Coronavirus COVID-19 - Global Health Pandemic #104

[LeeAnnB]

I just put all my info (using the symptoms I had last week) into the Walgreen's app for a PCR test. Next available appointment is Wednesday at 3 pm. That's cutting it extremely close - 5 days of symptoms - if you want antivirals or mabs.

How is early treatment supposed to work if you can't even get a test until you're on 5 days of symptoms and your PCR will not be back from the lab for who knows how many days???

This situation is now what is most concerning to me. The week before Christmas my husband was sick with a fever and bedridden for a week. He couldn’t get in to see his doctor for 10 days, we couldn’t find a test for him at any of the usual spots, and we started feeling desperate. Finally got him an appointment with a three day wait at Urgent Care. So much for “urgent care”. Anyhow, he ended up not having Covid (double vaxed with booster). Just some mystery virus that knocked him out for a week. We are in our 50’s and the thought of not being to get medical care for any condition in a timely freaks me out. My husband actually had to take a Xanax 2 days while sick due to the anxiety he developed being sick and unable to get treatment.

 

[tabitha111]

I follow her as well! Her post mentioned above is what prompted me to spend the last couple of days preparing for every thing to be affected. Are you set Ms Tabitha?

As ready as I will ever be. LOL...don't have to get much food since the kitchen provides meals, BUT I put in a hefty order of frozen dinners just in case. I do have a microwave in my apt, but we do not have ovens/stovetops- a full size frig is provided thank goodness. She mentioned Gatorade, so I ordered some of that too- just in case again. Otherwise, I decided to fancy up my bathroom during my self imposed isolation and went crazy on Amazon ordering new rugs, shower curtain, accessories....gotta keep busy.

 

[WichitaFalls]

As ready as I will ever be. LOL...don't have to get much food since the kitchen provides meals, BUT I put in a hefty order of frozen dinners just in case. I do have a microwave in my apt, but we do not have ovens/stovetops- a full size frig is provided thank goodness. She mentioned Gatorade, so I ordered some of that too- just in case again. Otherwise, I decided to fancy up my bathroom during my self imposed isolation and went crazy on Amazon ordering new rugs, shower curtain, accessories....gotta keep busy.

Decided to fancy up my bathroom . . .
Ha, I did the "fancy up stuff" during 2019 COVID. My neighbors across the street joked about the amount of deliveries. Ordered new dishes, wonderful bath towels, area rugs, shower curtains, new bedding. It was fun. Hope you enjoy your new bathroom.

 

[HongKongPhooey]

yep, our retirement community "caregiver" is in Las Vegas right now. She barely wears a mask here, so I know it will only be a thin cloth mask at the poker tables (her speciality). This place slays me, saw a young couple walk in yesterday with a young boy and not a single mask on- they were visiting her father- only she checked in (temp check) her husband and boy did not and walked on up anyways.
Then there is the man moving in today whose relatives (I assume) three big burly guys bringing up furniture from a pick up truck- no masks.
There is a singer coming at 2 pm for a NYE sing along, then a BYOB party starting at 10 pm tonight- needless to say I won't be attending.

Tabitha, its just me, Mr HKP and master dog here tonight. I'm sending you a big cheers from across the pond to you and everyone else who is opting for safer but quieter xX

 

[musicaljoke]

That seems to be the newest "solution". Get it, get over it, go back to work, ASAP.

It seems that goal has always been to simply make sure that the virus didn't spread faster than what the hospitals could handle. Once enough people are vaccinated, and the rate of hospitalization among the unvaccinated is known, then public health officials can predict whether or not the hospitals can handle the wave of sick people. If the hospitals can handle them, then yeah, they just might let 'er rip through the population. Too bad for those who remain at risk.
It's hard to believe that a civilized society would do that, but it seems to be the case.

 

[LaborDayRN]

I follow her on twitter- she is advising to prepare now for shortages, store closings, office closings, in the next 6-8 weeks. Get your supplies in!


Tatiana Prowell, MD

@tmprowell

To all the people who harassed me overnight & said I was peddling “fear ” when I said in Jan we’ll call 911 & no one will come or we’ll be unable even to enter an ER, this is a #DC suburb, now. Ambulances waiting 8 HOURS to be able to drop a patient at ER. #STAYHOME








Tatiana Prowell, MD

@tmprowell

Listen to me. EVERYTHING IS GOING TO BE AFFECTED BY #OMICRON. From modes of transportation to places you shop to places you get medical care to places you worship to places you learn. The public is not ready. Every single thing is going to be affected. Everything. Get ready.

Sound advice!

 

[Knitty]

yep, our retirement community "caregiver" is in Las Vegas right now. She barely wears a mask here, so I know it will only be a thin cloth mask at the poker tables (her speciality). This place slays me, saw a young couple walk in yesterday with a young boy and not a single mask on- they were visiting her father- only she checked in (temp check) her husband and boy did not and walked on up anyways.
Then there is the man moving in today whose relatives (I assume) three big burly guys bringing up furniture from a pick up truck- no masks.
There is a singer coming at 2 pm for a NYE sing along, then a BYOB party starting at 10 pm tonight- needless to say I won't be attending.

It's always interesting reading your posts. My mother is in a large building that is locked/dementia on the first floor, assisted living on the second, and independent on the third and fourth. She's on the fourth. She is vaxxed and boosted, and wears a mask everywhere and is proud of herself for being so so careful. HOWEVER . . .

She still owns a business, and my unvaxxed niece works for her. They spend time both at the office and in her apartment, unmasked. "But we always wear masks in the car!" The vast majority of the residents are unmasked and she still eats in the dining room, she goes to all the activities, including the Happy Hours, that are held in the "Pub" which is tiny and cramped. I'm frightened for her but I know she's capable of making her own decisions. She is quite rightfully proud of her health but thinks she is invincible now that she is vaccinated, and nothing I or my brother can say will convince her to be careful. She is so scornful of my sister who is a conspiracy-minded anti-vaxxer, but she and niece and two other are ALWAYS there with her. Again, unmasked. My niece even kept working with her while the entire rest of the family had COVID - without testing. She's 85. Sorry, I'm rambling.

Meanwhile, guess what?? I got put on antidepressants when I had a meltdown only partially about COVID right in front of my doctor. She proceeded to lecture me on why I'm supposed to ask for help, and she's right, so so hard for me. Turns out that Welbutrin helps with chronic pain. OMG! Who knew?? With pain meds, I can actually stand 30 minutes to cook a meal without crying! (Waiting for second back surgery in two years but have to complete 4 weeks of physical therapy before the insurance will believe my surgeon knows what he's talking about. How do I go to physical therapy with COVID going on? Sorry, rambling again.

 

[WildOrchid]

I got my large order of frequently used items today as well. Some items are already missing on shelves here according to my shopper. Oy flippin vey again.

 

[LaborDayRN]

Disney World to livestream New Year’s Eve fireworks

They live stream them every year, so it's not like this was done as a special thing for this year. And the parks are still packed. They have a reservation system in place to limit park capacity, but these are some pics from yesterday at Magic Kingdom (not my pics, they were shared with me) and the pics I'm seeing from today are just as crowded, so...

MOO IMO
View attachment 328079 View attachment 328080

Just looking at that picture is unnerving to me!

 

[nhmemorymaker]

It's always interesting reading your posts. My mother is in a large building that is locked/dementia on the first floor, assisted living on the second, and independent on the third and fourth. She's on the fourth. She is vaxxed and boosted, and wears a mask everywhere and is proud of herself for being so so careful. HOWEVER . . .

She still owns a business, and my unvaxxed niece works for her. They spend time both at the office and in her apartment, unmasked. "But we always wear masks in the car!" The vast majority of the residents are unmasked and she still eats in the dining room, she goes to all the activities, including the Happy Hours, that are held in the "Pub" which is tiny and cramped. I'm frightened for her but I know she's capable of making her own decisions. She is quite rightfully proud of her health but thinks she is invincible now that she is vaccinated, and nothing I or my brother can say will convince her to be careful. She is so scornful of my sister who is a conspiracy-minded anti-vaxxer, but she and niece and two other are ALWAYS there with her. Again, unmasked. My niece even kept working with her while the entire rest of the family had COVID - without testing. She's 85. Sorry, I'm rambling.

Meanwhile, guess what?? I got put on antidepressants when I had a meltdown only partially about COVID right in front of my doctor. She proceeded to lecture me on why I'm supposed to ask for help, and she's right, so so hard for me. Turns out that Welbutrin helps with chronic pain. OMG! Who knew?? With pain meds, I can actually stand 30 minutes to cook a meal without crying! (Waiting for second back surgery in two years but have to complete 4 weeks of physical therapy before the insurance will believe my surgeon knows what he's talking about. How do I go to physical therapy with COVID going on? Sorry, rambling again.

ahhhh Knitty... I wish i could give you a hug... accept a virtual 'heart-felt' hug. These strange times just affect us all so differently. Nothing is strange anymore... it is just a long continuum of trying to understand and live within chaos.

Your mom DOES sound very sharp, strong willed and uses her senses. I do hope it holds her up throughout this mess...

I think the thing that is just so discombobulating is that .... nothing does really make sense any more.

 

[charminglane]

"Nothing is strange anymore... it is just a long continuum of trying to understand and live within chaos."
@nhmemorymaker - you are so right.

 

[MrX]

Carrot and Stick in full force in Laughlin. Went to the casino last night and saw 100% of people wearing masks. Haven't seen that since spring of 2020. Bartender said they've been lax, but gambling commission let them know there would be extreme enforcement this weekend. I saw security going around tapping people on the shoulder. Went to another property where there was some guy that looked straight out of Goodfellas sitting at the bar with no mask. Bartenders, there, didn't seem to bother people who were sitting, but were yelling at people standing with no masks.

Not overly crowded but that may change tonight.

 

[tabitha111]

@Knitty - sounds a lot like here. There is the NYE "party" going on downstairs at this moment, I went and peeked in (in my N95 mask) ...singer belting out songs, lots of people sitting close at 2 long cramped tables...food and drink ...not a single mask.
As I sat at the front desk talking to one of the employees, she got a "note" from a resident (delivered by a caregiver) asking for dinner delivery tonight and on the note written in big letters "I"M SICK!"
egads....
My 89 y.o. mother and 90 y.o. father still have not gotten thier boosters yet! And they have not gotten one for my disabled sister that lives with them either. They are well past the window, I just do not understand the hold up. My dad can not stay out of the stores either, he loves to shop esp for groceries. It is very stressful for me.

 

[Chelly]

In my son's situation where there were 8 together for Christmas and where his brother-in-law tested positive a couple of days later, this is the status so far.

My son does have shortness of breath. He doesn't smoke nor has he ever had a lung condition. He has all the other symptoms, fatigue, cough, runny nose, sore throat. He's waiting for the tests to come by mail from his company, should be today. They are PCR tests, I thought they were rapid tests. My mistake. My daughter-in-law is going to the pharmacy today to get a rapid test done because she has MS.

The 81 year old grandfather is the only other person so far to test positive except for the brother-in-law who came down with it first. Two others have tested negative.

Thank you for sharing this us. My thoughts are with you and your family, wishing you the best. I hope you will continue to keep us informed. Knowledge is power.

 

[SouthAussie]

Happy New Year!

The way I look at this day is that it is another step toward this pandemic being over (lots of pain to go through first, of course).

Sydney held its magnificent NYE fireworks again this year, last year they were cancelled.
Some mitigation efforts were applied. Tickets were required for admission to all viewing areas along the harbour. These are generally free tickets, given out by lottery system.
Distancing and masks were advised. (I am sure there will be loads of infections from the event.)



Australia.com

 

[Knitty]

@Knitty - sounds a lot like here. There is the NYE "party" going on downstairs at this moment, I went and peeked in (in my N95 mask) ...singer belting out songs, lots of people sitting close at 2 long cramped tables...food and drink ...not a single mask.
As I sat at the front desk talking to one of the employees, she got a "note" from a resident (delivered by a caregiver) asking for dinner delivery tonight and on the note written in big letters "I"M SICK!"
egads....
My 89 y.o. mother and 90 y.o. father still have not gotten thier boosters yet! And they have not gotten one for my disabled sister that lives with them either. They are well past the window, I just do not understand the hold up. My dad can not stay out of the stores either, he loves to shop esp for groceries. It is very stressful for me.

Oh Lord, the shopping! Somebody put the Belk (southern department store chain) app on my mom's phone and they send her "irresistible" deals almost daily . . . so she goes to Belk almost every day. She won't wear an N95 mask; she'll only wear the white/blue ones. I sent her N95 and she sent them back!

Stay safe, and know we all think you're awesome!

 

[HongKongPhooey]

Covid booster 88% effective against hospital treatment with Omicron

More promising news for a happier new year.

 

[Knitty]

ahhhh Knitty... I wish i could give you a hug... accept a virtual 'heart-felt' hug. These strange times just affect us all so differently. Nothing is strange anymore... it is just a long continuum of trying to understand and live within chaos.

Your mom DOES sound very sharp, strong willed and uses her senses. I do hope it holds her up throughout this mess...

I think the thing that is just so discombobulating is that .... nothing does really make sense any more.

Thank you! You made me tear up a little!

Re the Bolded: You are so right. It's so hard!

 

[nightowl1975]

Recent facts say otherwise.

Ellume COVID-19 Home Test Recalled for False Positive Test Results

FDA says rapid Covid antigen tests may be less sensitive in detecting omicron

Rapid Covid tests not as accurate with Omicron: US regulator

Do Rapid At-Home Tests Detect the Omicron Variant? Here's What Experts Say

I’m still not seeing anything saying rapid tests are only 50/50 accurate or that they’re 50/50 with false positives. Maybe I missed it in the links you posted (totally possible). It’s curious but we just really aren’t seeing a 50/50 false positive rate or anything close to it. Of course, we are just one healthcare facility, so YMMV. I mentioned that recent data seems to support that false negatives are more common with omnicron, but still nothing that I’ve seen suggests it approaches 50/50.

 

[nhmemorymaker]

I’m still not seeing anything saying rapid tests are only 50/50 accurate or that they’re 50/50 with false positives. Maybe I missed it in the links you posted (totally possible). It’s curious but we just really aren’t seeing a 50/50 false positive rate or anything close to it. Of course, we are just one healthcare facility, so YMMV. I mentioned that recent data seems to support that false negatives are more common with omnicron, but still nothing that I’ve seen suggests it approaches 50/50.

The percentage numbers were broadcast over a couple of days at 35.8% inaccuracy, not 50/50.....