I do not understand why the isolation period does not reset

[Dilbertian]

In the example given below, Child 2 could surely have been infected by the other family members, so why does her isolation clock not reset to 2 weeks from the onset of Dad's symptoms?

So for the vast majority of people, the virus is cleared in under 7 days? How can that be? Even colds last longer.

Also if that's the case, why are there so few cases marked as "recovered" worldwide?

The immune system creates antibodies within about 10 days researchers found. These kills the virus and any virus shedded will be inactive. The person may still feel unwell, without a fever, but is not infectious.

Isn’t it well know that people are most infectious just before and just after showing symptoms. It’s like chicken pox. You can be covered in chickenpox and go to school once they’ve scabbed over.

I’m trying to find out the timescale for illness if it deteriorates. It seems like ten days is a danger point and if so this implies these people aren’t infectious, but hospital staff are still in full PPE. There’s so much we don’t know.

Yes some people have been in hospital for 6 weeks +. It would be great for staff to know if these patients weren't infectious. Hopefully a researcher will find out more about this soon.

I think the answer is that this is not going to work perfectly in every situation, but the general reduction of exposure to the population will slow the spread of the virus. I don't think anybody is suggesting that isolating for 14 days/7 days/ or any other length of time is going to completely eradicate the virus. However, if we all had to self isolate for 14 days times by the number of family members that should be pretty bullet proof. However that would mean a family of 10 would have to self isolate for 140 days and a family of 2 for 28 days so I can see that people would not stick to that

But you’re not out and about. The whole family self-isolates. No one leaves the house.

No, mum and the children are out of isolation whilst dad has just started to be symptomatic.

This is helpful but confusing. Lots of people are saying 'great, I've had it and am past day 7 so off I go out and about again' - but barely anyone is actually being tested? So you could have had anything at all that made you ill - normal cough/cold/flu or whatever.

I’m thinking that this is part of the ‘slow it down, keep the economy going ‘ plan. NOT the ‘minimise deaths’ plan. People will be contagious but not quite so full on, keep spreading it to carry on with their ‘ slow it down, not get rid of it plan’

I'm confused - what if the symptoms that the mum, and then the dad, have are from a diff cause - eg one may be covid and one may just be a normal cough. So perhaps the mum's was a common cough/cold, and they self isolate for 14 days from onset of that, then dad catches covid (from shopkeeper for example), then surely it resets and 14 days starts again?

The symptoms can vary a lot but if they get the dry cough and sore, tight chest it’s very likely and different to anything I’ve had before, including really bad flu. So the isolation plan isn’t perfect but works for typical cases.

Long term we will move to stricter rules. It’s likely the asymptomatic and very mild cases are behind a lot of spread. I feel well enough to work, although the chest pains/tightness would have alarmed me enough to call the GP/111 normally. By the time the cough is bad the infectious period is over anyway.