

I’m getting my stats here

It's scary and we should all be concerned, but it would be a whole lot more distressing for everyone (including the elderly many of whom are parents and grandparents) if it was disproportionately killing children and parents of young children.

@Justaboy Yes I've read that too it seems the variation in the size of respiratory droplets can change from person to person. Larger droplets fall out of the air faster, for example, but may last longer than smaller droplets before evaporating.

Also I've been reading how in the case of superspreaders they seem to make more of the virus (lots of possible factors) at the moment this is under investigation so I'm hoping for some clarity in future papers.

@defaultusername of course, I have 2 young children. I'm massively reassured that children seem less affected.

I am high risk. However, I'm not a shadow lying in a bed. I'm not sick - I work, exercise etc. Even if I was sick, I would still matter. I'm a person, and I would like not to die because someone can't be bothered to stay home with Coronavirus, because "old and sick people" are the ones at risk.

People who aren't high risk should of course be personally reassured. But they should have some sensitivity, and avoid complacency. That's my point.

It is NOT the flu. Flu can result in pneumonia in people with respiratory conditions but this type of bacterial pneumonia responds to antibiotics. Coronavirus on the other hand can result in viral pneumonia which does not respond to antibiotics as it is caused by a virus. I am very concerned about the whole situation. I have my dd who has asthma and dh who has diabetes and is also on immunosuppressants for another health condition.

Yes that happened to me when I had a bad bout of flu last year. It became pneumonia and I was nearly hospitalised but was instead sent home with powerful antibiotics.

The problem here really is that the medical profession still haven't found a way of treating a virus.

The thing is, in terms of severity it does seem to be just like the flu. It's obviously concerning for those who are/ have loved ones who are old/immune suppressed, but flu is also concerning and just as deadly for such people, and still a LOT more prevalent and thus more of a risk than covid-19.

Am I worried about my immune-suppressed loved one? yes, but I'm worried because they're immune suppressed and any simple infection could be dangerous for them, not because covid-19 represents some new and extraordinary threat.

Old people die. So a pandemic that appears to kill mainly the old and sick just isn't as scary as one that takes out the young and fit. (like swine flu). I don't think knowing that old and sick people are more likely to die makes me less human. It's a natural thing to be reassured our children will probably be ok.

But swine flu had a very low mortality rate. I think people making this comparison are doing so because bird flu was around at the same time and that had a very high death rate but never mutated so that it passes from human to human.

There were fears that swine flu would turn out to be as bad as that but it didn't. It was horrible, I had it myself and I don't think I've ever been quite as unwell at the start (except when I had malaria years ago).

It's scary and we should all be concerned, but it would be a whole lot more distressing for everyone (including the elderly many of whom are parents and grandparents) if it was disproportionately killing children and parents of young children. Yes, I think that sums up the "dickish" viewpoint entirely. "It's killing old people but everyone would care a lot more if it were killing young people"

yes, because apparently people like me who are not panicking are dicks and its nice to be able to explain why were not

If you want to explain anything you need to understand what people are saying and you quite clearly don't. Nobody has said that panicking is a good idea and they certainly haven't said that people who were not panicking are dicks. That isn't what this thread is about. Sorry if it makes you panic or experience anxiety but that doesn't mean it's having that effect on everybody or that other people shouldn't post. You don't have to read it.

I don’t think people are dicks for privately trying to rationalise the situation for themselves.
I do think the dicks are the ones who forget that each person with a pre existing condition or elderly person is a loved, valued, cherished individual. Whose death would devastate (and I use that word carefully) the lives of those who love them.
People like my lovely husband who will almost certainly die if he gets it. And whose death will devastate me and our dcs (11 and 13).

Yes, I think that sums up the "dickish" viewpoint entirely. "It's killing old people but everyone would care a lot more if it were killing young people"

Yes!

@InsomCho What are you thinking of when you hear immunosuppressed? People on chemo? Or very frail with multiple health problems?
Or people with diabetes, asthma, etc? Who are working, exercising?

It is surprising the amount of people who have said ''It only affects the old and immunosuppressed, so nothing to worry about''...And yesterday's Daily Heil reported that in a pandemic, it would be the 'healthy' that were given the treatment, as they are more likely to survive..
So if a 30 something or a 70 yr old were both ill, the 30 yr old would get the ventilation?
It IS inhumane to think like this, as we are all human.
What I don't understand is the closing of schools....Where do the children go? Probably off to the nearest Rally like the one in Bristol today, with Greta Thunberg...

It's worth pointing out that there is a vaccine for most flu strains.

And flue kills way less people in developed countries than this is. Way, way less.

So a pandemic that appears to kill mainly the old and sick just isn't as scary as one that takes out the young and fit.

Lots of people with weakened immune systems are active and working. I have type 2 diabetes so am at risk yet I've not had a single day of work for diabetes related matters since being diagnosed 20+ years ago. My OH has an incurable cancer so at high risk, yet also still working. We're in our mid 50's. Not everyone "at risk" is old and incapacitated - many are still enjoying pretty normal lives.

I voted YABU and I’m in at risk group. I’ll explain why, I don’t think I’m a dick but maybe I am.

I have a chronic lung condition and it’s getting worse. I have 30% lung function and depleting oxygen levels. I am a single mum and the father is a useless plank. I spend my life terrified I’m going to die and leave my son alone with my parents who aren’t getting any younger. Most chest infections send me to intensive care. I’ve had 3 admissions in less than a year. I am also on immunosuppressant medication - methotrexate. I am probably one of the highest risk.

Honestly, this coronavirus is an additional worry but when I think it affects people like me the most, I’m not saying, fuck it, I’ll just die quietly. I mean, that we live with risk every day. I probably live with more risk than others on here and some of you have more risk than me. It’s just basic fact that vulnerable people are always more vulnerable to these types of things. It’s not saying it’s ok at all. It’s not saying we don’t matter. For me, it’s fact. Just my opinion.

I see no value in the average healthy person going around flapping and buying face masks because they’re worried about themselves. Do we really want our kids exposed to hysteria? I try to be matter of fact so my son doesn’t worry. We can be honest without scaring people and SOME people are generating unnecessary hysteria. I appreciate people in the at risk group are anxious. I am anxious too! I just don’t think the vast majority of people who say “only the elderly or ill are at risk” truly mean they don’t care if we die.

to those dealing with the general crap of life’s health problems. It truly is beyond shit.