What scares you about Covid?

[Nomorejumping]

I’m 34, first time mum this year and I’m absolutely petrified of Covid.

I know others will be or will have been in the same position but I just can’t seem to get past the way I feel.

I haven’t done things like go for coffees, go to the hair dressers, out for a meal since January.

Even when restrictions were eased in the summer and we were allowed to meet indoors, I chose not to.

I spent most of the summer outdoors, socially distanced walks, going to the zoo etc.

I’m petrified that Covid = death for me.

I’m due back to work in April and I’m honestly considering not going back.
My son will have to go to a nursery and I’m
so worried about being in an office with people all day.

DH works from home but I don’t have that option with my job.

I struggle to manage what my risks actually are.
I have psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis.
I’ve never been on medication and always managed with painkillers and steroid injections when needed so I wasn’t on the shielding list.

I don’t know what risk category I fall into but I’ve convinced myself I will be hospitalised and ventilated if I catch it.

The thought ever leaving DS breaks my heart.

I’d love to take him to local baby classes that have just opened up again (all socially distanced)
I’d love to take him to the local garden centre that have a fantastic Christmas display there, but I’m to scared.

How do other people manage?

I see people just living normally, using public transport, eating out, going to supermarkets and I genuinely feel so envious and wish I could be like that.

I’ve never been like this before. Covid has literally changed my life 😭

The only thing that scares me is my parents getting it, even though they have both had it earlier this year and were okay.
Nothing else scares me apart from the restriction and how the government think they can stop us from going out/seeing family

I did a QCovid test which gives you a risk rating which said that my risk of death from Covid was 1:70000. I found it through the BHF website https://www.bhf.org.uk/informationsupport/heart-matters-magazine/news/coronavirus-and-your-health/how-to-find-out-your-risk-when-it-comes-to-coronavirus

It might help to set your mind at ease a bit. If your chances of dying are very very low, you might find it helpful to talk through with a counsellor why you're more worried about this than other higher risks you accept daily.

Just passing it on to someone vulnerable.

I’m 40, fit, healthy. Statistically covid poses no threat to me.

My parents are elderly though. That’s my fear. Covid isn’t just about illness and death. It’s about the loneliest illness, the loneliest death.

I don’t want to be part of a chain of infection that dooms someone to dying alone.

Not doing any of that either OP. It’s too unknown as you don’t know whether it will be so mild you don’t know you have it or so serious the worst happens.

We will go back to doing things once its much safer to do so.

@badpuma

I did a QCovid test which gives you a risk rating which said that my risk of death from Covid was 1:70000. I found it through the BHF website [[https://www.bhf.org.uk/informationsupport/heart-matters-magazine/news/coronavirus-and-your-health/how-to-find-out-your-risk-when-it-comes-to-coronavirus]]

It might help to set your mind at ease a bit. If your chances of dying are very very low, you might find it helpful to talk through with a counsellor why you're more worried about this than other higher risks you accept daily.

@badpuma

Thanks! Just done this and it says 1:167000

@badpuma

Posted too soon.

Doesn’t really make me feel better as you just don’t know how Covid will affect you.

Op, I have developed terrible health anxiety since having my dc, the thought of leaving my dc (even though they're now hulking great teenagers) is terrifying. So I understand how you feel.

Firstly, your return to work in April. Hopefully things will be well on the way to normal by April with the vaccination programme well underway. Secondly, things feel very scary to you because you've been at home for so long. I can promise you that when you venture out a bit it does become less scary. Maybe try one of the baby classes. You could leave if you felt uncomfortable but you might feel so much better for a little company.

With covid my biggest fear is how it impacts my children. I hate the fact they've missed so much school and socialising. Of course I'm a bit anxious about catching it and every time I cough or have a headache I wonder should I get a test! But I take sensible precautions with masks and hand washing and so far we've been fine.

Sending a hand hold because it really has been the hardest of times but things are on the way up, promise.

Do you think being a mother has made you more careful. When I was expecting my second child, I was petrified of something going wrong with me and constantly thinking how my husband would manage look after 2 children.

By April, I would hope most people in the vulnerable category would have received the vaccine, you have a few more months yet to decide about going back to work.

We are not going out much either, just walks locally.

The only thing that scares me is the damage to the economy and the government's creeping interference in every aspect of our lives.

The only thing that scares me is my parents getting it

Same here. Otherwise life is fairly normal for me.

I’m scared of passing it to friends who are ECV or over 70. My risk of dying is 1 in 65000.

I’m scared longer term about the damage to mental health, obesity, alcoholism, domestic violence, the economy.

I can remember feeling that same element of vulnerability as a new mum. There were lots of things I stopped doing that I'm now doing again as a mother to teenagers. I think it is a primal, protective hormonal thing going back to when we were Hunter gatherers.

I'm over a decade older than you, have no known conditions that make me more vulnerable. I have had friends and family die over the years out of the blue and so I'm no more scared of covid than of car accidents, undiagnosed heart issues etc. But if I spent time worrying about these things, the anxiety would stop me living well...

I'm more concerned for my mental health, the claustrophobia, the new sensory issues, the panic attacks that I've developed as a result of the hideous rules from March to July and from the constant leaking of new restrictions with scant information about what the reality would be. I'm more concerned about squeezing every drop of joy from life, because none of us have any guarantees about how long we'll be here.

Having a small person to look after does bring home how vulnerable we all are. Maybe it would help to discuss your known risk factors with a GP and take small, risk assessed steps from there. I can see how going from shielding yourself to work will be a massive step, but baby steps towards doing the things you feel you've been missing out on might help it feel less of a leap.

@itssquidstella

The only thing that scares me is the damage to the economy and the government's creeping interference in every aspect of our lives.

Yep. This is how I feel too. CV doesn’t worry me at all. The response and restrictions for a disease that is not a risk to the vast majority of people and the damage that has been done to the economy worries me far more.

@Changi

The only thing that scares me is my parents getting it

Same here. Otherwise life is fairly normal for me.

Yep me too. Not worried about getting it, but worried about giving it to my parents or my husband’s grandparents who are all over 70.

@itssquidstella

The only thing that scares me is the damage to the economy and the government's creeping interference in every aspect of our lives.

Yep me too.

That these changes on our lives and liberties will be hard to undo, and they'll move the goal posts even after the vaccines.

I'm scared of the 'new norms' and the (so far) huge hidden future costs.

I'm scared that the Draconian civil-rights-limiting powers will be normalised for "public good".
I'm dismayed by the risk-averse views becoming predominant, and the moral high ground some people claim due to their high risk-averseness.
I'm depressed by the divisiveness between those who insist that they themselves are good people and the majority are covidiots or 'world gone mad'.
I'm scared that our bodily autonomy & ability to choose own risks has been put aside (a new horrible norm).

I'm personally scared that my work opportunities may be damaged because I seem to have minority views.

I'm scared to discover I'm such a coward about stating my own views, Trying to make peace with that, but wondering if I would turn blind eye to something deeply awful like ethnic persecution, I may lack the courage or good moral character I thought I had.

The economic scars & upheaval will take years to recover from (if ever).
Poor people will have been worse hit by the economic damage & this inequity will undermine societal cohesion.

I'm glad I'm old so I may not live long enough to see the bad things all play out. DC seem to be resilient & I strongly suspect that they personally will be ok. The vaccine progress has been amazing & may open doors to new technological breakthrus.

Great post @lljkk

About the wider social context: everything... I'm concerned about social breakdown when the pandemic is compounded with Brexit... food shortages, hospitals beyond capacity, energy shortages, electricity blackouts etc. Long term deep recession and low quality of life for everyone, widespread entrenched absolute poverty and "drab" town centres with boarded up shops, decaying concrete etc.

About the virus itself, nothing. I take enough vitamin D to render any infection either ultra mild or asymptomatic. My estimated serum levels are around double the level that is the watershed level between mild and severe covid (75 nmol/l). I still take all the usual precautions like 2m social distancing, face masks, hand sanitiser etc as a borderline infection could still spark a transmission chain that leads to death/debilitating long covid downstream. If more people had "Summer" levels of vit D, then the R number would be dramatically reduced.

vitamindwiki.com/Virtually+no+COVID-19+cases+in+countries+having+more+than+30+ng+of+Vitamin+D+-+Sept+17%2C+2020

^ 30 ng/ml = 75 nmol/l

Medical physicist and data analyser at Imperial College: blog.gruffdavies.com/2020/10/20/vitamin-d-prophylaxis-can-end-the-pandemic/

I feel a bit more blasé now if I'm being honest. DS (aged three) has just had it. For better or worse we didn't change any of our behaviour around him or cleaning practices etc, I mean I already keep the house fairly clean and wash hands etc so there wasn't much else to do. There are five of us in the family and as far as we know nobody caught it, despite DS cosleeping with us.

I am concerned about DH and I getting very ill if we do catch it, our three children are very young and it would be hard to manage, but I'm less concerned about actually catching it.

@badpuma thanks for that link! Just did mine and very low risk.

I worry for my mother but my main worry is for the economy and mental health

@Mindymomo

Do you think being a mother has made you more careful.

Oh gosh yeah, i mean I would’ve been careful anyway, but I feel even more need now I have DS.

I'm not scared of Covid. I'm quite a logical person, head rules over heart and logically I know my chances of dying or becoming seriously ill from Covid are minuscule.

I'm scared of losing my job and home thanks to Covid which is more likely to happen.

I'm CEV, my respiratory consultant said I have a 20% chance of surviving covid.

I'm most worried about having to isolate for two weeks in a house where 4 adults and 4 children currently live!

I think to be honest though it has helped me that I've had no choice in some things. I have to go to work in a factory environment - can't do that from home and as a single parent giving up work isn't an option. DS has to go to school as home education isn't possible. I don't have a car so I have no choice but to use public transport. I think people who are able to shelter at home most of the time will probably be more nervous about going back to normal.

I am very scared by getting it and having long lasting aftereffects (long Covid). Dreading having to work with random people again. 58 and tubby makes it slightly risky but not as worried about dying as bad health impacts in the future.