How are others feeling who are parents to school age children but not in any of the priority groups for vaccination ?

[Bluegot]

So I am a worrier. And I can foresee that what will happen is once the vulnerable are vaccinated, the government will vaccinate teachers. Then the government can really claim schools are Covid safe as teachers will be protected and young children generally get mild cases. So schools will be opened long before all the 30s and 40s get vaccinated. And parents will then all catch Covid from their kids. I am worried about getting long Covid which in my age range seems to be happening to approx 1 in 10 or 1 in 20 depending which estimates you read.
Not sure why I posted, but nobody else to talk to

I couldn't care less. I work in a factory so I'm in a high risk environment anyway even with school closed.

I’m just going out for essentials and walking the dog. I make sure I social distance and wash my hands as soon as I get home. (I wash them a lot due to potential dog germs).
My kids are secondary age so haven’t socialised since school ended.
I’ve not had a cold since March lockdown so I feel reasonably confident going about my very limited business (working from home).

That’s the same as me altiara but we won’t get vaccine for ages. The vaccine predictor says I will get vaccine possibly as late as July 2022. So by then the kids will have probably been back for a year. Surely we will get Covid before the vaccine - once schools are back and everything opens up.

I am planning to eat better (and less) now Christmas chocolate and wine time is over! I' m taking my vitamin D, trying to get sleep, doing a bit of exercise when I can.

Basic health stuff that I sometimes get lazy about. Then just accept what will be.

Yes I think I need to get in best shape I can too to give myself best chance of recovery

I have been thinking this for a long time. My DC are in primary and secondary and are the most likely source of infection for me and DH as we WFH and don't go out anywhere.

I'm quite fearful of the spring when the high risk people and most likely school staff will have been vaccinated, but DH and I will be months away from the vaccine. There's lots of talk about protecting teachers ( rightly so, obviously) but nobody mentions parents being at risk from their DC. Just because I'm not likely to die doesn't mean it's ok for me to get covid.

Since September I've been anxious about being close to my DC, and justifiably so because at least one of them has been self isolating due to exposure nearly the whole time. I just have this dreaded feeling that once teachers and the vulnerable are safe, schools will open and the virus will rip through families but it will be acceptable.

I could have written your post, OP. I’m very worried about when they open up and leave us all open to getting covid. Felt like questions about wider vaccination were somewhat dodged in the press conference earlier too.

@mrsknottschicken

I could have written your post, OP. I’m very worried about when they open up and leave us all open to getting covid. Felt like questions about wider vaccination were somewhat dodged in the press conference earlier too.

I'm worried about this too. Infections will certainly rise once things open up and there will be more people with their lives ruined from long covid. Sadly the country cannot afford to wait until everyone is vaccinated before relaxing restrictions and it's unlikely most under 50s will be offered a vaccine unless CEV/healthcare staff anyway.

I appreciate that your worried OP, but given the statistics show that you are highly unlikely to be seriously ill or die, you can't expect kids to remain out of school and everyone else to remain in lockdown because of your irrational fear?

Yes I think there's a real worry for the UK. We are likely to have high costs from widespread long covid, which will be grim for those affected.

I'm worried there's no post-lockdown plan. You can see in the press conferences that Johnson says all will be well and anyone with half a brain is going .

There are a lot of dimwits about who think if you're not eighty and going to die, there's no problem. Very few medics share this view.

Yes I was saying earlier we will probably get it eventually as it's not going away. Just trying not to get it whilst the hospitals are full and hoping for a quick recovery

Well yes but do you really expect schools to stay closed and lockdown restrictions until you get the vaccine? We have restrictions to stop the NHS being overwhelmed, not to protect individual people. Once the vulnerable are vaccinated the NHS won’t be at risk and no need for restrictions.

Not worried. I am 46 and husband is 54 keyworkers and live in London. Both had covid with no problems. A lot of people we know and work with have had covid no long term problems so far.

I am more concerned about other health issues we may get and the NHS not fit for purpose.

I feel it is inevitable that we will all have to take our chances with it if we want our children back in school and our lives back.

Well yes but do you really expect schools to stay closed and lockdown restrictions until you get the vaccine?

Personally I don't expect things to stay closed, which is precisely why I worry about afterwards.

Totally relaxed. I've probably had it back in the spring, if I haven't I've definitely been exposed to it. If I get it the odds are very good that it'll be no worse than a nasty cold. Once my elderly relatives have been vaccinated, I won't give it a second thought.

Some people seem to have misunderstood my thinking. I absolutely don’t expect schools to close and wouldn’t want my dc to miss any school. I am fully aware that schools need to open once the pressure on the nhs eases. But I am still worried about that time coming. Especially with this new variant, all school children and supposedly healthy parents will get it as it will spread like wildfire.

Not worried in the slightest. The risk is miniscule for almost everybody, even the very elderly, on an individual basis.

Not worried illness wise pissed off that if vaccines are needed for travel etc then it will be two years before I can see my family abroad . ( based on when it says I’d get the vaccine ) not sure if this will actually happen but seems very possible .

Other than that not bothered . Iv worked throughout this around others n it doesn’t bother me . I stick to what am meant to be doing to minimise risk n it doesn’t really cross my mind

I would try and step away from the news and even the covid posts on here; during the first lockdown I was very worried even though me and DH are low risk and stepping away from anything other than essential news really helped. In the past week those worries have returned and again I’m stepping away from the news; they need something to write so they’re finding things and I don’t need it all in my head. I’m following the restrictions and being cautious without going over the top and that’s as much as I can do.

@inquietant

Yes I think there's a real worry for the UK

A lot of countries are in a similar situation, what do you mean?

@Bluegot

all school children and supposedly healthy parents will get it as it will spread like wildfire

I agree that it's probably too early to start worrying about what will happen in spring. The situation is changing by the day

We don't know how the virus will behave by then or if vaccine production will be ramped up so that the younger will be offered it for instance?

Do you even think "healthy" 30 and 40 somethings will get a vaccination?

We don't qualify for the flu vaccine unless booked privately - is this really any different?

I am expecting my elderly parents to get a vaccine, but not me, DH, or my 2 DC.

I'm not worried about catching it and getting seriously ill or dying from it but I am worried about the risk of long covid, because that's the thing I'm most likely to get based on my age and health. I know of quite a few people who have long covid and it sounds very debilitating. Bit with no vaccine in sight for me, not in any of the categories for vaccination, I'm balancing that with not wanting to be locked up for any longer than necessary so when we are allowed out I'll take my chances and hope for the best.

I have the same worry, op. One of my DC was on the shielding list in March. There is no vaccine for kids and everyone seems to have forgotten that vulnerable children exist. I worry the virus will run riot through kids and parents as everyone else stops worrying once their elderly family are vaccinated and it will be the vulnerable children who will pay the price along with the parents who are unlucky enough to get long covid. 1 in 10 or 1 in 20 is a huge number when you think of it as potentially affecting up to six parents from every single primary school class in the country.