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Covid

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Are anyone else's kids getting distressed with all the testing?

154 replies

musicalfrog · 04/11/2021 06:48

Our LA has asked that all children ages 2 and up are LF tested twice weekly.

My child age 8 hates getting tested, we've done it about 5 times in as many weeks due to symptoms and close contacts, every time it's been negative. I really don't want to put my kids through it any more. Anyone else feeling the same?

OP posts:
Warhertisuff · 05/11/2021 13:03

@millymollymandypandy

I know I'll get flamed for this but it amazes me how much fuss people can make about a cotton bud up the nose for ten seconds!

My DC is clinically vulnerable and could die because your child can't have ten seconds of discomfort Sad

I appreciate that it must be extremely worrying to be in the this position, but for children aren't at a significantly greater risk of death from Covid than they are meningitis or flu.... The 100 deaths figure quoted on Covid threads recently are heavily skewed towards the 15-19 age bracket. Of course, any deaths in this age bracket are still tragic, but it helps put risk in perspective if you have a younger child.

Anecdotally, I have a DC who is CV who got Covid the day before she was due for her vaccination and the day after she had a letter saying she eligible to be doubled-jabbed!... She was virtually asymptomatic throughout. Had we not done a LFT before visiting my sister over half-term we probably would never have known she even had it!

It's a hard truth though that no amount of testing is realistically going to stop all children from being exposed to Covid (it's estimated that 78% of 5-14 year olds already have been!) and holding onto the belief that children can be protected long-term from catching Covid if only there was more testing is unrealistic.

RedToothBrush · 05/11/2021 13:20

Statically even clinically vulnerable children are unlikely to die of covid.

More likely than healthy children yes. But still much less likely than most people and other illnesses still present a greater risk.

The anxiety that is going on, isn't reflecting reality.

The situation is different for older people / parents, but then there's limits to what you can do if there are no restrictions anywhere. Testing is only going to pick up a small number of cases - and is made somewhat pointless if household members of covid positive houses are not in isolation - because of the rate of household transmission and test back to school/work strategy is fatally flawed.

The government has made a decision to put this as policy even though its bonkers and in some areas PHE is actively going against this policy and telling schools to advice parents to keep siblings off school in this scenario where there are large outbreaks occurring.

Then you've got loads of work places where no one is wearing a mask and so many commercial premises aren't bothering anymore. I don't hear cries of 'everyone working in places without masks should be testing constantly' on these threads. Its always about schools and how children should be doing this that and the other.

There's very little about addressing uptake levels in teenagers or young adults. Last week a friend was telling me about how they'd had two vaccination sessions at her school up to that point. It was 150 students per session. It was full. But lots of kids didn't get a slot even though they wanted one and the school hadn't yet got another session booked. This is a school of over 2500 pupils.

Its easier to target and hit out at parents of young kids instead rather than have conversations which are practical and pick up on ongoing issues which are being actively ignored or dismissed. Probably because little kids can't go on tv and speak up for themselves.

Because its anxiety not rational thats talking.

Bizawit · 05/11/2021 16:26

@GoodnightGrandma

No, I’m happy to do my bit for the greater good.
You are not doing your bit- your child is.
Bizawit · 05/11/2021 16:31

Noway would I be testing my asymptomatic 2 year old twice a week. If she has symptoms I will. Otherwise, hard no from me.

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