What’s going on?!

[Jisforjelly]

My sister in law hasn’t been vaccinated (I know, I know).
She works in a primary school as a TA.
Lots of close contact with kids. She also has a secondary school aged daughter.

She’s never ever had covid! Even though she’s not had a single vaccine.
Me on the other hand, I’ve had all three jabs and I’ve had it twice!

She might have had it but was asymptomatic?

All of DH's family are secondary school teachers and only one of them has had covid and had no symptoms at all, only tested as was pinged as a close contact.

Should add that this was pre vaccine.

My sister is an unvaccinated primary school teacher. She is the only teacher in the school yet to catch it. She didn't even catch it when there was an outbreak in her class affecting 18 of the 28 children! I wonder if some people have natural immunity?

Look up the science. Lots of information as to why some do and some don’t.

Couples who share beds but not Covid may hold clue to ‘invincibility’
Analysing the genes of those who appear to be naturally resistant could lead to antiviral treatments

amp.ft.com/content/cdd7d8f7-2e50-4b59-a007-587dd0cd049d

@Jisforjelly

My sister in law hasn’t been vaccinated (I know, I know). She works in a primary school as a TA. Lots of close contact with kids. She also has a secondary school aged daughter.

She’s never ever had covid! Even though she’s not had a single vaccine.
Me on the other hand, I’ve had all three jabs and I’ve had it twice!

She's around kids so will have had huge exposure over the years to cold coronavirus (not COVID but a relative) so might have caught a lucky one over the years that had similar characteristics.

My guess is that given teachers are pretty low on the COVID deaths by occupation this may well be a thing.

It’s just really confusing as we hear all the time that unvaccinated people are getting it and becoming ill and that you’re more likely to catch it if you haven’t been vaccinated, but in my SIL case that doesn’t seem to follow. Despite all her exposure.

Dh isn't vaccinated and has never had it and my dsd had it in our house. I've heard of people getting it more than once but most of our family have never had it.

I am unvaccinated and haven’t had covid. Worked all through the pandemic with many people and also tested daily for work so definitely haven’t had it. Only one family member who is unvaccinated has had covid.

My friend and her children have just had covid for the 3rd time they are all vaccinated.

It’s strange how it goes🤷🏼‍♀️

I believe teachers like doctors gain natural immunity from being in close contact with children/adults who’ve had various viruses and don’t catch anything from them. Vaccines are working as intended and helping to keep those vulnerable out of hospital.

The population level statistics show quite clearly that the vaccinations have made a huge difference to deaths and hospitalisations. Simply put - there were hugely more people dying and in ICU when no-one was vaccinated at the same community levels of infection.

But on an individual level of course there will be variation.

If you go back a couple of generations in my family, a child aged 6 died of TB, the mother of the family (in her 30s) also died and two other children caught it and were successfully treated eventually, although I think it took a really long time to completely treat it. A family of 7 all living together in cramped conditions and no-one else got it - 2 died, 2 very ill, 3 completely fine despite very high exposure over many months / years (though of course massively affected by the deaths and illness of their family members). It's always the way with diseases.

There seems to be a section of the population who are bullet proof.

Which is interesting and hopefully these people will help us understand more about the disease and how to treat/prevent it.

I know of one girl who's been exposed on numerous occasions, in very close contact, has tested constantly but has never got it. 🤷‍♀️

The immune system is a very fascinating thing.

I work in close contact with children. My own children had covid and I isolated with them. I didn't get covid, neither did dh.

Until I got covid and passed it on to dh. She's been lucky so far.

I there are a proportion of people that are against vaccination and testing/isolating so they do get it but don't test or admit to being ill so they can go round saying they have never had it.

Me and my children aren't vaccinated and haven't had it. We do test and wear masks though.
At the same time, the rest of my family are all fully vaccinated and they also haven't had it.

My DH and I are unvaccinated and have just had it for the first time. Very mild symptoms and over in a few days. Did not pass it on the to kids or anyone else as we both work from home. We wear masks and test if necessary.

Some people are naturally immune to Covid! It's not many but they do exist.

Alternatively, many people get Covid asymptomatically.

Genetics, lifestyle, health, weight etc all play a strong part in our immune system.

Scientists are trying to find out why some people are naturally immune to covid.

Some people appear to have natural immunity. They’ve also discovered some cross-reactivity with certain cold viruses that can protect against Covid. She may have had it asymptomatically. Since vaccines don’t have a huge impact on symptomatic infection it’s not her vaccination status that is key here. More her immune system plus lots of possible exposure.

I am hearing more and more stories like this and often from frontline workers or teachers who are exposed constantly to lots of people (and illness). It does help build your immune system. It’s not a magic bullet for most but the opposite definitely isn’t a good idea (I.e hiding yourself away from all viruses)

Just to add, as there seems to be a suggestion on here that is the unvaccinated status that is protecting people. That’s not the case, there’s no scientific evidence out there to support that.

Unvaccinated people may be younger, less cautious and more sociable. I actually think the exposure to colds/viruses etc will help the immune system. So by being out and about and less cautious may have worked in their favour and the vaccination status has nothing to do with it.

The vaccines are there to prevent serious illness, which they do very well. A huge percentage of the population would have had mild Covid without the vaccines, the problem is we don’t know who these are.

She must be forever isolating!
As a TA she must be in contact with covid every week at least and unvaxxed contacts have to isolate.

unvaccinated contacts only have to isolate if contacted by test and trace. Test and trace don't contact settings and the parents don't have the contact details of staff. That was the outcome of taking the contact tracing away from settings. She isn't isolating as a close contact.

How do you know she's never had covid?