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Original poster

When did you start taking it seriously?

105 replies

LuxLFC · 19/03/2020 12:37

For me it was January when the W.H.O declared it a public health emergency, although I was already aware of it by that point. I stocked up about 3 weeks later. It has been interesting to see people around me so dismissive of the situation until that first press conference with Bozo & the other 2.
What about you or the people in your lives?

OP posts:
AliciaWhiskers · 19/03/2020 12:59

I’ve been reading about it for weeks, prepping by getting in extra bits at home etc. But it was today when I had to choose between having our FET IVF or not, I realised the enormity of what we will be facing in the days, weeks and months to come.

JayDot500 · 19/03/2020 13:00

When the first confirmed cases reached Europe. I had a Brexit stock pile, so just added a few bits to that. I did tell my family to grab some bits, but they thought I was being ridiculous.

I actually am trained in epidemiology. I've spent an enormous amount of time on FB travel groups I belong to. Tried to talk so many people out of travelling to Italy, then Spain. Many still went then expected sympathy because they were stuck. Spend a lot of time educating people the difference between Covid19 and the flu (I have a lot of young people on my Instagram, many who were dismissive about Covid). Even yesterday, I tore into one stupid post that diminished Covid19 because 'the flu is kills more people'.Hmm

JayDot500 · 19/03/2020 13:01

Excuse typos, baby sleeping in one hand Grin

BlessedBeTheFruitCake · 19/03/2020 13:01

Watching the Italy cases and deaths increase drastically then seeing our figures increase similarly. Obviously yesterday's announcement to close schools really confirmed I wasn't being ott.

TheoriginalLEM · 19/03/2020 13:02

When my bosses started introducing measures at work, i was like, okay then and now I think I have it Shock

NotDisclosedToday · 19/03/2020 13:02

Just checked my message history. I suggested my brother buy some extra essentials for his baby back on January 31st.

buttonmoonb4tea · 19/03/2020 13:02

I knew in January when the first cases in China were reported. Tried to put it to the back of my mind.

But I work in local government and have a family member who works for NHS. I've seen how they were completely unprepared up until this week. In fact friends who work in private sector told me that their employers were putting in measures to stop the spread, WFH etc. Nothing for us until literally yesterday

I knew then it was going to be bad. If local authorities and NHS trusts are unprepared then there was a cat in hells chance that the government were prepared.

JingsMahBucket · 19/03/2020 13:03

Mid-January. It raised my eyebrow because the Hong Kong protests were being interrupted.

Egghead68 · 19/03/2020 13:04

When it reached Italy.

iVampire · 19/03/2020 13:05

Several weeks ago, as I knew I would be in a highly vulnerable category. I got on some supplies before panic buying stuck, so am OK at the moment. But a bit worried now that shopping is showing no signs of normalising as I may need to isolate for many more weeks to come

MasakaBuzz · 19/03/2020 13:05

Probably about 3 weeks ago. It’s really hit me the last couple of days.

I move between a fatalistic “whatever will be will be” attitude and blind panic.

Officially I am in the vulnerable group with Rheumatoid arthritis and Fibromyalgia, but never have I ever been more grateful that I started a get fitter kick before Christmas to prepare for the joint ops I need. I know the waiting list for the first of those ops which was a year, is going to be a lot lot longer.

I am also incredibly grateful that I was a bolshy teenager and refused to follow the pack and start smoking.

I am also fortunate that I am used to spending time on my own. Living in a rural county we will continue to walk round the park in the evening together, until told otherwise. There are only two of us, and if one of us has it the other will also because we have done the same evening walk for years. I am keeping away from people at the morning walk though.

Hellohello2020 · 19/03/2020 13:06

I'd say last Wednesday when it effected mine and my husbands workplace it became really real

katy1111 · 19/03/2020 13:06

When my elderly parents in law went into self-isolation. They are in their 70s and both vulnerable due to heart issues. They are not the type of people to ever isolate themselves so that made be step back and think, this is serious.
Then even more so when I actually got it myself (mild so far thank goodness, although mild is a relative term- it's still pretty miserable). I'm just so thankful that PiLs decided to self-isolate last week or else we'd have seen them at the weekend when I was probably already carrying it without knowing. It doesn't bear thinking about what could have happened then.

Pteuropa · 19/03/2020 13:07

I’ve been incredibly naive, thought it wouldn’t really affect us here. This time last week I was still planning my holiday to Florida in April. I still can’t get my head around it all, it’s too much to take it. I still don’t know what the uk or daily life will look like in a month.

Sitting at home, watching the news it feels like an apocalypse. Step outside my front door and everything’s just the same.

Itsjustmee · 19/03/2020 13:07

Last week of Feb. I read about Italy and friends who live there told me it was getting pretty serious I did a huge shop & booked on line shopping slots
Made sure we had plenty of food and essential medicines in the house and made sure my parents had plenty in stock and told them to avoid going out

JingsMahBucket · 19/03/2020 13:08

I think something I’d like to ask as an addendum, @LuxLFC, if you don’t mind is this: Why did people (posters) not take it seriously? That’s not snark, I’m genuinely interested in how group psychology works. Did you have other major issues in your life drawing attention away from it? Did you think it was too far away, etc? Just curious.

katy1111 · 19/03/2020 13:08

@strawberrypancakes that sounds so scary Thanks. How is your DD doing now?

rookiemere · 19/03/2020 13:09

DH has been talking about it for a couple of months. In fact we moved stocks and shares pension to cash mid February to the amazement of everyone at work (Financial sector). But it didn't become properly real until last Thursday when we didn't go on a ski weekend to France - right decision as it turned out although won't get a penny back - and then DH started displaying some symptoms on Friday - may or may not be Covid he's on the mend now and I'm now getting the symptoms too. Oh and we were all asked to wfh from Monday with immediate effect.

Still didn't seem properly real until the tv conference on Monday when we realised we would have to self isolate for 14 days, and then the interview with an Italian doctor which was absolutely harrowing about how people weren't recovering.

Some people still aren't getting it. My boss - who I love dearly has this amazing gung-ho enthusiasm which is useful in most situations- messaged me to say that her exercise class was quite empty Confused. I think we're going to have to do a lockdown it's the only way to try to slow down the spread.

Beey · 19/03/2020 13:10

Early February, I think. I already had a Brexit stash, but topped it up over the next couple of weeks. I am a scientist, I understand the impact and risks of a virus that mutates to transmit person to person without high fatality. It has still ended up worse than I had considered.

JonesyCat40 · 19/03/2020 13:10

When it was first announced that Italy had locked down some of its areas, and someone was saying on the news that just a few days before everything there was completely normal.
It occurred to me that that could happen here.
Although when watching the situation in China unfold, and the measures they were taking, I thought that just can’t be just the flu.

Theodoreb · 19/03/2020 13:11

In The end of January I started preparing I moved chemists over to one who will deliver my weekly medication for free as opposed to my previous one who charges £5 for delivery. So signed up for delivery with a smaller pharmacy that has better stock generally.

I have severe mental illness so always have at least a month worth of food I haven't increased that.

My preparation was mostly securing my medication as that was my biggest concern and I knew I would be refused to move over to monthly.

megletthesecond · 19/03/2020 13:13

I bought face masks at the start of February as I had a bad feeling about it. I already had some Brexit supplies stashed away so I didn't go into panic mode.

BilboBercow · 19/03/2020 13:14

I knew when they locked down Wuhan that it was bad. Been trying to convince everyone just how bad it is since mid Feb

Original poster
LuxLFC · 19/03/2020 13:17

@JingsMahBucket good point. My boss kept taking the piss out of my warnings but when I explained that I was worried because of my health she said it's easy to ignore when it's happening somewhere so far away (even though by that point it was in this country & where I work we had a scare v early on!).

OP posts:
Peridot1 · 19/03/2020 13:24

Around Chinese New Year when I saw the measures they were taking in China.

I had had a Brexit stash which I had been using up but I started adding to that again. Did a big Sainsbury’s shop early Feb and bought a few tins or a bag of pasta or a sauce any time I was in M&S. Then did a big Ocado shop about three weeks ago. Cleared the freezer of more bulky things to be able to freeze more compact stuff. (We did use what we cleared!)

Medicines I had been adding to gradually also. We usually have most things in but I sorted through the medicine cupboard in Feb and updated stocks.