Will they actually go ahead with the not having to isolate?

[Needtogoonholiday]

Do we think that it will actually happen in March. The not having to isolate if you've got it?

I wonder if testing will stop?

What gets me is people come on saying

“I didn’t get it mildly… I was XyZ”

And?

If you weren’t hospitalised, you were just poorly, like I was with flu a few years back. I didn’t bloody isolate.

I LOVE fact that the majority are moving in direction of no isolation. Let’s just move the fuck on

Blanket isolation undermines the people who are feeling more poorly with it and genuinely need time off to recover.

It'll be easier to take Covid more seriously when people aren't being "ill" because a test told them they're ill, or having very minor symptoms.
If someone has a week off with flu, we take it seriously. If people automatically had 7 odd days off with flu because we'd got home tests that could detect it, the perception if its effects would be diminished.

Covid needs to be treated like any other illness, and colds/ flus have a range of impacts that we're all used to living with.

Isolation is doing more damage collectively than the illness is.

There are still people testing daily because they are very scared about catching covid or the thought of passing it on so I think end of self isolation will be an adjustment for many.

On a personal and selfish level, I have some worries about it because I’m immunocompromised and do not get much protection from vaccines. That said, I strongly believe ending the legal basis for isolation is the right decision. I understand it’ll be guidance so those who can easily work from home will be able to continue. Having isolation periods has a significant impact on businesses and services. Society cannot function like this much longer. There are healthy people at home and key services can’t run, this includes health and social care.

There are still people testing daily because they are very scared about catching covid

But how does testing whether you're infected prevent you becoming infected?

We're both hauled up at home with covid, I have times when I can function and do a very simple meal, but DH is really suffering - doesn't need to be hospitalised, but his throat and eyes are very sore, he's coughing and sneezing like crazy still and totally debilitated. DH has been saying for a while we've got to learn to live with it, but he's now saying I really don't want this again. No one wants this a couple of times a year.

@Mickarooni

On a personal and selfish level, I have some worries about it because I’m immunocompromised and do not get much protection from vaccines. That said, I strongly believe ending the legal basis for isolation is the right decision. I understand it’ll be guidance so those who can easily work from home will be able to continue. Having isolation periods has a significant impact on businesses and services. Society cannot function like this much longer. There are healthy people at home and key services can’t run, this includes health and social care.

The problem in the workplace is the millions of people with health problems and those 60+ in jobs they cannot do from home, where employer who will not support isolation if it's not a legal requirement, and will not pay for time off. What do they do if a colleague comes in with obvious covid symptoms? Just sit there and get infected?

@Toanewstart22

What gets me is people come on saying

“I didn’t get it mildly… I was XyZ”

And?

If you weren’t hospitalised, you were just poorly, like I was with flu a few years back. I didn’t bloody isolate.

I LOVE fact that the majority are moving in direction of no isolation. Let’s just move the fuck on

If you had 'flu' like you state there would be a slim chance you were up and about carrying on as normal. So i would hazard a heavy cold

If you had 'flu' like you state there would be a slim chance you were up and about carrying on as normal. So i would hazard a heavy cold

Why?

We don’t have home tests for flu, we often don’t know when we have it. One third of cases are completely asymptomatic and others are mild. As a Pp mentioned we use “flu” as a shorthand for “I’m too ill to work / leave the house”. Until Covid came along we generally never knew what we actually had.

@thewhatsit

If you had 'flu' like you state there would be a slim chance you were up and about carrying on as normal. So i would hazard a heavy cold

Why?

We don’t have home tests for flu, we often don’t know when we have it. One third of cases are completely asymptomatic and others are mild. As a Pp mentioned we use “flu” as a shorthand for “I’m too ill to work / leave the house”. Until Covid came along we generally never knew what we actually had.

Agreed. It was just a "bug". And that's what covid will become as well once testing stops as we won't know whether we have a cold/flu/covid etc. if we are too ill to work then we will call in sick, like we did prior to covid.

@containsnuts

I don’t think the average person in the work place needs to continue to be worried if fully vaccinated. I am in the most vulnerable category and I work. Life has to go on.

@Onthedowns

If you had 'flu' like you state there would be a slim chance you were up and about carrying on as normal. So i would hazard a heavy cold

Around 1/3 of flu cases are asymptomatic, and many more are very mild... We just have never realised as we don't test like we do for Covid!

Not every flu infection leaves you bedridden in the same way not every Covid infection leaves you in ICU!

God I hope they do go ahead with it. Yes some people are ill enough with covid to warrant time off work, most could carry on working as normal. Get the hypochondriacs back to sodding work imo.

@BogRollBOGOF

Blanket isolation undermines the people who are feeling more poorly with it and genuinely need time off to recover.

It'll be easier to take Covid more seriously when people aren't being "ill" because a test told them they're ill, or having very minor symptoms.
If someone has a week off with flu, we take it seriously. If people automatically had 7 odd days off with flu because we'd got home tests that could detect it, the perception if its effects would be diminished.

Covid needs to be treated like any other illness, and colds/ flus have a range of impacts that we're all used to living with.

Isolation is doing more damage collectively than the illness is.

But asymptomatic - or slightly ill - people can still spread the virus to others, correct? And those others might suffer more severe illness.

Quarantine/isolation has always been used as a preventative method with infectious illnesses. There's an obvious reason for it.

*But asymptomatic - or slightly ill - people can still spread the virus to others, correct? And those others might suffer more severe illness.

Quarantine/isolation has always been used as a preventative method with infectious illnesses. There's an obvious reason for it.*

We don't force people to isolate with the flu which can also be transmitted asymptomaticaly and make some people very ill.

I think they will very soon. I also think it won't completely solve things because people who are too ill to work will still still stay home and that will still be a significant number as case numbers are so high . It will probably improve things though.

I also predict that fewer and fewer people will want to admit they have Covid if they are feeling very ill as sympathy will be limited, given that so many people now dismiss it as a cold and many will be accused of milking it

I'm not saying it isn't like a cold now for the majority but given the high infection rates quite a number of people may be unable to work for several weeks

. Things will just go back to ill employees not being believed and effectively being told to stop being pathetic, which is how I saw so many on here treated when not well of different viruses pre Covid who posted about how work was treating them .

I imagine we will see the return to mentions of 'man' flu as well which always used to irritate me as well. So back to normal which will please many. I personally think we treat ill employees appalling in this country so I was hoping to see some change bit I think if anything it will get worse

@Blubells

*But asymptomatic - or slightly ill - people can still spread the virus to others, correct? And those others might suffer more severe illness.

Quarantine/isolation has always been used as a preventative method with infectious illnesses. There's an obvious reason for it.*

We don't force people to isolate with the flu which can also be transmitted asymptomaticaly and make some people very ill.

Flu is much less contagious than Covid. I don't understand how so many haven't understood this yet . Vaccines help but it is fundamentally much more contagious than flu and always has been

I'm in complete agreement with ending isolation. If a child is too ill to attend school/an adult too ill to work they stay at home and return when better.

I've decided (since Xmas) that I will no longer test my children, even after exposure. We had covid in the house, they were both fine so they went to school. They've both had multiple cases in their classes and I haven't done the testing.

For what end? They're fine. If they were unwell, I'd keep them off. Isolation seems pointless for asymptomatic cases now.

I really hope so!

I'm a teacher and cv. I had ten children off over three days last week and now both me and my TA are positive. I feel absolutely awful and can't speak. There is no way I could go in and teach like this so if there was no isolation I would have to call in sick tomorrow.

I fully accept things change and they have to but to put pressure on staff now to come in if only mild symptoms when their colleagues got 14 days will grate a little I am sure even though it's just the way it is.

Quarantine/isolation has always been used as a preventative method with infectious illnesses. There's an obvious reason for it.

The UK legal provisions relating to covid isolation and quarantine are radically different from most people's experience of infectious illnesses before 2020. Prior to this pandemic, the list of diseases where there were legal obligations didn't affect the vast majority of the population. By all means argue that we shouldn't treat covid like other infectious illnesses, but that's a different point to the undoubted fact that we don't, as things stand.

I find it hard to accept that so many here are prepared to confine the vulnerable to their homes for fear of catching Covid and dying.

They matter more than your freedom to spread a disease that has killed so many.

Utterly selfish.

@AndAnotherNewOne

I find it hard to accept that so many here are prepared to confine the vulnerable to their homes for fear of catching Covid and dying.

They matter more than your freedom to spread a disease that has killed so many.

Utterly selfish.

@stayingaliveisawayoflife

I'm a teacher and cv. I had ten children off over three days last week and now both me and my TA are positive. I feel absolutely awful and can't speak. There is no way I could go in and teach like this so if there was no isolation I would have to call in sick tomorrow.

I fully accept things change and they have to but to put pressure on staff now to come in if only mild symptoms when their colleagues got 14 days will grate a little I am sure even though it's just the way it is.

I don't understand why calling in sick is a problem? Presumably that's what you've always done in the past when you've felt too ill to work, so why would/should covid be different? And I believe that the time you're off in isolation is counted as sick leave anyway, it is where I work anyway. I really can't imagine working somewhere where people would be annoyed because changes to the law mean they are able to continue working when they're not really ill just because their colleagues had to stay at home for 14 days when that was the law. Bizarre. Being stuck at home for that period of time wasn't exactly a fun holiday either.

@AndAnotherNewOne

I find it hard to accept that so many here are prepared to confine the vulnerable to their homes for fear of catching Covid and dying.

They matter more than your freedom to spread a disease that has killed so many.

Utterly selfish.

Wanting to live your own life freely is not selfish. Some people have lost all perspective.