Do you / Would you test more than required?

[workwoes123]

Just that really... do you test before you go to meet people? Or before groups events? If you are travelling, and there are no tests required to travel (as a fully vaccinated person) would you do a test 'just in case'?

We are flying to our home country in a week. We are all fully vaccinated, There are currently no tests required to enter this country and no tests on arrival. If one of us is symptomatic or identified as a contact case before we go, of course we will test and do everything else as required. But 'just in case' when it's not required? My sister seems shocked that we won't test before we fly even when we're not required to. I should say that she has no kids and has WFH since the start of the pandemic and she's pretty health anxious at the best of times. DH and I work in schools, we have two kids in school - covid is not some scary unknown for us, for us this is part of living with it.

WWYD?

We're hoping to travel out to see DD soon. No test required, but we'll do one anyway. She's young so no worries there. However, her uni close lectures down for a week if someone has tested positive, so that'll affect lots. If she's positive, she's not allowed out for 14 days, would have to isolate in her room to stop the same thing happening to her flat mates. Food deliveries aren't easily available. It isn't just the risk of making someone else ill, it's the wider impact and that's more important to me for her, than seeing her.

I follow the legal requirements only

How selfish you are.

Yes. How dare they spend time with elderly relatives who will most likely die in the next few years anyone. But at least they would have died happy knowing they hadn’t seen their family for a couple of years .

Comments like this just go to show how many people have lost all perspective on life.

@Wnkingawalrus

How selfish you are.

Yes. How dare they spend time with elderly relatives who will most likely die in the next few years anyone. But at least they would have died happy knowing they hadn’t seen their family for a couple of years .

Comments like this just go to show how many people have lost all perspective on life.

Yes it's their choice to see people. But to not test beforehand is unbelievably selfish, from the vantage point of not being the 90yo! They may die in x years, that's still x years later than today!

It's your choice to live abroad.

I love this simplistic, ignorant opinion on why people live abroad. For many of us it’s not a choice, it’s a necessity. You have absolutely no idea what OP’s circumstances are and why she has to live in a different country to her parents right now.

I forget covid is a thing now, but I'm not proud of that.

I’m not sure mumsnet is a representative view of what joe public is doing. I imagine loads of families have mentally come to the end of the line with all the testing, and are just doing it when someone gets clear symptoms.

That being said, if you got covid symptoms, you may well feel that you don’t want to go near your parents. I think in this case you’d find a pre existing plan b (alternative accommodation plans) a relief. It would be stressful continuing with your plans anyway if one of you got symptoms - your visit would comprise of jumping out of each other’s way in the hallway, and holding your breath to see if older family started with symptoms.

No, I won't test unless it's required for travel now.

I do not test in everyday life unless specifically required to do so or if I have symptoms.

Would I test before visiting family abroad, particularly elderly parents, it's tricky but probably yes. I think if only to reassure yourself and others that you have done everything possible to avoid potentially spreading it. If the worst case scenario happens, so be it but at least you will not be accused of not taking precautions.

I have also heard lots of people say they are no longer testing because they 'don't have time for Covid'. Busy lives, missed education, so many cancelled and disrupted plans, employers less sympathetic about repeated time off so I can understand why people don't.

@FindingMeno

I’m similar in some ways. We’ve we’ve all had Covid, and as I said, we have no family local to us and haven’t visited the U.K. for two years. We’ve not had to make any of the hard decisions about going to family events, we haven’t had to come up with any of the ‘what if?’ alternative strategies. And neither have our families: they’ve all sat happily in their retired / child free / wfh bubbles for two years, they haven’t had to think about the reality of a family of four, all in schools, out and about living a ‘normal’ working life, coming to visit. My BIL recently said, semi jokingly, that he was probably immune to Covid as he hasn’t caught it: I think it’s more to do with the fact he never goes out and all his family live in Australia! I’m sure it hasn’t even crossed their mind that we might turn up, test positive at some point, and have to make alternative for accommodation no/ flights / miss work and school while stuck in the U.K. it’s clear from talking to my sister that these issues aren’t even on her radar.

Ouf! I’m going to call my mum this apm and talk it through, check that she’s ok for us to isolate with them if we need to. Maybe she’s just assuming we will, coke what may.

So my parents are perfectly happy for us to go to them if we test positive at any point, and to isolate there as best we can. They are fully vaccinated, and my mum is 'ready to start living a normal life'. So that's sorted (should have just phoned her - like I said, we haven't had to have any of these conversations yet). My sister will just have to accept that my parents are happy with this, and that means we can test freely as we have a contingency plan in place (if we test positive before going to my sister / SIL we just go straight to my parents).

Thanks all, for helping me to work through this.

PS. My mum actually said... "maybe you shouldn't test before you fly at all, if you aren't required to? The important thing is that you get here, we can deal with anything that comes up when you are here.". I promise I didn't prompt her to say anything!

Glad you’ve got that sorted. I did this the other way a few months ago. It is a pain but manageable.

If anything it might be easier coming to England since the government have given up caring and the restrictions around isolation may be less strict than in other places.

I had these decisions 2 months ago. We were required to test 1x to go out & 2x to return. My dad suggested we do yet more testing for which I brushed him off. I sure as heck wasn't doing more tests. The amusing parts are... My elderly relatives I visited, are Covid fearful.... but one goes to Casino 3x a week. They never test although they could afford it. They were staying with another relative who had Covid-like symptoms during our visit but he mostly hid away for 5 days (had airplane flight day 3) & never tested. He was at Casino on day 6 for NYE with partner. These relatives invest a lot of energy in complaints about bad ppl who won't get vaccinated. I just think it's funny how they see selves as so Covid virtuous but have big blind spots when it's convenient to them.

Glad your relatives are happy with your strategy.