Prepping For Pandemic..... 11

[ItsNotJustTheFuckingFlu]

Thread 11.

This prepping for a pandemic pack was posted one one of the previous threads, I thought I’d post for this thread as there’s more people joining the threads. I had a quick scan through the last couple of thread to find a list that’s been posted a few times but couldn’t find it. The pack seems a bit end of days in some parts buts it’s got some useful ideas.

Pandemic Preparedness Pack

The Emotional Prep thread started by @Neome might be worth a look for those of us feeling anxious as things ramp up.

Emotional Prep Thread

Also attached a screenshot of a post on previous threads by @blackeyesusan (hope you don’t mind) with storage ideas for those of us living in smaller homes.

Checking in.

Checking in. Some of my arts and crafts stuff arrived today so that's gone in my prepping pack.

Also going to get some resources from work incase schools are closed so I have some work I can do at home with the eldest

When your child works for Home Bargains and they bring you home more supplies. Shame they don’t sell masks.

Did a quick run into Sainsbury's and Asda tonight (paracetamol and calpol) really
Strange atmosphere. Almost empty loo roll shelves, no chicken in sainsburys and
Decimated antibacterial sprays and wipes. Plenty of pasta/sauces though.

Thanks for the new thread. Colleague being tested. Getting closer.

I am Still trying to fight off a cold and cough from a few days ago. I need it gone.

On a brighter note the dear friend who was trotting out rubbish yesterday about how we should just get on with our lives and it was all a silly panic blah blah is today
Posting very sensible links about Coronavirus and trying to educate people. What a change a day can make.

I may therefore rethink my stance of last night to not lend them loo roll when the sh$t hits the fan.

No toilet roll on our local lidls and no detail wipes in Wilkinson's.

I don't know if anyone else feels like this but I'm a prepper who's had a store building up since Brexit but now I feel like a panic buyer. Every time I go out I come home with more sweets things.

I just did an Asda online order, to top up my already pretty good stores - feel like I'm panicking now too. Lots of tins out of stock on the website so I know I'm contributing to the problem. Needed nappies and formula though and can't face the shops.

Thanks for the new thread!

Sorry if this has been asked before but does anyone know on the worldometer site the UK doesn't have any critical cases listed is that because we have none or are the gov just not reporting them ?

Not sure whether to bother checking in or not or going back to lurkdom.
For what it's worth, Bath & Body works hand gel is over 60% alcohol.

@boreda it’s a good question. I don’t know. I do know that it should say 9 recovered if the article I linked yesterday was true. I’ve also just read something saying 45 of the cases are at home. That doesn’t mean the others are serious/critical though as everyone was going into hospital for isolation originally. The lady who just died would likely have been critical - for a time, at least - so maybe we don’t declare it.

I just had a really interesting interaction with DH.

I watched the latest video of Dr John Campbell where he noted that the WHO mentioned that so far we have seen a mortality rate of 3.5% and that this (so far) ties in with Italy having a 3.5% mortality rate.

I let out a big sigh and he wanted to know what I was sighing about.

So I said "Oh, it's just the WHO are suggesting the mortality rate might be quite a bit higher than the 1-2% people have been using, it could be more like 3.5% so the worst case scenario in the UK would be 1.9m dead".

I didn't say this with any anxiety or panic. Just a sigh (and wouldn't have even said anything if he hadn't of asked me specifically what I had sighed about).

DH just lost it, he is not remotely an angry person but started ranting quite angrily about how it was "impossible" that 2m could die in the UK from an illness.

I said it was a worst case scenario but was possible based on the facts. I also pointed out that people had died in similar levels within living memory (just) in the UK in the 1918 flu.

Again - I was calm. DH was probably the angriest I've ever seen him (as he doesn't get angry generally) ranting about how it wasn't possible and it can never happen in this country no matter what the WHO say or what the facts are, etc, etc.

Anyway...to me it was quite an interesting exchange from a psychological perspective.

He's usually quite logical but it's like he simply couldn't entertain that something terrible could happen here; not even as a worst case scenario probably-won't-happen-but-theoretically-could level.

@wheresmymojo it's the bury your head in the sand scenario mixed with fear. How does he feel about your prepping?

I bought hand gel today, Carex which is 70% alcohol, from the Co-Op. Both Waitrose and Boots were out of stock.

He's just seen it as a quirk really. Not interested but happy for me to do it if it makes me happy while thinking it was unnecessary.

His parents are in their 70's so I suspect there's beginning to be the start of a bit of fear there (bearing in mind they are flying to Vietnam/Cambodia tomorrow).

But mainly just an absolute shutdown and inability to think anything so bad could happen in the UK.

Even when I pointed out that it has before and that a pandemic like 1918 has absolutely been expected (even if this turns out not to be as bad at some point a 1918 level pandemic is expected).

It's like he just couldn't compute that level of disruption here. In the UK we've had so much stability since WWII I think the average person assumes that's how life must be (rather than realising that living without war and major disease is probably more unusual than the opposite).

Don’t forget that that’s 3% of those who get it. So even if 80% of the population get it, fatalities won’t be as high as 2 million.

It's a strange one. So many people I would expect to stick their heads in the sand have. A few have surprised me like my mum who agrees on being prepared.
Others have surprised me who i thought would be on board but aren't. Only three people know I prep. Me, my eldest daughter and my collegue who is also prepping. She's a microbiologist so I take what she says seriously.

That being said I guess we need to remember that denial is a strong self preservation technique in the face of danger.

Totally @wheresmymojo I had someone tweet me today saying that it's just a cold. I'm sure they must have been trying to wind me up as that's not even a symptom!

70m at 80% worst case scenario getting it = 56m

56m at 3.5% mortality = 1.96m

@echobench

Don’t forget that that’s 3% of those who get it. So even if 80% of the population get it, fatalities won’t be as high as 2 million.

3.5% of 80% of the UK population works out as 1.8 million.

Working on the basis Google says the population on the UK is 66.44million

Don't get me wrong - I realise that 80% getting it and 3.5% mortality are absolute worst case scenarios but DH couldn't even accept it on that basis.

Remember there will be incidental/unrelated deaths if the NHS is put under too much pressure, and public sector services are cut to the bone, even more than they already are.

We have had a lifetime of peace and relative prosperity in the UK. It is unimaginable that it could all collapse (even temporarily), but at the same time, every single system is interconnected and vulnerable.

I'm trying not to panic buy as I know I have a good amount of stuff and while I do want to do a top up shop tomorrow I don't want to be selfish and prevent someone who isn't prepared at all from getting what they need. Plus I've gone in to debt to do this and that's not ideal given how finances could change. I'm honestly terrified, I can't stop thinking about it all. Finding it very hard to switch off.

In the US here, my DC just finished school for March holidays. They all got told to make sure they took home their chrome books and text books in case they had to have school via the internet after the holiday (2 weeks) I'm just happy they are not going back to the germ pit that is school for a bit. Now to get DS2 home from boarding school in another week and DS1 home from University (in UK) in 10 days. I'm most worried about DS1 as he has to run the gauntlet of public transport to Heathrow and then a 7 hour flight. Then he has to get through the screening at the airport. Fingers crossed it all works as right now he has a cold and would trigger all the questions etc.