COVID

They certainly have been enforcing the rules around here. This last couple of weeks have seen many fines handed out to folks in places like Whitby and York where people have been traveling from Tier 3 areas into Tier 2 so they can go to pubs, cafes and restaurants.

It even made the news in Canada!!

https://toronto.ctvnews.ca/dozens-of-covid-19-related-charges-laid-in-york-region-over-the-weekend-1.5210639

I know several people who have been “checked on” in person to ensure they were isolating. 

How’s your sister and family doing?

They certainly have been enforcing the rules around here. This last couple of weeks have seen many fines handed out to folks in places like Whitby and York where people have been traveling from Tier 3 areas into Tier 2 so they can go to pubs, cafes and restaurants.

It even made the news in Canada!!

https://toronto.ctvnews.ca/dozens-of-covid-19-related-charges-laid-in-york-region-over-the-weekend-1.5210639

Wow. The people I have heard of breaking the tier 4 rules over the holidays have faced nothing, probably because the police are understaffed with bigger issues going on. People were even congratulating them for doing what's best for their mental health (because attending a spa is essential ). The end is in sight, I wish people could manage sacrificing comfort for a bit longer. I should add, it's generally the wealthy people doing whatever they want in this area.

I know several people who have been “checked on” in person to ensure they were isolating. 

How’s your sister and family doing?

Thanks for asking.  My sister was feeling much improved yesterday, got up at 5am and never felt like she needed to lie down all day.  Her husband is still at the feeling very tired stage all the time.  Oxygen levels have stayed in the high 90's all the time. Can't remember if I said that they get a call every day from a nurse checking on them.  Their daughter, in her early 20s who lives with them, still has no symptoms at all, but is still self isolating as she must surely have Covid but showing no symptoms. 8 days after symptoms for my sister and 5 days for her husband.  She is late 40s and he mid 50s.

ETA
Just talked to her and she says every day over the last 3 days has seen an improvement and she "thinks" she is well on the way to recovery.

Thanks for asking.  My sister was feeling much improved yesterday, got up at 5am and never felt like she needed to lie down all day.  Her husband is still at the feeling very tired stage all the time.  Oxygen levels have stayed in the high 90's all the time. Can't remember if I said that they get a call every day from a nurse checking on them.  Their daughter, in her early 20s who lives with them, still has no symptoms at all, but is still self isolating as she must surely have Covid but showing no symptoms. 8 days after symptoms for my sister and 5 days for her husband.  She is late 40s and he mid 50s.

ETA
Just talked to her and she says every day over the last 3 days has seen an improvement and she "thinks" she is well on the way to recovery.

With a bit of luck she’s had a mild case and is building those antibodies!

A friend in the USA has been crazy unwell but finally had enough energy to post on Facebook last night that she appreciates the messages. She’s been hit HARD.  Not ventilator hard but just hard.

With a bit of luck she’s had a mild case and is building those antibodies!

A friend in the USA has been crazy unwell but finally had enough energy to post on Facebook last night that she appreciates the messages. She’s been hit HARD.  Not ventilator hard but just hard.

Yes, if you are unlucky enough to be among the 20% who don't have mild symptoms it can be very nasty.  I know someone, a local taxi driver, who spent 10 days in hospital, on forced oxygen part of the time, and says that months later he still has little energy and his get-up-and-go has got-up-and-gone.

Age and other comorbidities are a big factor in how you will be affected.

https://www.health.com/condition/infectious-diseases/coronavirus/how-long-does-coronavirus-last#:~:text=How%20long%20does%20it%20take,and%20hospitalization%20might%20be%20required.

Not everyone who gets COVID-19 has symptoms—in fact, the World Health Organization (WHO) says 80% of infections are mild or asymptomatic. Yet those who do may develop fever and chills, a cough, muscle or body aches, fatigue, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, or a loss of taste or smell. Other people with COVID-19 have reported headache, sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea or vomiting, and diarrhea. 

You know, I just don't get why on earth there have to be "rules" that have to be "enforced" regarding Covid transmision. And that people ignore them anyway. One would think that people were not so stupid as to think they are immune.... wait, no, nevermind. I take that back.  It's giving people too much credit on the first bit and since there are almost no actual repercussions (no fines, no jail time, etc.) for breaking "the rules" anyway, of course they'll do as they want. I mean, what happens, they get "a good talking to" and if they say they'll be good they get let off?

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-55474533

And, of course, as expected, the UK variant Covid is showing up here in the USA. Colorado has now reported it. I wouldn't be surprised to see it turn up in SoCalif shortly - LA is tanking badly, and my guess is that they'll find it there next. Then most of the other major population centers soon thereafter.

And for the really disturbing news:  There was a scientist giving an interview on national tv today who said they don't know if the RNA vaccines will prevent the transmission of Covid. Only that they will greatly lessen the severity of the disease in a vaccinated person should they get it. The guy stated that there is really no data about transmission of the virus after inoculation.  So,  the vaccine does not necessarily prevent Covid infection and may or may not impact one's ability to pass the virus to another. And they still don't have a clue how long any immunity will last. It looks like the best outcome is that, like a flu shot, if you do get infected you are less likely to have the catastrophic version of Covid. But you could still give it to granny while you were ill. Assuming you even knew you were a carrier. Oh. My.

Umm, they've kind of managed to neglect to mention all that in all the PR campaign.     What I had been hearing was the double-shot sequence was 95% effective. I took that to mean that 95 out of 100 people who had both shots would not get Covid at all. That's not what the guy said today. Hmmm, now which is the accurate message? Is it 95% completely preventative, or 95% you'll get some kind of immunity boost, but no telling how much of one? If it's the former, there shouldn't be any issue about transmitting the disease to others. I'd have thought.

It does still seem better than doing nothing but praying as a means to avoid Covid, yet they do seem to be mis-selling these two particular vaccines to the public, as far as any possible "issues" associated with them. At least, they have been here. The official party line is still that the reactions to the shots are likely to be  insignificant - but now they're starting to add in around the edges of media interviews that it's best to plan to possibly take a couple of days off work after your inoculation, just in case you feel unable to work. (Like in case your face swells up, you get intractable nausea, you get the migraine from hell, you have too high a fever,  your joints ache too badly, you have massive brain-fog, or half your face stops working - but it's all temporary.  )

There are interviews with people who've had the vaccine starting to pop up. Of course, the more lurid stories will always get the most coverage, but there has to be some fact in them. Many people seem to be reporting no side effects at all (other than a sore arm). Others have reported the migraine of their lives for up to 36 hours straight, or brain fogs that last several days (one woman apparently could not manage to open and cook a packet of Ramen because she was so out-of-it), or severe chills and body aches. And that's just after the first shot.

All of the former side-effects are, of course, definitely preferable to a bad case of Covid, but I'm not as confident about the one where you have to jab an epi-pen into your thigh and then spend time in the ER. ERs are rapidly filling, and they are damned expensive. (As are epi-pens, come to think of it. Not counting the "owwww!" factor there.) I wonder, once there are enough anecdotes floating around about unpleasant side-effects, are people going to wuss out of taking the shot? Or will they go back for the second injection if they feel really lousy after the first one, when the adverse reactions are supposed to be more common after the second injection?

A wonking good case of Bell's Palsy or one's face swelling shut is going to seriously freak people out if they're not told about that possibility in advance. I do think it's a miscalculation by government health officials to think that people are not going to hop immediately onto social media and report to the ether if they have a bad time of it after the injections. Once that train leaves the station, there's no getting it back under control.  Consistently doing a PR campaign that says the side effects are "mild" rather than being really candid is almost assuredly going to backfire. People tend to think "mild" means they can just take an aspirin and get on with life. If that is proved untrue, even if it's in a minority of cases, there will be significant mistrust issues arising all the hell over the place.  (Oh, well.... I have the sense of a train-wreck in the making, but I'm probably just over-tired.)

I wonder, will the killed virus and other more traditional vaccines not have those side effects? (One can hope that's the case, especially since the non-RNA vaccines don't require the extensive refrigeration and can be gotten to more rural areas where there is not a capability to keep vaccines in the required extremely low temperature conditions.) While it's a moot point for us at present, I think I'm going to wait for one of the other versions of the vaccines rather than accept the RNA ones, when they say I can get a vaccine. I've already seen the Daughter's face swell up once and I don't want to see that again, and I've already ended up on steroids for a year to calm down an over-active immune system that left me with 02 sats in the high 80s (without exertion).

I do wish this nightmare would end soon.

References:
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/12/15/moderna-covid-vaccine-fatigue-headaches-and-muscle-pain-are-the-most-common-side-effects.html
https://www.jhsph.edu/covid-19/articles/side-effects-and-covid-19-vaccines-what-to-expect.html
https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2020/12/what-expect-when-you-get-covid-19-vaccine/617428/
https://www.govtech.com/em/safety/Coronavirus-Vaccine-Side-Effects-Should-the-Public-be-Concerned.html

And, of course, as expected, the UK variant Covid is showing up here in the USA. Colorado has now reported it. I wouldn't be surprised to see it turn up in SoCalif shortly - LA is tanking badly, and my guess is that they'll find it there next. Then most of the other major population centers soon thereafter.

And for the really disturbing news:  There was a scientist giving an interview on national tv today who said they don't know if the RNA vaccines will prevent the transmission of Covid. Only that they will greatly lessen the severity of the disease in a vaccinated person should they get it. The guy stated that there is really no data about transmission of the virus after inoculation.  So,  the vaccine does not necessarily prevent Covid infection and may or may not impact one's ability to pass the virus to another. And they still don't have a clue how long any immunity will last. It looks like the best outcome is that, like a flu shot, if you do get infected you are less likely to have the catastrophic version of Covid. But you could still give it to granny while you were ill. Assuming you even knew you were a carrier. Oh. My.

Umm, they've kind of managed to neglect to mention all that in all the PR campaign.     What I had been hearing was the double-shot sequence was 95% effective. I took that to mean that 95 out of 100 people who had both shots would not get Covid at all. That's not what the guy said today. Hmmm, now which is the accurate message? Is it 95% completely preventative, or 95% you'll get some kind of immunity boost, but no telling how much of one? If it's the former, there shouldn't be any issue about transmitting the disease to others. I'd have thought.

It does still seem better than doing nothing but praying as a means to avoid Covid, yet they do seem to be mis-selling these two particular vaccines to the public, as far as any possible "issues" associated with them. At least, they have been here. The official party line is still that the reactions to the shots are likely to be  insignificant - but now they're starting to add in around the edges of media interviews that it's best to plan to possibly take a couple of days off work after your inoculation, just in case you feel unable to work. (Like in case your face swells up, you get intractable nausea, you get the migraine from hell, you have too high a fever,  your joints ache too badly, you have massive brain-fog, or half your face stops working - but it's all temporary.  )

There are interviews with people who've had the vaccine starting to pop up. Of course, the more lurid stories will always get the most coverage, but there has to be some fact in them. Many people seem to be reporting no side effects at all (other than a sore arm). Others have reported the migraine of their lives for up to 36 hours straight, or brain fogs that last several days (one woman apparently could not manage to open and cook a packet of Ramen because she was so out-of-it), or severe chills and body aches. And that's just after the first shot.

All of the former side-effects are, of course, definitely preferable to a bad case of Covid, but I'm not as confident about the one where you have to jab an epi-pen into your thigh and then spend time in the ER. ERs are rapidly filling, and they are damned expensive. (As are epi-pens, come to think of it. Not counting the "owwww!" factor there.) I wonder, once there are enough anecdotes floating around about unpleasant side-effects, are people going to wuss out of taking the shot? Or will they go back for the second injection if they feel really lousy after the first one, when the adverse reactions are supposed to be more common after the second injection?

A wonking good case of Bell's Palsy or one's face swelling shut is going to seriously freak people out if they're not told about that possibility in advance. I do think it's a miscalculation by government health officials to think that people are not going to hop immediately onto social media and report to the ether if they have a bad time of it after the injections. Once that train leaves the station, there's no getting it back under control.  Consistently doing a PR campaign that says the side effects are "mild" rather than being really candid is almost assuredly going to backfire. People tend to think "mild" means they can just take an aspirin and get on with life. If that is proved untrue, even if it's in a minority of cases, there will be significant mistrust issues arising all the hell over the place.  (Oh, well.... I have the sense of a train-wreck in the making, but I'm probably just over-tired.)

I wonder, will the killed virus and other more traditional vaccines not have those side effects? (One can hope that's the case, especially since the non-RNA vaccines don't require the extensive refrigeration and can be gotten to more rural areas where there is not a capability to keep vaccines in the required extremely low temperature conditions.) While it's a moot point for us at present, I think I'm going to wait for one of the other versions of the vaccines rather than accept the RNA ones, when they say I can get a vaccine. I've already seen the Daughter's face swell up once and I don't want to see that again, and I've already ended up on steroids for a year to calm down an over-active immune system that left me with 02 sats in the high 80s (without exertion).

I do wish this nightmare would end soon.

References:
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/12/15/moderna-covid-vaccine-fatigue-headaches-and-muscle-pain-are-the-most-common-side-effects.html
https://www.jhsph.edu/covid-19/articles/side-effects-and-covid-19-vaccines-what-to-expect.html
https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2020/12/what-expect-when-you-get-covid-19-vaccine/617428/
https://www.govtech.com/em/safety/Coronavirus-Vaccine-Side-Effects-Should-the-Public-be-Concerned.html

Calm down Nan,  deep slow breaths, it looks like you are more susceptible to a stroke or heart attack than Covid.

There are interviews with people who've had the vaccine starting to pop up. Of course, the more lurid stories will always get the most coverage, but there has to be some fact in them.

No there doesn't have to be fact in something just because it is said, or reported.  It can be , and most likely is, exaggerated BS that only exists as clickbait.   

Calm down Nan,  deep slow breaths, it looks like you are more susceptible to a stroke or heart attack than Covid.

This!  Nan, just don’t get the vaccine if you are believing this crock of sh*t.

One of my best friends works in clinical trails and is currently overseeing her company’s trial.  This is scaremongering at its finest.  Please don’t give it any momentum. 

Remember small pox? Yeah, eradicated due to vaccines.  And currently 30 cases of polio in the world, all in war zones where the WHO can’t get to.

No there doesn't have to be fact in something just because it is said, or reported.  It can be , and most likely is, exaggerated BS that only exists as clickbait.

Exactly. 

As the saying goes, "If you throw enough sh!t, some will stick"

I've had a bunch of friends get the mRNA vaccine so far, the worst side effects so far have been a sore arm and slight flu feelings but most had no side effects. So it's exactly like every vaccine in that the vast majority are fine but a handful may have a severe reaction (due to the polyethylene glycol as an allergen or your immune system being overreactive).

The clinical trials did not look at whether the vaccine stopped transmission, because that was not the goal. Further studies are going on now for that, but it was necessary they get that messaging out because of the anti mask crew... You can't ditch the masks yet, even when you've been vaccinated.

Once I know the ingredients in the Oxford vaccine, I hope it will be OK for me.

The official party line is still that the reactions to the shots are likely to be  insignificant - but now they're starting to add in around the edges of media interviews that it's best to plan to possibly take a couple of days off work after your inoculation, just in case you feel unable to work. (Like in case your face swells up, you get intractable nausea, you get the migraine from hell, you have too high a fever,  your joints ache too badly, you have massive brain-fog, or half your face stops working - but it's all temporary.  )

There are interviews with people who've had the vaccine starting to pop up. Of course, the more lurid stories will always get the most coverage, but there has to be some fact in them. Many people seem to be reporting no side effects at all (other than a sore arm). Others have reported the migraine of their lives for up to 36 hours straight, or brain fogs that last several days (one woman apparently could not manage to open and cook a packet of Ramen because she was so out-of-it), or severe chills and body aches. And that's just after the first shot.

And?

Last time I got vaccinated, I spent the next 2 days in bed with several of the symptoms you mention. I experienced headache, chills, fever, nausea and aches ... then it passed and I was fine.

It was my fault though,  because I insisted on being given 6 vaccines at once, 3 in each arm (Diphtheria, Typhoid, Meningitis, Measles, Mumps and Rubella), just to get them over with in one go - the nurse suggested doing them on different days, but I told her to give me all of them together so I didn't have to come back again.

It was a miserable couple of days, but I would get all those vaccines again in a heartbeat if I needed them... except I would take the nurse's advice and space them out instead of getting them all at once, so that the side effects didn't happen simultaneously

A wonking good case of Bell's Palsy or one's face swelling shut is going to seriously freak people out if they're not told about that possibility in advance.

Only 4 people out of 38,000 developed Bell's Palsy in the trials and there was no evidence it was even caused by the vaccine.

That's a rate of 0.01%.

Based on current cases in my local area, my chance of getting Covid right now is 0.5%... which means I'm 50 times more likely to catch Covid than I am to develop Bell's Palsy from the vaccine.

I'll take the vaccine, thanks.

I've had a bunch of friends get the mRNA vaccine so far, the worst side effects so far have been a sore arm and slight flu feelings but most had no side effects. So it's exactly like every vaccine in that the vast majority are fine but a handful may have a severe reaction (due to the polyethylene glycol as an allergen or your immune system being overreactive).

The clinical trials did not look at whether the vaccine stopped transmission, because that was not the goal. Further studies are going on now for that, but it was necessary they get that messaging out because of the anti mask crew... You can't ditch the masks yet, even when you've been vaccinated.

Once I know the ingredients in the Oxford vaccine, I hope it will be OK for me.

Same.  Only one had a raised temp in the night.  Was fine when she woke up.  Everyone has said it’s not as bad as the flu vaccine...  which is about 70% effective.  Yet I happily get it every year.

Antivaxers have a choice. 

Just got off the phone with my sister who is now over Covid after catching it 11 days ago.  Her husband got it a few days later and he is also hugely better. Both are planning to go back to work on Monday, having spent their 2 weeks Christmas holiday being very sick. She has Lupus, an autoimmune disease, so I was very worried about her catching it as she has continued to go into work all this time.

I told her that at least now they'd each have enough immunity to get them to the point of being vaccinated (they are in their 40's and 50's).  She said that she wouldn't wish this on anyone as a way to gain immunity.