Isolation

[Matildathehun77]

Hi! Can I ask a slightly daft question please? If we are shut down to avoid the spread (so not isolated because we are personally high risk) would we literally be under house arrest EG unable to go further than our own back garden
Or
Would we just be told to limit movement but still able to go for a walk, invite a friend over, go to a cafe?

I'm thinking about how I'd occupy my (very outgoing) seven year old during this and would love to know.

Also, I co parent with his dad who lives 15 minutes away. Would we still be able to do our "days" or would he need to settle with one parent?

Thanks, I appreciate nobody knows for sure but would love opinions based on what's happened so far

The aim of isolation is to reduce/avoid interactions with other people so as to stop the link of transmission. So probably best to stay at home as much as possible?

I think in China one person per family was allowed to go out and buy food every few days. And in Italy Restaurants are closed in the evenings.

I was wondering the same thing!

Self isolation means go going to cafes. No going to shops. No going anywhere you will be remotely close to other people or touching things (door handles, tables, etc.) in public places.

The idea is that you have your shopping delivered and stay at home. Friends/family can call by to drop off supplies but shouldn't enter your home and should keep a physical distance.

Going for a walk might be ok if you live somewhere rural where you won't encounter a soul, but you're really not meant to leave your own home.

And that's assuming the whole household is self isolating - it's trickier if you need to self isolate within your home, where you need a separate room, preferably bathroom, eating utensils, etc. away from everyone else.

www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/self-isolation-advice/

Posted too soon...

Shutdown can go from the extreme of everyone bar named services being in self isolation (e.g. food delivery services and health workers are allowed to be mobile, but no one else), to an almost-normal level of activity within the shutdown zone. There is no way of knowing which version the UK govt might opt for - probably the latter, in the name of capitalism.

And that's assuming the whole household is self isolating - it's trickier if you need to self isolate within your home, where you need a separate room, preferably bathroom, eating utensils, etc. away from everyone else.

DH and I are already resigned to the fact that if one of us gets it the other will as we can't self isolate with the home, we have no separate bedroom, let alone bathroom

DH and I are already resigned to the fact that if one of us gets it the other will as we can't self isolate with the home

Yes, it's very very difficult to self isolate within the home, and impossible for many (most?) people. Shutdown/lockdown increases rate of family transmission for this reason, but reduces rate of transmission overall... it's one of those public health measures that makes sense at the population level but can increase the misery for individual families.

Why would it mean going out or having guests? At best, it's a drag to be endured. At worst, someone is poorly.

They say in my country that you can go out to walk your dog for example so long as you are careful not to go within two metres of anyone (not hard where I live - people avoid other people even when there isn't a pandemic!) but you are not allowed to go inside public buildings so shops, cafes etc.

We just couldn't stay away from each other. We have one bedroom, one bathroom and one living room. We couldn't even confine to one room as you have to walk through the living room to get from the bedroom to the bathroom.

I can understand people wanting to go out for some fresh air although I obviously understand the reasons not to. I'd go mad stuck inside for 2 weeks if I wasn't ill! Luckily we have a garden but I really feel for people in flats who don't.

I was about to post about this! I can imagine a situation where I am getting cabin fever so decide to go for a walk at midnight and bump into all my neighbours doing similar.

I do wonder / worry about how we'll cope if both adults are ill at the same time, how am I supposed to look after my children if I'm on the edge of intensive care need? DH has asthma so I gather he might be hit worse. Keeping two young children safe, fed, and vaguely happy sounds hard work when we can't leave the house to get much fresh air. We have a garden with some stuff in it but it's no football pitch and really won't help much.

I guess we need to adjust expectations and accept that we might all have a pretty shitty fortnight, but we'll be fed and we're unlikely to die so I suppose I can't complain too much

They say in my country that you can go out to walk your dog for example so long as you are careful not to go within two metres of anyone (not hard where I live - people avoid other people even when there isn't a pandemic!) but you are not allowed to go inside public buildings so shops, cafes etc

Thanks everybody, can't say I'm looking forward to it but if it has to be done then we'll manage I expect. @Natsku when you say you can't go inside any shops, are you expected to have stockpiled then or can you get it delivered?

Books, tablet, games, netflix, youtube, crafts, jigsaw, face time friends.

Matilda For some stupid reason other people in the household are allowed to go out normally unless you show symptoms, then I don't know what people would do as supermarkets don't deliver here. Rely on friends I suppose. The Red Cross would help the elderly I'm sure and my OH thinks social services would help if a family had no way of getting food to their home.