Being honest, who else is doing this?

[HonestTest]

Talking to a group of friends who are split between what they now do in regards to Covid. None are CEV.

Some still testing for every symptom on either LFTs or PCRs and isolating if positive as previously required for up to 10 days (or early if neg day 6/7).

Others, like me, now not testing at all even with potential symptoms and just staying in until they feel well enough like they would have in 2019 whether that's 3 days or 10.

What are you doing now?

When tests start to cost I imagine we'll see the number of people bothering with them drop but it's been very freeing to not have to bother anymore with the circus of scrambling to find a box of gold dust lfts every time my DC or I sneezes and just treating what could be potentially Covid (I wouldn't know) like anything else.

(I appreciate the answer to this will be entirely different if you are CEV and that these people will still have access to free testing and will understandably want to do so).

I think it's up to the person themselves but then I think the people saying they'll just stay away from people, do they mean isolate fully or just as they decide? Because here in Ireland we're pretty much in 'shit hitting the fan' territory in our hospitals so while we all like to believe we're free now, I now know more people properly feeling it than ever before (although a lot are more vulnerable).

Ps we test when there's symptoms and I have to wear a mask in work so I wear it in any indoor setting because I'm used to it

@Bouledeneige

I'm not bothering. But then I had covid at Christmas and haven't had any symptoms. I thought most covid cases now don't have the traditional symptoms they are asymptomatic.

Previous strains were more serious. omicron (both variants) is no more harmful than a cold.

No more harmful than a cold?!?!?!

Jesus wept,

I wont be testing, I've used up my 3 episodes of sick allowance for this year already due to a variety of reasons. Therefore, if I catch covid it's tough shit and I'll just have to work through it as I need my job to pay for frivolous items such as food and my mortgage.

Maybe, if people want others testing and isolating, instead of calling people who wont test "selfish" you should be marching outside Westminster and demanding fair sick pay and the abolishment of silly sick time employment rules!

I expect the only people who can test with no worries are financially comfortable and either not working or working in a job with flexibility.

People seemed to have missed Boris statement

From the 1st April the advice to isolate and stay at home with covid ends and changes to ‘practice personal responsibility’

No one will be advised to isolate and that’s a huge change

So they’ll be no desire to test
If unwell stay home if you are sick otherwise whether covid or not you won’t be advised to isolate

Come April 1st new advice is being issued eg to schools and workplaces

No one needs to test or isolate

@Watapalava

People seemed to have missed Boris statement

From the 1st April the advice to isolate and stay at home with covid ends and changes to ‘practice personal responsibility’

No one will be advised to isolate and that’s a huge change

So they’ll be no desire to test
If unwell stay home if you are sick otherwise whether covid or not you won’t be advised to isolate

Come April 1st new advice is being issued eg to schools and workplaces

No one needs to test or isolate

Have you seen today’s date? It still won’t change my behaviour anyway.

@ThisTownAintBigEnoughForBoth

You definitely can get tests in lots of places, if you want to. Sounds to me like OP doesn't want to.

Maybe where you live. Perhaps try considering it's not the same for everyone!!

@Itwasnotmeormydog

I have forgotten all about coronavirus and it wouldn't even occur to me to test anymore.

Oh how jolly lovely for you.

Well some parents won’t be able to forget about COVID round here as some classes have been sent home as not enough staff in school

@WouldBeGood

People who will keep testing, will you get paid if you’re off work?

Yes I would. But I'm not sure why it's an either/or situation?

If you test positive but you have to go to work, wouldn't you take the positive test as a reason to take more precaution? E.g wear a mask, wash your hands/use hand sanitizer, try and keep well back from people, avoid sitting next to an older person or a newborn baby on your commute etc etc

When the rules end they end, so I'm not sure what the angle is for not testing? You won't be required to not work but at least you might know to act with caution around others?

I haven’t been able to get LFTs for weeks. So if I had symptoms I’d just go out, go to work, go to the gym, etc. Wouldn’t stay in if I felt well enough to go out. Everyone I know is doing the same.

But I’d act like the olden days, and be guided by how ill I am and whether I can go to work/socialise, etc. No need to test and be told I’m a selfish monster by people on MN for working with covid

Scrap that, just checked again and managed to order a box. But once they are used up I won’t test anymore.

I test twice a week because work require it and they provide the tests, once they stop providing them I'll be stopping testing. I'm certainly not paying for them and will instead use the common sense approach I had pre covid and stay home if I'm unwell

Not testing, won't ever test again, don't give a shiny shit any more. If we are ill, we will stay home as we always would have done. End of.

For those who are regularly testing now whilst the tests are free, will you still be testing as often when you need to pay for them?

I’m CEV. I don’t know what makes you think we I’ll have access to free testing when you don’t (we won’t).

I test twice a week for work, avoid going out (except work) and public transport and wear an N95 mask at work (which has been fit tested).

Didn't test myself or my kids regularly at the height of the madness and never intend to test again. Utter waste of time and resources.

We stopped testing the dc after Christmas (except when visiting elderly relatives). I vowed that they wouldn't lose another day of school when well if I could possibly help it. Or subject us to the nightmare of trying to work with them at home.

My kids school tested whole school today due to high cases amongst staff - email today said 60% of parents refused permission

Seems tide is turning on supporting symptomatic testing

@Wellbythebloodyhell

For those who are regularly testing now whilst the tests are free, will you still be testing as often when you need to pay for them?

Yes. I’m mainly testing when I’m spending an extended time indoors with vulnerable people.

Well don’t complain if the school closes @Watapalava like some local schools have had to due to lack of staff

I’m only testing when seeing elderly relatives at the moment but not testing apart from that. From April I’ll use common sense when ill, I’ll stay inside when too ill to go out, then go about my usual business when well. I certainly won’t be spending my own money on testing, I’d rather spend it on other things like days out and making sure my DC has savings. I’ll just treat it like I did any other illness pre-2020.

I'm a bit on the fence about this at the moment, I am testing with symptoms, but I am inclined to think that isolating isn't really a sustainable approach. In which case the testing isn't all that useful for most people. So that may be what I do once free tests are done and I suspect it is also what a lot of other people will do.

@Watapalava

My kids school tested whole school today due to high cases amongst staff - email today said 60% of parents refused permission

Seems tide is turning on supporting symptomatic testing

I think people increasingly can't afford the time off.