This isn’t going to end, is it....?

[fallonT]

I was FaceTiming my friend tonight, I told her we’ve booked a uk break for August.
She laughed at me and said to her husband “should I tell her the bad news or do you want to”

Her husband is a respiratory consultant and said that the new variants of Covid will cause another wave and further lockdowns.

I asked how he could possibly know this and he laughed and said “inside information”

I suffer with anxiety and haven’t stopped crying since I got off of our FaceTime chat.

I can’t do this anymore. I realty can’t 😭

[Quartz2208]

OP I really do think you need to face up to how unpleasant your friends were to you in all of this the smirking and the telling you.

Now I have no doubt the NHS are planning for such an event and he would be aware of that. Of course they should be - part of the reason we are in this mess is insufficient planning.

But at the moment there are many ways this could play out because there are so many different factors in play some of which (vaccine take up, supply, new unpredictable variants, and behaviour) that I dont think anyone can say with 100% accuracy what is going to happen.

Also he is basically saying the GOvernment are lying and covering up again how bad it could be. Whereas that is again a possibility do you really think it would get down to the respiratory consultant level who would feel free to tell people with impunity.

Currently Boris Johnson is happily offering to host more Euro 2021 games in the summer.

[LadyCatStark]

Your friend and her smirking husband are dickheads. Unless he’s a psychic doctor...

[Shelovesamystery]

He just wants to feel superior. He wants to feel like he knows something you don't know. Lots of people are like that. The only way they know of making themselves feel good is to make others feel like shit.

It's the same as the conspiracy theorists. They want to feel like they are oh so clever and everyone else around them is too stupid to understand the truth. It's all about inflating their sense of self worth.

Truth is your friends husband doesn't know shit. As others have said, in his job he will be preparing for the worst. That is just sensible. Plenty of industries are preparing for the worst atm, it doesn't mean that the worst is going to happen, its just better to be prepared for it.

Honestly just ignore them. I went on a UK holiday last August, plenty of people did, and we didn't even have vaccines then. I've got one booked for this August as well and, while I accept that it's not garunteed, I'm pretty confident that it will happen.

[Mablefly]

Your friend's husband sounds toxic (the smirk says it all).

I have friends who work in the NHS, one in particular is incredibly negative and has seemed to delight in spreading misinformation. His stats were so far away from the truth that it I now have no confidence in his professional judgement (plus I give him a wide birth as he is a total mood hoover).

As someone upthread said, there are as many different opinions in the NHS as there are in other walks of life. Yes he may (hopefully) know how to treat respiratory diseases and the NHS will also (hopefully) be planning for a worse case scenario. But he is being arrogant assuming this makes him an epidemiologist and a prick for revelling in his enjoyment while scaring you. CUT HIM OFF!!!

[Lupinhere37]

I work in a profession where many of my contacts have mostly been working on Covid wards and ITU; mainly hospital consultants.
It’s true many are saying they’re been told to prepare for a potential third wave at summer. But the NHS are bound to do that, aren’t they? They need to have plans in place; they need to be prepared for a worse case scenario.

Many of the people I talk to are feeling optimistic that we are turning the corner and I see more signs now of a plan to return to normality than ever I have seen in the past year. It’s also worth remembering that a lot of NHS staff have been to hell and haven’t come back from it yet, in this past year. So they may be feeling very negative.

I also think it’s fair to say that some hospital consultants are superior wind up merchants, with an odd sense of humour that enjoys the discomfort of others. Which is exactly the same as you’d find in any other occupation. It’s human nature. Some people are arseholes and enjoy upsetting people regardless of what their professional qualification is!

Op..... there is no crystal ball on this.....only the science.
Steer clear of them; he sounds superior and smug. Your friend sounds the same. When I was a nurse, a few years ago now, we would have referred to his God Complex.

[Quartz2208]

Yes Lupinhere37 even the Daily Mail has leaked a similar story

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9320239/NHS-hospitals-London-told-prepare-possible-surge-Covid-patients-later-year.html

And they should we should have pandemic planning in place for everything particularly something like this where the chances of it happening make it possible

They both just said it in such an unpleasant way. They really dont sound like nice people to be friends with OP. You keep your UK break in the summer and like all of us hope for the best and prepare for the worst

I think the hardest thing you have to do from this is properly reevaulate your friendship given your friend with her comment

[miserablecat]

If hes a respiratory consultant, I can't understand why he would smirk about the prospect of something that would have another traumatic effect on his work and case load?

[TheKeatingFive]

Your ‘friends’ don’t sound very nice OP. Time for some new ones.

I would certainly hope that the NHS have plans in place for the possibility of more waves. But that doesn’t mean it’s going to happen.

[PurpleDaisies]

@miserablecat

If hes a respiratory consultant, I can't understand why he would smirk about the prospect of something that would have another traumatic effect on his work and case load?

People like being in the know. I suspect that’s where that’s coming from.

[Dolciedolly]

@Lupinhere37

I work in a profession where many of my contacts have mostly been working on Covid wards and ITU; mainly hospital consultants.
It’s true many are saying they’re been told to prepare for a potential third wave at summer. But the NHS are bound to do that, aren’t they? They need to have plans in place; they need to be prepared for a worse case scenario.

Many of the people I talk to are feeling optimistic that we are turning the corner and I see more signs now of a plan to return to normality than ever I have seen in the past year. It’s also worth remembering that a lot of NHS staff have been to hell and haven’t come back from it yet, in this past year. So they may be feeling very negative.

I also think it’s fair to say that some hospital consultants are superior wind up merchants, with an odd sense of humour that enjoys the discomfort of others. Which is exactly the same as you’d find in any other occupation. It’s human nature. Some people are arseholes and enjoy upsetting people regardless of what their professional qualification is!

Op..... there is no crystal ball on this.....only the science.
Steer clear of them; he sounds superior and smug. Your friend sounds the same. When I was a nurse, a few years ago now, we would have referred to his God Complex.

Well said x

[Mintjulia]

Even if your story is true which I doubt,.....

It made you feel crap and reduced you to tears so you thought you'd do that to a lot of other people too!

OP, You need some new friends and you need to take a long close look at yourself too

[80sMum]

I think we will have to accept that this virus is not going to be eliminated. We will have to learn to live with it I'm afraid.

Like the flu virus, it is highly likely to mutate on a frequent basis, so vaccines will need to be adjusted just as frequently in order to remain effective enough to damp it down and prevent hospitals being overloaded.

I don't think the world will be returning to the "normal" that existed before Covid came along any time soon, if ever. I can forsee, for example, the continuation of a certain level of social distancing and mask wearing in the future, albeit not enshrined in law but in official guidance and advice.

[ArseInTheCoOpWindow]

I think the world will return to normal in the next couple of years. We have vaccines and now booster vaccines.

I don’t think mask wearing will be mandated by government forever, although l do think some people will choose to do so.

Social distancing can’t last for ever. How will people meet partners etc. And we live in a modern world. I think they will ultimately develop a ‘smart’ vaccine which will adapt to whatever virus appears.

[Realitea]

He might be a respiratory consultant but he’s not psychic.

[Blueberries0112]

“Never in history has any pandemic not ended.”

It’s true but smallpox as well other viruses wiped out native Americans than the killing and war itself. They did not have the antibodies built up, especially from their mothers who had antibodies in their body system like Europeans did. Hopefully vaccines for this coronavirus will help a lot and we wouldn’t have to worry too much about it

[wonderstuff]

@Blueberries0112

“Never in history has any pandemic not ended.”

It’s true but smallpox as well other viruses wiped out native Americans than the killing and war itself. They did not have the antibodies built up, especially from their mothers who had antibodies in their body system like Europeans did. Hopefully vaccines for this coronavirus will help a lot and we wouldn’t have to worry too much about it

Well yes, and plague wiped out half of Europe, but it did end. The science we have now has massively reduced the death rate and vaccines will reduce the pandemic period.

[Quartz2208]

Both Smallpox (up to 90%) and Bubonic Plague (30-60%) have very different fatality rates to Coronavirus.

Smallpox was so awful it is the one thing we have managed to eradicate. We may be scared and fearful of COVID but it really isnt in the same league as these two

[VettiyaIruken]

It will not always be like this.
It's just that it's new and nobody can give a timescale.

Look at previous pandemics. Are we still locking down for the Spanish flu? For the plague?
These things burn themselves out and we carry on.

I expect that covid will become more of a seasonal thing and something vulnerable people need an annual jab for.

It will be ok

[ArseInTheCoOpWindow]

I thought Plague had a 97% death rate.

[IstandwithJackieWeaver]

We've booked a package holiday to Greece for later this year. If we get to go, great - I'm going to lie by the pool in the fresh, warm air and relax. If we don't, it'll be because we can't travel due to restrictions and we'll get our money back. It's important to have something to look forward to. Your friend's husband does not have a crystal ball. Ignore him.

[dogsaremypeople]

Oh please fuck off.
What was the point of this post?

[VettiyaIruken]

Mn. So many threads with people being so concerned about the effect on mental health, how much support will be needed, how awful it is, how we need to be kind to each other, reach out and so on and so forth

Also mn. Someone posts for reassurance, to talk about how this is affecting their mental health, how hard it is, that they're scared. They get get a grip, shut up scaremongerer, fuck off.

🙄

[smallandimperfectlyformed]

@VettiyaIruken

Mn. So many threads with people being so concerned about the effect on mental health, how much support will be needed, how awful it is, how we need to be kind to each other, reach out and so on and so forth

Also mn. Someone posts for reassurance, to talk about how this is affecting their mental health, how hard it is, that they're scared. They get get a grip, shut up scaremongerer, fuck off.

🙄

Thank you for saying it more clearly than I could. I don't see that the OP has done anything wrong, she was like you and others have said seeking reassurance.

[Dolciedolly]

@VettiyaIruken

Mn. So many threads with people being so concerned about the effect on mental health, how much support will be needed, how awful it is, how we need to be kind to each other, reach out and so on and so forth

Also mn. Someone posts for reassurance, to talk about how this is affecting their mental health, how hard it is, that they're scared. They get get a grip, shut up scaremongerer, fuck off.

🙄

This

[dogsaremypeople]

How about everyone's mental health reading this stupid post! There are going to be people absolutely freaking out about this now!