Will coughs ever be allowed again?

[Twokitstwokats]

I have 3 children and every time one of them coughs I panic. So far we have tested and isolated for every cough, but it is getting very tedious. They have had so may pcrs. Today we went to softplay for the first time in 2 years and so many kids were coughing. I just kepy worrying we would have to keep testing and isolating.
Do you think there will come a time when a cough is 'allowed' again?

I agree, I was on the bus earlier and needed to cough but was worried I would get abuse so tried not to!

I definitely notice people coughing more than I used to. I was just watching a video of my DCs 2018 nativity, which I’ve watched many times but this is the first time since the pandemic. There is a child sat very near to me as I was filming coughing the whole way through it. I never noticed before but this time it was really distracting!

There's actually a simple solution. Wear a mask when coughing, like Asian countries. That's what we have done even before covid, to minimise the spread of whatever you have, while carrying on with normal life. But I doubt it will be like that in UK.

@illuyankas

There's actually a simple solution. Wear a mask when coughing, like Asian countries. That's what we have done even before covid, to minimise the spread of whatever you have, while carrying on with normal life. But I doubt it will be like that in UK.

I have hay fever and cough from March to October. I am not wearing a mask all summer!

@illuyankas masks are mandatory here (Scotland) but it still feels uncomfortable to cough in public even with one on, despite knowing it is nothing to do with Covid.

It's not sustainable for me to keep taking time off when my LO gets a cough and isn't allowed in nursery. I can't do anything else though. I'm probably going to get fired.

Masks actually make me cough more. I can't wear the disposable ones for long otherwise I start coughing up a lung. I wear reusable ones instead but I do wonder how much good 2 thin layers of cloth will do.

But Delta has similar symptoms to hay fever, @PinkSparklyPussyCat. You wouldn't be able to tell whether it's hay fever or Covid, so best to keep a mask on just in case.

@NannyAndJohn I suspect we hay fever sufferers are all being very diligent about lateral flow testing, but tbh when you have it every year you do tend to know. I am on mega strong prescription meds but wave a stem of cow parsley in my vague direction and off I go, regardless!

@illuyankas

There's actually a simple solution. Wear a mask when coughing, like Asian countries. That's what we have done even before covid, to minimise the spread of whatever you have, while carrying on with normal life. But I doubt it will be like that in UK.

Problem is, when you cough, your hand instinctively goes up to cover your mouth (well, it does for reasonable people). When you're wearing a mask, you're not supposed to touch the outside of it. So even with a mask on, I imagine most people are still trying to "hold it in".

@illuyankas my mum and my partner's mum both have chronic coughs due to the blood pressure medication they take. Should they wear masks forever ???

Took me months to persuade my mum to go for a much needed eye test as she was paranoid she'd be chased out for coughing.

@Tianatiers

We went camping the other week and literally all I could hear around the campsite the whole time was people coughing. I was wondering if everyone used to cough so much before COVID and I just didn’t notice it, or are people just really unhealthy at the moment.

I was in my local shop the other day and did that thing where a bit of saliva accidentally goes down your wind pipe randomly and I was so afraid to cough I held it in until I’d paid and got out of the shop. My eyes were streaming!

Snap. Everyone was coughing when we were camping also

I cough all the time due to asthma hay-fever and allergies , am I hell wearing a mask all the time to placate others, especially on days when I'm struggling to catch a breath anyway! Last I heard athsma and hay fever weren't transmissible diseases.
I cough a hell of a lot, that's normal for me, unfortunately. I get others might feel uncomfortable around someone coughing a lot at the moment, well guess what? It's not exactly a barrel of laughs for me either, it's exhausting, it's painful, it's inconvenient especially on bad days when your chest is rattling and you have very little energy because your oxygen is low and your sucking the life out of an inhaler to get some relief.
I test twice weekly for work and have had a negative antibody test, but to outsiders I probably sound riddled with covid... I'm not!
People coughed before covid and will continue to cough after it.

I hope that better hygiene and use of masks when you suspect you may have a virus are here to stay.

I have hayfever and wouldn't wear a mask for that, but on a day I thought 'I feel like I might have a cold' I would.

Judystilldreamsofhorses

Same, I've been LFTing twice a week but to be honest the itchy face, eyes, and throat every time I pass a flowery bush is a bit of a give away.

@NannyAndJohn

But Delta has similar symptoms to hay fever, *@PinkSparklyPussyCat*. You wouldn't be able to tell whether it's hay fever or Covid, so best to keep a mask on just in case.

No.

I have awful hay fever that triggers my asthmatic cough. I've also had a cold followed by laryngitis so you can imagine how much I've been coughing recently 😂

I'm not locking myself away from March to September plus every time I get a bog standard cold which inevitably turns into a cough...I'd never see the light of day!

Loads of kids were coughing when I took DS to soft play the other day and no one really batted an eyelid, I think most people are done caring now tbh

I cough all the time as I have lung disease. Already had the odd look. It feels very uncomfortable. I'm keeping wearing a mask in indoor places due to being CEV anyway, but I can't do that indefinitely, and can't do it on bad days when I can barely breathe anyway. Should I just hide away for ever? :(