Am I wrong to think people who say they aren't scared of Covid just aren't getting it?

[youhadmeatjello]

I know we've all had enough, I've really had enough. We travel in a few days and am just desperately trying not to catch covid so we can actually go forward with our plans.

But I'm so sick of friends and others saying 'oh I'm not scared of Covid anymore so I'm just living my life and not following the rules anymore'

Why can't people see that it's not about being scared of Covid, it's about the fragility of our infrastructure if lots of people are off sick? Do they not realise how many essential services could be impacted?

I'm not calling for a lockdown at all, I don't think it's the right course of action but I do think we should individually take a bit of responsibility and follow mask wearing etc at least.

And people who are saying 'the government have never been bothered about viruses etc before' - sure they have, they panic every time they think there's going to be a bad flu season. But people have forgotten that!

I'm just so frustrated that so many people can't see the bigger picture here, but maybe it's because I have many loved ones who work in essential services and I can already see the strain on them.

Even testing and isolating is closing the door after the horse has bolted - by the time you know you have covid you have already infected people . Of course you should take measures not to infect more people but it's just impossible to slow this thing down - no matter how compliant you are .

Not just the young but the elderly have sacrificed everything too. I see elderly people becoming former shadows of themselves
They’ve given up seeing grandchildren, given up their volunteer roles, their social lives and their health deteriorates more and more while they suffer with loneliness and isolation and struggle walking back from shops with their bags and masks on.
They don’t have many years left and it’s sad to see
As for the children, we need to decide what kind of future we want for them

Hear hear.

The viterol aimed at old people by dickheads deciding their daily trip to get a news paper was not essential enough forgetting that if spouses have died and children all grown and moved away they probably have little to no contact with anyone but the shop keeper if all their usual haunts were closed, was disgusting.

Some people were just never going to be convinced anything was essential enough until you had eaten the neighbours bird seed and roadkill befire leaving the house

@rarityroast. Great post. There have been so many sacrifices for the vulnerable and yet people still keep on with the “people are so selfish” line. Young people notably have put their lives on hold for something that for the vast vast majority of cases will not impact them. And yet the older self-obsessed, selfish, health anxiety sufferers still don’t think they’ve done enough? There is a limit of what you can expect others to sacrifice so you can feel “safer”

Yes, you’re right too, Darkness andLight.
Focussing on younger ones because atm they’re our own main concern.
I haven’t seen my parents in their 70s and 80s since December, 2019 but they’re fit, well and pretty content, they’ve never been terribly active socially and have gone about their lives, enjoying nature and mostly gone based. My CEV husband saw his very frail mum for the first time in the same sort of period just a couple of weeks ago.

I’m just so fed up with people who are demanding that others continue to give up so much, to benefit them in the main, calling those same people “selfish”.

The public has on the whole risen magnificently to all that has been asked of them and continue to do so.

Young people have sacrificed an unbelievable amount in this pandemic ,their education all but went out the window and they couldn't go out and play with friends or do fun things and then they went back to school and it was hard for alot of them . The mental health of alot of children in my area suffered a shocking amount and our school is working incredibly hard to help them and some are still struggling now . At the high school previous good kids have crumpled and gone off the rails because the stress of trying to catch up with school and with life has been overwhelming 😔. I'm not scared of covid we all have had it and recovered easily I'm more afraid of the long term impact on the kids .

@DarknessAndLight

Not just the young but the elderly have sacrificed everything too. I see elderly people becoming former shadows of themselves. They’ve given up seeing grandchildren, given up their volunteer roles, their social lives and their health deteriorates more and more while they suffer with loneliness and isolation and struggle walking back from shops with their bags and masks on. They don’t have many years left and it’s sad to see. As for the children, we need to decide what kind of future we want for them.

The difference being is that covid was a very real risk to them- young people made sacrifices when they were very low risk of the virus themselves.

That's not belittling how awful it has been for the elderly. Just pointing it out.

I live alone so I isolated alone in both 2020 & 2021 other than my support bubble who I saw once a week.
I spent last Xmas on my own.
This year I've got the theatre & a meal out at the weekend then I'm off to my family on 23rd December.
I don't intend to cancel any of it
.
Ive had Covid vaccinations & booster, had my usual flu jab & I am doing daily LFTs.
As far as Im concerned, Im doing as much as I can.
If I have to isolate over Xmas then it's nothing new.

The family I'm visiting are currently gadding around in a social whirl that's taken them to Scotland, Wales, the Midlands & the South West in the past fortnight.
They're more likely to pick it up than me so if they cancel then at least I will have done something nice.
My behaviour would be different if they were keeping at home but they're not so I'm not.

Dd is currently off work because to many have tested positive, not that they are ill necessarily but they have to test daily and now have to isolate.

When ds recently had covid he was act7ally mildly ill for 2 days, bit of a niggly cough and a bit sleepy. The rest of the time he was absoutely fine and actually testing negative on a LF after day 5.

Meanwhile mil has become a shadow of her former self, she had dementia but it was slow and her routines kept her grounded. Lockdown ended all that and now she is in a care home and there is talk that even they don't have the facilities to care for her.

The difference being is that covid was a very real risk to them- young people made sacrifices when they were very low risk of the virus themselves.

That's not belittling how awful it has been for the elderly. Just pointing it out.“

I think that’s probably a point I was trying to make, too. Just not as well

The sacrifices of the elderly and vulnerable were based mostly on self-interest (understandably, with CEV husband we were extremely cautious).
The younger generations’ sacrifices were usually for others.

The sacrifices of the elderly and vulnerable were based mostly on self-interest (understandably, with CEV husband we were extremely cautious).
The younger generations’ sacrifices were usually for others.*

Exactly that @MrsSkylerWhite.

I've never been personally worried about the virus. I really feel for people who have had real reason to be concerned for their health. I'm glad they were prioritised for vaccination and boosters and hope they manage to get these ASAP.

I think now we need to have balance and especially once boosters have been rolled out- we crack on as normal. I don't want to see any restrictions beyond what currently stands today. If people are vulnerable and concerned I believe we are at the stage where they should by all means do what they wish to to protect themselves but otherwise, nobody else should be locking down or restricted because of this.

I also find it pretty weird that some people consider seeing friends and family non essential and thus selfish.
Going to work - so selfish.
Finding a partner - you fucking sociopath.

Being blunt about it, old people will die relatively soon. They can't be harmed by Covid for hugely longer.

Young people will have a lifetime of (however long it takes) enduring economic recovery pain, consequences of their education & training disrupted,, and whatever legacy mental (& physical?) health issues they might end up with.

No I'm not scared of covid. I've been bored silly of the whole thing from about 1 month in. I've never taken a test and I've never wiped a trolley down. I don't see why not being scared is bad. If you knew someone who said "I've found a lump, been to the doctors and I've got to go for tests but I'm feeling positive and I'm not going to let it worry me" would you say to that person no mate you should be shitting yourself?

It's an irrational fear. It's like walking round worrying you might have a heart attack. The risk is real and it will be happening to someone somewhere but it's still irrational.

And as for walking into a pub/restaurant wearing a mask then then talking it off for the entire time you are there only to put it on when you walk out, I'm half expecting Jeremy Beadle to emerge from behind a curtain with a microphone and a big grin saying "Ha, you went along with it" (if he wasn't dead already)

@youhadmeatjello

I know we've all had enough, I've really had enough. We travel in a few days and am just desperately trying not to catch covid so we can actually go forward with our plans.

But I'm so sick of friends and others saying 'oh I'm not scared of Covid anymore so I'm just living my life and not following the rules anymore'

Why can't people see that it's not about being scared of Covid, it's about the fragility of our infrastructure if lots of people are off sick? Do they not realise how many essential services could be impacted?

I'm not calling for a lockdown at all, I don't think it's the right course of action but I do think we should individually take a bit of responsibility and follow mask wearing etc at least.

And people who are saying 'the government have never been bothered about viruses etc before' - sure they have, they panic every time they think there's going to be a bad flu season. But people have forgotten that!

I'm just so frustrated that so many people can't see the bigger picture here, but maybe it's because I have many loved ones who work in essential services and I can already see the strain on them.

I'm not scared , can't say i have ever been but i certainly do get it !! What does bother me though is the devastation yet to come of all the people with missed chances who are going to suffer then probably die because covid domination has stopped them from getting the treatment they need , for the children / vulnerable people who have slipped through the social services net. I think the majority are taking a bit of responsibility , but 2 years down the line with constant rule changes etc its quite clear we are pretty much alone in this so people are going to do their own thing whether you like it or not.

Does anyone else remember that mad post last year about how buying bread and milk weren't essential, or something? It was all so mad, I sometimes struggle with the idea that there are people out there like that. All that stuff about gloves. The preschools that banned sand because they couldn't clean it. All seems like such a pointless waste of time.

No. I wasn't scared. I caught covid. I was fine, slight sniffle. Would have been fine to go into work if I was allowed. Still not scared.

@rarityroast

Unfortunately the pandemic has highlighted just how selfish people are (and by selfish I mean unable to see beyond their own lives)

See I agree with you but for completely different reasons. The pandemic has 100% shown how selfish people have always been, and how they've been completely fine about that up until the point their own privilege can't save them anymore.

I'm betting you're one of those really selfless ones though. Did you sell your house before the pandemic to solve Ebola? No? But you are quite happy for other people to lose their homes so you don't have to catch covid? Because that's what we're talking about here. There is no furlough and even if there is, millions of people got absolutely fuck all last time.

The above is a very common selfless attitude that's rife in this country, often by people who cannot get it into their naice middle class heads that this country has been selfish for a loooooong time and now the chickens are coming home to roost.

Can you seriously not understand why people would choose a 2 day headache over being stuck in a high-rise with 3 children for the next six months? Seriously?

Actually my DD(20) has been bedbound for 18 months thanks to Covid and her MH is below rock bottom due to not ever being able to see a way out of this. She is CEV and at serious risk of hospitalisation if she catches Covid again. So fuck off with your sanctimonious shit and assumptions.

My comment was about people's inability to see beyond their own lives. Things like "I don't know anyone who's died of Covid". Or "I got Covid and it was no worse than a cold". Or "Ooo! Look at me! I'm not fearful of a virus that can literally kill other people." Thus being totally incapable of understanding that other people have a total different experience or risk from Covid and that that informs their own approach.

But thanks to you and PP for spectacularly missing the point and proving it at the same time.

Being scared of the virus doesn't change anything though, it would just drain more peoples mental health.
I'm not scared of covid, if I'm going to get it, I'm going to get it.
I can argue the opposite point of I'm sick of people telling us that we have to do what we have to survive. I don't want to just survive. I want to live. I'm 28, I don't want to spend the rest of my life in a constant state of worry about finances because of businesses closing, my child missing out on an education because school closures, my mental health become severe because I'm stuck inside the same four walls constantly. I see the bigger picture, covid sucks, but at some point we have to learn to live with it otherwise people are going to be ravaged by a multitude of other problems.

@HelloMissus

I’m astounded that folk are still peddling the ‘selfish’ line. Most people have sacrificed huge amounts. But it’s just never ever enough, is it? They’re like spoiled kids expecting more more more.

Maybe I shouldn't have used the word selfish. Maybe I should have said egocentric.

Pp have absolutely no idea how much has been lost in this family due to Covid and how much the young people in it have sacrificed, or MH suffered or money lost and poured down the drain. My point is that I have never expected people to lockdown or make any sacrifices for our family or anyone else who is vulnerable. But I do expect them to be able to see outside of their own sphere and appreciate that not everyone has had the same experience and to develop some understanding and empathy instead of minimising it.

It's that inability that has been highlighted in this pandemic. On both sides. Those who want lockdown to protect the vulnerable and those who want it to let rip so they can get back to normal themselves. There's little desire to take a moment and try and see things from the other side. That's what I mean by selfish.

Ooo! Look at me! I'm not fearful of a virus that can literally kill other people.

But most viruses can kill people. Flu kills thousands every year. Were you afraid of flu every year?

@peboh

Being scared of the virus doesn't change anything though, it would just drain more peoples mental health. I'm not scared of covid, if I'm going to get it, I'm going to get it. I can argue the opposite point of I'm sick of people telling us that we have to do what we have to survive. I don't want to just survive. I want to live. I'm 28, I don't want to spend the rest of my life in a constant state of worry about finances because of businesses closing, my child missing out on an education because school closures, my mental health become severe because I'm stuck inside the same four walls constantly. I see the bigger picture, covid sucks, but at some point we have to learn to live with it otherwise people are going to be ravaged by a multitude of other problems.

The point of the OP was that it's not as simple as I'm not scared of the virus, I want to live, so let's get on with it. It's the knock-on effect of that on services, health care, the cost of long-term illness. That's literally what the OP is asking: Why can't people see the wider picture?

@bumbleymummy

Ooo! Look at me! I'm not fearful of a virus that can literally kill other people.

But most viruses can kill people. Flu kills thousands every year. Were you afraid of flu every year?

Yes we were. Because it could have had a devastating effect on DD. Winter has always been a fraught time in our family since we found that out. We have all had the flu vaccine every year, people with bad colds were not allowed in our house and we already had face masks before most people even knew it was a thing. What's your point?

My comment was about people's inability to see beyond their own lives.

People have done this - part of the reason why sacrifices were made. I know when I’ve felt awful the thought of health care person (reading what they are going through) gave me a bit of a push.

Also it goes the other way - lost livelihoods etc

I feel for everyone who’s had a tough time, and I can see it’s very hard for you and your dd, but I do have an issue with the idea of ‘selfish’ after all people have done for a long time.

@bumbleymummy

But no one has a crystal ball. If no action is taken - when the vast/overwhelming majority of scientists globally feel there is a cause for concern - and there is an utterly catastrophic overload on the NHS/hospital services worldwide. If a hospital is forced to close, or collapses - or simply cannot take another patient (whether that’s a child/pregnant mother etc) - because it is overwhelmed and has no staff - surely everything should be done to prevent that scenario.

People aren't off sick - they're forced to isolate because of a positive test. It's not the same thing!

This!!