I have gone nuts and paid someone to come to my house and do an antibody test on us

[LaurieFairyCake]

Can't take anymore not knowing so I've paid £260 to bike out a test from a lab and wait while we stab ourselves and return our blood to the lab

Dh thinks I've gone a bit batshit but I couldn't take anymore

Disclaimer : it won't affect my behaviour in line with current government guidelines

@fourteafallout I got it from Treated.com too

Thanks. When you get it would someone mind telling me the rules about it like how quickly do you have to get the sample in the post once you've got it and can you just put it in the post box or do you need to take it to the post office please?

So I went today to the place @NotAnotherUserNumber mentioned to have my Abbott antibody test administered this morning,

It was in the City (London) so very quiet.

Explained I wanted the test out of curiosity as to whether the flu I had in January might have been coronavirus and doctor wanted to know what my symptoms had been back in January (flu - headache / aching, persistent dry cough, mouth ulcers (!)).

I said I thought it was almost certainly not coronavirus - but as I had been travelling (NOT in China), I wanted the test done ‘just in case’

The doctor said, yes, he had been doing quite a few antibody tests - and that positive hits were about 20% - 25% - but that of course the people seeing him were ones that had previously had coronavirus symptoms. So a self selecting group

However, of the people he had tested who never had any symptoms (asymptomatic), none had tested positive for antibodies

Anyhow ...

Doctor says it’s a 24 hour service but they tend to get the results the same day.

Christ 🙄

He also said for curiosity he would run the instant analysis there & then yes - which I assume is the less accurate one (?)

And both the immediate test and the laboratory analysed one have come back negative

As I expected (though a little bit of me is a tiny bit disappointed)

@Aridane thanks for posting your experience there. V interesting what the doctor said and what he’s said about people who are asymptomatic. Clearly it isn’t as prevalent as people think then if only 25% of people who think they have had it actually have. Perhaps I didn’t have it after all! Really curious to get a test done now. What was the result of the instant analysis? Please post your results of the lab test when you get them :-)

Would be hard to live with someone that has it and not get it

DH had it, really ill for two weeks.

DC and I: fine. I moved into the spare room, and he largely stayed in the bedroom (felt too ill to do much else) but we were all sharing a bathroom and he came into the kitchen about once or twice a day.

Crossed with your post - thanks for posting and sorry they weren’t what you were hoping for

@Bananasandorangessss

FYI

Here is a screen grab of my negative lab results

@Aridane Thanks for posting them - I am disappointed for you that you got a negative result! It was the same company that I did my PCR swab with, also negative but think it’s Cos I tested too late / badly / postal delays but it sounds like a lot of people who assume they’ve had it, actually haven’t. Do you have any qualms about Abbott vs Roche or are you done now and won’t be getting a Roche test?

I am happy to ‘remain’ With Abbott (and in any case I don’t think Roche is commercially available yet). I didn’t really think I had had coronavirus - but party of me was hoping I had.

Got my Treated test today. Thank god there were three lancets! First two fingers I barely got any blood. Was genuinely panicking. I swapped over to my right hand and used the finger next to the pinky. It was like I'd struck oil!

It's Freepost return so will pop it in the postbox around the corner tomorrow.

Thank you so much to the posters who provided the details.

I will arrange the tests. I am sure I had covid -19 so it will be interesting to see what happens with the result.

Watching with interest! We’ve been thinking about getting the private tests done so it’s good to read other peoples experiences. Thanks for sharing!

Would be hard to live with someone that has it and not get it

I know someone that has it. He’s been very poorly in hospital. His wife didn’t get it or if she did she hasn’t had any symptoms.

~43% of people are asymptomatic so is really hard to know if you have had it. Hope these tests can be of some use

My brother in law had it. My sister never caught it despite isolating in the same house for two weeks. And she knows for sure as she had to be tested before being allowed back to work (nhs). She works with covid patients now and still hasn't caught it. I hope I have the same genes as her!

I got a test so hopefully be here in the next couple of days due to the weekend.
How much blood do you need?
I was also wondering if some people just don't get covid, like there immune to it, is that a possibility?

I have 3 friends who had a private antibody test done last week. I don't know which one.
One friend who was absolutely convinced she had it in January tested negative. The other 2, a couple, were both very unwell in March with classic symptoms. They both tested positive.

All are in London.

I've booked a blood test for the Abbott test at a private GP practice. I am soon returning to my job in a school and my husband has an underlying health condition. I am worried about taking the virus home to him. We had symptoms back in February. If we have had it already that will reduce our anxieties about my return to work.