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Covid

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Original poster

If you were planning to spend Christmas with vulnerable relatives, are you still going ahead?

75 replies

MyCatHatesPCRTests · 15/12/2021 21:01

Just that, really. We have a dilemma on our hands as we were due to spend Christmas with my family, staying with my DPs, one of whom is extremely vulnerable to Covid. They are both fully vaccinated and had boosters a while ago. We are both fully vaccinated and will be boosted by then but only recently so probably not fully effective. One school-aged child, one preschooler in a very small childcare setting. After tomorrow, we are both either WFH or on leave.

I am swinging between pulling DC1 out of school and us all doing LFTs before going up there on Christmas Eve, and thinking we should just postpone until New Year.

The CEV DP gets to call the shots, obviously, and is very twitchy about catching it from DC1 (rightly so as there has been at least one confirmed case in his class this week). They will be really upset if we don’t go, but at the same time they are understandably terrified of catching Covid and question how protected they are from the vaccine.

The distance is such that we have to stay with them and there is no way they’ll distance from the kids.

What are others doing in this kind of situation? Cancelling? Postponing? Daily LFTs and doing it anyway?

OP posts:

PurpleDaisies · 15/12/2021 21:02

Yes, but we will be limiting what else we’re doing first. I’m triple jabbed with recent covid.

xxxGirlCrushxxx · 15/12/2021 21:05

if a child in your kids class has tested positive then no, i would not be risking it

HalfShrunkMoreToGo · 15/12/2021 21:06

No we're not. Our family member is in a care home which we currently aren't allowed to visit. The plan was for her to leave for the day and go to in laws and spend the day together but she hasn't yet had a booster as Doctors are too busy to do the home visit. So we would be taking her out of her 'bubble' when unboostered and having her spend the day with a primary school child who's basically a germ incubator and obviously unvaccinated.

IWannaWishYouANutNutsChristmas · 15/12/2021 21:07

If you can pull DC out of school and childcare and all of you can properly isolate between now and then then it's doable.

It's probably not if you can't.

IvorAlotOfHeadaches · 15/12/2021 21:11

Just don’t know yet! My lovely MIL is 84 but pretty fit, and supposed to be coming to stay with us over Christmas. We are a leaky bucket because 3DD coming back as well ( all early/mid 20’s) and whilst they are avoiding clubs they are going to pubs. Obvious mitigations are daily LFTs but even so, the stakes are so high. MIL ( having been fairly recentlybereaved) spent last year on her own. Just don’t know what to to for the. Best apart from being honest with her about DDs movements. Grim!

CorsicaDreaming · 15/12/2021 21:12

If you feel happy to pull your child out of school then I would do that, fully isolate as far as you can until then and then go see them. Doing LFT all round just before you go ( and when there in case it's still developing)

Then you really have to be fairly safe.

And that is from someone on the high end of caution in all things Covid - but who will ski black runs in a white out and used to kayak grade 4 rivers... I'm still trying to work why this is ... I'm thinking it's a control thing.
Anyway apols for the irrelevant ramble - been on the vino since that Press Conference...

Incognito22333 · 15/12/2021 21:12

Can you limit your children’s social contact for a clear 10 days? Eg just outside playgrounds, sanitiser etc if so I would lateral flow them in the 3-4 days before going.
The only thing I would say is that this omicron virus will soon be everywhere and even if your CEV DP picks it up in the shops and gets poorly, your kids might be blamed if you visited.

CaroleFuckingBaskin · 15/12/2021 21:13

Yes, still planning to at present. Not letting them have another Christmas alone. Their decision.

Bobholll · 15/12/2021 21:15

Yes. My mum is ECV & she is still seeing her grandkids & we are all going for Christmas Day.. my kids break up for Christmas on Friday. We’ll lateral flow etc.

Omicron doesn’t seem to have the north too much yet.. we’ve got very low cases here.. it’ll arrive of course but so far, the south is like a parallel universe 🙈

OxanaVorontsova · 15/12/2021 21:18

No, cancelled yesterday

duffeldaisy · 15/12/2021 21:20

@IvorAlotOfHeadaches

I don't know what the solution is, Ivor, but we have a very similar situation. My MIL is recently bereaved and is distraught at not spending Christmas with us - but I'm also worried about her catching it from our (secondary) kids. She's keen to take the risk (because of being so down from being bereaved) and we've not seen her in almost 2 years, so of course we want to see her, but all we can do is test, open all the windows and crank the heating up lots. :-(

Thewiseoneincognito · 15/12/2021 21:21

No, I’d never forgive myself if they were infected and became ill. I’ll instead be doing a masked doorstep drop off with my ECV family member again. I appreciate others are not as bothered but it really would be too much of a risk for me to take.

LaBelleSausage · 15/12/2021 21:22

Isolating and doing daily lateral flows between now and Christmas in the hope the kids and I can see DSis as it's been months.

Kids are nursery age though so no school concerns

HalfShrunkMoreToGo · 15/12/2021 21:23

@HalfShrunkMoreToGo

Just to add, Gran will not be spending Xmas alone in the care home, she'll be broken out by in laws and will spend several lovely days with them, we've just decided not to introduce our household complete with germy child to the mix.

**unless of course there's an outbreak at the care home and they all get locked down, in which case all plans will be moot.

IvorAlotOfHeadaches · 15/12/2021 21:25

@duffeldaisy I feel your pain. Good luck x

duffeldaisy · 15/12/2021 21:27

@IvorAlotOfHeadaches And me yours. Good luck to you too. I hope we can both avoid any infections happening! x

Whyarewehardofthinking · 15/12/2021 21:33

We will be making a decision after schools finish. DPs school in Bolton has confirmed cases of Omicron as well as multiple delta. Mine also has plenty of cases to go around. Both schools have staff LF testing daily right now, and I've finally started testing as negative again after my second bout of COVID. We will be having a PCR test (and isolating after) if we are seeing our parents, despite everyone being triple jabbed. DP has been having them near enough weekly anyway; I think he has been a close contact 9 times since September, not including me and DD!

NoseringGirl · 15/12/2021 21:35

I was classed as CEV and my parents are in their 70s with various health condition. I have 3 children (2 in primary school). My husband has just had covid and none of us caught it so I feel pretty good about us all mixing at Christmas!

2toastornot2toast · 15/12/2021 21:39

My dc school is full of covid in all classes. We pulled them our this week. Daily lf tests and we will decide next week.

Dearblossom · 15/12/2021 21:40

Currently limiting contacts to family only, h/w, just jabbed again but waiting until next week to make final decision once we can see further how severe Omicron cases get in UK. My step Mum is v vulnerable and is getting increasing scared about the current situation so whatever makes her feel better is what we will do.

Passanotherjaffacake · 15/12/2021 21:41

Bit controversial maybe but we are bringing our Christmas forward to this weekend - with the rates rising very quickly we thought this was for the best as a week later the cases will be much higher.

My dd is in nursery though and my brother is coming from London, so a relatively high risk Christmas. Most of us are triple jabbed and we will be doing a PCR if any symptoms and LFTs as a matter of course.I’ve asked my brother to wear a proper N95 face mask on the train.

Signalbox · 15/12/2021 21:42

We’re still going to visit DH’s DPs (90) unless they tell us not to go. I think they’d be fed up if we cancelled as they’ve really been looking forward to it. There will be 9 of us in total including 2 teenagers still in education. We’ll obviously take lfts each day.

DeathMetalMum · 15/12/2021 21:47

I'm pretty certain I would go if those I was staying with were happy with that.

I'd be spending the time we know we have now together. Anything could happen between now and the next time it would feel 'safe' to visit.

SickAndTiredAgain · 15/12/2021 21:51

We’re seeing two sets of DH’s grandparents who are in their 80s but with no other health conditions to make them additionally vulnerable on top of the increased risk that comes with age. We’re leaving the decision to them, they know DD is unvaccinated (she’s 2) and at nursery and if they’re happy to come then I’m not going to be insisting they stay home. And even if someone told them they should I doubt they’d listen.

EewwwDavid · 15/12/2021 21:53

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