I'm starting to feel terrified

[theneighbourswindchime]

First the cough and temp,

Then stomach problems / diarrhoea

Now rashes...

So many new symptoms being added.... does it mean the virus is mutating?

I'm not feeling particularly educated at the moment, my anxiety is really clouding my judgment!

Do you think this will ever end??

I think I'm just very scared 😭

Don't be scared. Honestly. Where are you reading your info?

This article from the Washington Post is insightful:

www.washingtonpost.com/health/2020/05/10/coronavirus-attacks-body-symptoms/?arc404=true&utm_campaign=wp_post_most&utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&wpisrc=nl_most

‘How coronavirus attacks the human body’

Today, there is widespread recognition the novel coronavirus is far more unpredictable than a simple respiratory virus. Often it attacks the lungs, but it can also strike anywhere from the brain to the toes. Many doctors are focused on treating the inflammatory reactions it triggers and its capacity to cause blood clots, even as they struggle to help patients breathe.

Learning about a new disease on the fly, with more than 78,000 U.S. deaths attributed to the pandemic, they have little solid research to guide them. The World Health Organization’s database already lists more than 14,600 papers on covid-19. Even the world’s premier public health agencies, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, have constantly altered their advice to keep pace with new developments.

“We don’t know why there are so many disease presentations,” said Angela Rasmussen, a virologist at the Center for Infection and Immunity at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health. “Bottom line, this is just so new that there’s a lot we don’t know.”

Of course it will end. This isn't the first pandemic we've had.

The media like to sensationalise everything but think of how many people will have had corona mildly and not even known they have had it.

Viral rashes are pretty common so please don't be alarmed.

Below are some examples (in children but can apply to adults):

www.rch.org.au/kidsinfo/fact_sheets/Rashes/

The more we know about the symptoms, the more we can test for it.

I can’t work out if you are experiencing the symptoms yourself OP? Are you ok?

*Sorry to clarify: rashes are pretty in common in a lot of viral illnesses.

No, it just means there are a lot of people out there obsessed with thinking they've caught it, and attributing everything under the sun as a covid symptom. I was told the other day by a random loon that normal hay fever symptoms are now a sign of possible covid, despite the medical evidence to the contrary.

No symptoms myself or family thankfully.

I just had a panic attack after reading an article about the link of Kawasaki to COVID-19 and I really really feel so terribly petrified for my children.

I'm sorry - I know it's quite pathetic :(

I'm staying upbeat and positive in front of them, but as soon as the lights are out I'm literally crumbling :(

I know how you feel OP.

My daughter somehow caught slapped cheek syndrome the other week whilst out shopping in Tesco.
When the rash started I panicked too, but kept a close eye and realised it was slapped cheek.

I think you're going to know if your kids suffer with something like this and at least they're aware of it now. I know this doesn't change the fact that it's still there and catchable, but you know what to look for and can act in a timely manner. It is basically staying alert and aware.

It doesn't mean the virus is mutating! It's just that they're learning more about it as time goes on. When the virus was first discovered, most people had a cough and a temperature so those were the symptoms that were reported. People who had diarrhoea etc didn't think 'oh, maybe I have the coronavirus' and get tested, because those weren't thought to be COVID symptoms at that point. So they went undetected for a while.

The rarer symptoms are, the longer they take to spot and to be confirmed as COVID symptoms. Say you have a 1 in 100 chance of getting a rash if you have the virus. If doctors look at 100 people in hospital with the virus and notice that one of them has a rash, they have no idea if that's because of coronavirus or if it's just a random coincidence. If they look at 1,000,000 patient records and see that 10,000 of them had a rash, that's much better evidence. So the more people that get sick as time goes on, the more symptoms they'll pick up on.

It's not pathetic to worry about your kids, but the Kawasaki-like syndrome is extremely rare, and most of the children who do get it don't have any major effects. It's just scary because at the moment the news keeps reporting on the same few cases over and over.

I felt the same. I went to bits when this all took hold. Especially reading the Kawasaki stuff. The best you can do is have a thermometer and calpol etc ready. Keep a brave face on and power through as best you can. Every day without anyone showing any symptoms counts as a good day. Count the good days as you go.

Anyone nervous about having alcohol hand sanitisers in the house? if we had bottles of spirits or wine, wouldn't we keep them away from our children? With alcohol hand sanitisers we are encouraging them to use them and they don't even have childproof tops. Just one 500ml bottle has same alcohol content as 4 bottles of wine!!

It is so rare for children to get it badly. It really is. It’s awful of course but it’s really uncommon.

Do you have someone in real life that you can have a chat with?

Tav - just keep it out of their reach somewhere?

The chances of you or your children being seriously affected are exceptionally low, even if you catch it. Sometimes it's best not to read too much - it doesn't always help.

Just keep doing what you can to avoid it - handwashing, social distancing - and remember that viruses of all sorts normally do cause serious illness in some people - so in normal times people are hospitalised with viral illnesses too. But if you encountered those viruses, they also probably wouldn't affect you badly.

It's horrid feeling anxious but important you keep reminding yourself that you and your children are not in imminent danger - the risk is very, very, very low indeed.

@Tav101159 really? You think a kid is gonna drink a bottle of hand sanatizer?