Is there lots of covid about at the momen?

[notahincheratall]

Is there a way of checking?

Of course not, no one tests anymore

Anecdotally apparently yes but no way of knowing

I'm hearing of lots more cases around here in west Kent.

Yes it's around in East kent.
Think I came into contact with someone on the 3rd of November, by the 9th all 4 of us tested positive. Reported the cases online, but we weren't put on local stats. So doubt if any stats are correct, as testing is not required. Our tests were all in date.
Thought i just had a rough cold.
Lots of people walking around with colds at the moment.
Luckily I was wearing a face mask, when I thought I had a cold.
Plan to wear a face mask all winter, as fell ill new years eve and didn't feel myself until beginning of February. Test was negative then.

Plenty of cases around whenever I speak to anyone anywhere. But people are being told by their workplaces not to test and to come in unless they absolutely can’t.

Absolutely loads where I am. I’ve just recovered and lots of friends and colleagues have it.

Probably.

Along with colds, chest infestations, flu and norovirus.

It's that time of year.

Some people do. Me included. I’m immunosuppressed and so still get the tests through the NHS. I’ve just had covid and it was awful. Mine & dh’s family buys tests if feeling unwell to protect me and MIL.

Yes we've had an average of 5 people off a week with covid since September out of 150 staff, we still use covid tests if people have symptoms

Yes, I was with a group of colleagues in London on Friday and yesterday four of them have found out they have covid.

I didn't think people were testing any more, so I was surprised when someone let me know. I may have it too I suppose, but I don't have any tests and wouldn't know where to get them.

Pharmacy. My local has them as does Boots.

Chest infestations 😂

Definitely lots of unwell people near me, DP and DC have just had the coughing/knackered virus which lasted ages and could have been Covid

This website shows a downward trend at the moment. It's a couple of weeks behind though.

You can search by postcode to see the stats for your local area.

https://coronavirus.data.gov.uk/

She found 1 test and he was positive, so the rest of us who were also poorly probably had it too. Didn't "report" it to anyone, mine led into a lung infection and I had 10 days of antibiotics

The schools actively tell you not to test and go in if you can... So it's obviously flying about like wildfire

Yep out Friday night and tested positive by Monday 😞

I've worked on the assumption that it's everywhere for a long time now, certainly since the Omicron variants arrived.

There is a lot of respiratory illness around just now - and a proportion of that will be covid

Loads and loads in environments with lots of young children. Stay off if symptomatic or do a PCR test.

Government guidelines don't say to do this?

I'm travelling around Kent a lot at the moment and everywhere seems to be a group that have been off with it in the last week or two or are now sick with it. Some tests don't seem to pick it up either. Lady I spoke to yesterday was at what seems to have been a super spreader event in London with a friend, had dinner at another friends house and now 8 of them are sick but only 4 got positive tests. All anecdotal of course but that's all we can do without proper testing being set up by government.

Yep, loads of it about, I and a whole heap of people I know have just had it. There will be many more cases than will show up on government stats as I think that is only the number of positive PCR tests reported (so not lateral flow tests), which is a fraction of the true picture.

Sorry I think the stats do include lateral flow.

Several off in our nursery with it. They've started putting a sign up saying how many kids off with covid, how many off with chickenpox etc.

As for testing, people still buy and do it, even if they don't 'have' to, but there's nowhere to report. Likewise for keeping away from others etc.

DH and I were out for dinner on Friday and the man at the next table (very close) was coughing like an old horse. My DH was getting really irritated by it, especially as the guy kept turning towards us, rather than coughing across the table towards his partner, but I said that 4 years ago no one would have thought anything of being in proximity to someone with a cough and maybe he was asthmatic or something. Not all coughs are covid.

Monday I tested positive. Bastard.

DH and I picked it up a couple of weeks back on holiday . We tested when we got back . First time for him. A poster refers to a PCR test - didn't realise they still did those? I have some LFTs I bought on Amazon . Not sure how accurate the data can be that pp linked to when most people don't test, and you can only report if you have the NHS tests .