Anyone else think this seems far far worse than the first wave?

[XiCi]

I'm in the NW. When we locked down in March I didnt know a single person that had had the virus. I knew of one anecdotally, someone my mum knew of, that had it after a skiing trip in Italy. That's it. Now, virtually the whole of my extended family have had positive tests, friends, friends of friends, their families. It goes on and on. Its absolutely rife and just blazing through everyone. Just seems like noone will escape it. Although luckily, this hasnt translated into a high number of deaths so far, the virus just seems far more prevalent.

laurie I’m sorry but you sound hysterical.

Many people suffer post viral fatigue after at viruses, particularly so if run down. I have had that myself. You generally recover.

It seems likely that contracting corona will give some immunity for several years and we are beginning to see that even if you get it again, there are few symptoms. So in an ideal world, people will get it at young children.

For people who are older then yes a vaccine might be needed but if we let the young get it it won’t be circulating at such high levels either

Meanwhile deaths from other causes are rising and there is a potential breakdown in society. Where did your fear come from?!

It seems worse because in the first wave I didn't know a single person who even wanted a test, never mind tested positive.
This second wave I know quite a few people who have tested positive, but apart from isolating at home for a few days none of them have been more ill than a bit of a cough.
In the first wave I was reading about hundreds of deaths a day, we aren't hearing that (yet), so in that sense it's not as bad.

When we locked down in March I didnt know a single person that had had the virus. I knew of one anecdotally, someone my mum knew of, that had it after a skiing trip in Italy. That's it. Now, virtually the whole of my extended family have had positive tests

But that's what you would expect surely, since March over half a million have had corona in the UK, the more people that get it the more people you'll know who've had it.

That doesn't mean it's worse it just means it's been around for longer, your making an obvious observation.

As for long term effects, a friend tested positive on 25th, and ran her usual 60km a week last week.
Not saying long term effects don't exist, but that some people never experience them.

Well no, I think there's just more tests now and people probably had it and didn't realise before. I still don't know anyone who has tested positive.

Rather opposite to you m, I think. I knew a few people in the first lockdown who tested positive, with a death too. Quite a few people also posting that they believe they have had it and it made them feel awful. Now, I now a lot of people who have tested positive for it but haven’t been ill and have just had a slight temperature.

I probably know more people testing positive now but none of them are experiencing any negative impacts. So it would suggest that are a lot of people are asymptomatic and those people weren’t captured in the testing in the first lockdown. Which has already been confirmed.

I live in an area with very low infection rates but have family and friends in the NW. literally every confirmed or suspected case I know of has been in NW. So I’m not surprised you feel like it’s getting out of hand. I feel a little bit like that for the numbers of people I know up there affected.

@Strawberry33

Only reason that deaths seem lower is because they are only including deaths that occur within 28 days of a positive test. We all know this disease takes a week or so to even need hospital treatment (day 10 is the norm when people get really bad) and often people hang on for weeks before dying.i work in a hospital and especially young people hang on ages. It was a deliberate move of the government to artificially keep deaths appearing low.

This is incorrect. If someone dies in a hospital of Covid that will be reported as such no matter how many days they have been there. The 28 day cut off is for other deaths in care homes/community etc where PHE do a lookup in the database to see if that person had a positive test in the 28 days prior to their death and if so they include them in the statistics too.

I'm in the NW, I know of no one who had it back in March and no one who has had it more recently. No children sent home from our school though I do know of other not quite so local schools who have sent bubbles home. We seem to be a bit of an isolated bubble while this is all going on around us

I don't know a single person who has had symptoms or tested positive for COVID and we're in a high risk area at the moment.

I think this is why is makes not seeing family, working from home, not meeting friends so much more frustrating as apart from the news, COVID just doesn't seem a huge issue - I know it is though, don't shout!

No. I know one who had it last time and one this time.

I think as well we now know that many have no symptoms or very mildly unwell so earlier in the year people wouldn't have assumed their mild illness was covid. I'm north east and know 5 people who have tested positive recently. 2 asymptomatic and 3 mildly unwell.

Looking back, my DH had symptoms at the end of Feb, after a trip to London. Home antibody test was negative though. How likely does it seem now that it still could have been Covid , do you think ?
Temperature, mild headache, constant dry cough ( worse at night) , fatigue that lasted a few weeks. Possible loss of taste/smell but we can’t remember now. I know he complained of that around that time, but we aren’t sure if it was connected or just a random blocked up nose.

Back in march how many people did you know who had had a test because of fever/cough etc

victoriaspngebob

I'm in the NW my partner currently has it he lost his sense of smell but isn't ill at all. I have no symptoms so am not eligible for a test so god knows if I have it or not. He is the first person I know who has tested positive

Have you not been in contact with your partner? If so you are eligible for a test, surely?

I'm in the NW and had it before lockdown only I couldn't be tested so obviously wouldn't have been counted in figures..my entire family had it..6 of us.
We are sure because my brother works in the covid ward in Bolton and he agreed all symptoms were indicative of it plus I've never had anything like it before and hope I never have anything like that again..I still can't breathe as normal but luckily my dc only had it mildly.
I also know of around 10 other people who are sure they had it but couldn't be tested as it was back in March April time.
I think the fact more people seem to have it now is to do with testing if I'm honest plus more mixing.

I am West Yorks so bordering with NW and I know quite a few people now, one was ill and a young male age 20, two were friends and work colleagues of DD (all HCPs) in their early 20s, and their employer antibody blood tests (NHS) came back as positive for having had the virus even though they had no symptoms and an assistant DD worked with all last week has just tested positive. Hopefully DD will be clear as they were always in PPE but who knows what the next two weeks will bring.

I agree with the testing, i think as many people have it as London earlier in the year but the availability of testing is making it look worse.

@Bluesheep8

We live together the guidelines are that I should isolate with him for 14days but unless I get one of the three symptoms I am not eligible for a test. I think because tests are scarce. It's crazy because I would love to know

We're testing now - we weren't in March.

It's like suddenly introducing an easier way to report crime and wondering why the 'crime rate' has gone up

Many more people have it, I know a couple in their 70's and fully recovered so although I worried during the first lock down I am not now.
Hence also think lock down unnecessary.

Huge number of asymptomatic so its not scarey any more.

victoriaspongebob

Ah of course, thanks for clarifying. I mistakenly thought people needed to test if they'd been in contact but Yes, they have to isolate as you say.

Also in the NW.

Both my parents died in April and May. They were only tested when they were finally admitted to hospital after being ill for 7-10 days and after I had called an ambulance out to them 4 times in a week. (I called the ambulances partly because of Covid worries and also because they both had falls and I couldn't get them up.)

I also contracted it after having tried unsuccessfully to nurse them although I didn't have a test because I didn't go to hospital, however I am 99% certain I did have it and so is my GP (and their GP). I had to self isolate alone at their house - my brother called the ambulance out to me in the end because of breathing difficulties, but they said it was mostly my asthma so didn't admit me to hospital.

Surely the fact that they can test even if you don't go to hospital must account for some of the rise in cases though?

I know one HCP who died in April (but they were dying of something else as well so we were well prepared IYSWIM).

After that I know a steady trickle of people with positive tests through my husband’s work (football - everyone routinely tested). None very ill. Many asymptomatic. Quite a few false positives too.

But I’m now hearing of more positive cases via my family up north and also my kids at various universities.

I’m in Greater Manchester and know of a friend of a friend who died from it back in April after coming back from Spain with it. I also know of friends’ brother and sister in law who were hospitalised with it in July- she was a hospital nurse.

I’m sure there were many many people who had it in March, in much the same way many people have it now - mild symptoms, feeling a bit under the weather - they just weren’t tested back then as testing on that level wasn’t available