Chatfilter: What are your COVID precaution plans?
August 24, 2023 10:32 AM Subscribe
I'm curious what people (you!) are thinking about or planning to do this fall/winter (northern hemisphere folks)?
For S hemisphere folks, what precautions are you taking now?
This is a chatfilter question - I thank the mods for the option - kudos on a great idea!
Do you plan to get vaccinated (When? With what? Why?), wear masks (around who(om)? When will you start and why?), others?
I don't need (or want!) advice or scientific information, and I don't want debate on what people should do or vaccines in general.
I want to know what your plans are at this moment, given what we do/don't know today.
Thanks!
This is a chatfilter question - I thank the mods for the option - kudos on a great idea!
Do you plan to get vaccinated (When? With what? Why?), wear masks (around who(om)? When will you start and why?), others?
I don't need (or want!) advice or scientific information, and I don't want debate on what people should do or vaccines in general.
I want to know what your plans are at this moment, given what we do/don't know today.
Thanks!
I plan to get vaccinated, as I do for the flu and now RSV. I plan to follow the news of outbreaks and activity for where I live, work and possibly travel to. I plan to use common sense and use precautions where warranted. Masks remain a sensible option during an outbreak or heavy community transmission. Avoiding crowded indoor spaces also remains sensible. Even though it's not the flu, I plan to treat my risk of catching it, as a transmissible respiratory illness, in a similar way.
posted by OHenryPacey at 10:41 AM on August 24, 2023 [6 favorites]
posted by OHenryPacey at 10:41 AM on August 24, 2023 [6 favorites]
I'll be getting the new booster the week it comes out, probably get the flu vax the same day, too. I hear it's coming soon. I will not be doing anything else.
If I get on a plane for some reason, I'll wear a mask. But I'm not masking otherwise unless some new and desperately bad information comes out.
I got covid for the first time in March of this year. (I was being very conservative before that, finally decided I had to leave the house or I'd never have sex again, etc, and then immediately got covid. Neat.) Anyway, after I finally got sick I relaxed a lot of my own cautions.
posted by phunniemee at 10:41 AM on August 24, 2023 [6 favorites]
If I get on a plane for some reason, I'll wear a mask. But I'm not masking otherwise unless some new and desperately bad information comes out.
I got covid for the first time in March of this year. (I was being very conservative before that, finally decided I had to leave the house or I'd never have sex again, etc, and then immediately got covid. Neat.) Anyway, after I finally got sick I relaxed a lot of my own cautions.
posted by phunniemee at 10:41 AM on August 24, 2023 [6 favorites]
I have continued to wear masks in indoor spaces with lots of people (malls, grocery stores, mass transit) and indoor spaces with strangers in close quarters (elevators, planes). I got a bit lackadaisical since I recovered from my first bout with Covid in early spring, so plan to be more careful with my mask wearing as covid #s increase (per wastewater data).
Just this month I stopped hugging friends, especially since much of my circle of friends work on college campuses and are about to have daily exposure to scads of undergraduates.
I will use antigen tests (we stockpiled four) whenever I feel symptoms.
Assuming there is a booster available, I will get one in early November, to have maximum protection during holiday travel since I will be seeing vulnerable family members and niblings who are in middle and high school. Flu shot as well.
posted by spamandkimchi at 10:45 AM on August 24, 2023 [6 favorites]
Just this month I stopped hugging friends, especially since much of my circle of friends work on college campuses and are about to have daily exposure to scads of undergraduates.
I will use antigen tests (we stockpiled four) whenever I feel symptoms.
Assuming there is a booster available, I will get one in early November, to have maximum protection during holiday travel since I will be seeing vulnerable family members and niblings who are in middle and high school. Flu shot as well.
posted by spamandkimchi at 10:45 AM on August 24, 2023 [6 favorites]
I'm sending my kid to school in a mask now. He doesn't mind, a few other kids mask, and when I sent him without last week, he got sick by the end of the week.
My spouse wears a mask to teach. I work from home, and wear masks in stores unless it's super quick, like buying donuts this morning. We don't wear masks with small indoor gatherings of friends, but we promote open and clear communication on if anyone has any signs of illness or recent exposure before meeting up. We have a good air filter we use whenever people are over.
I'll mask on busses, planes, and other crowded spaces, maybe forever. It's just not that inconveniencing to me, and being sick sucks (masks prevent flu transmission even better than covid transmission).
We always make sure to wash our hands when we get home, and sometimes use hand sanitizer when out.
Our family has as many vax shots as we can, and will be getting the new one this fall as soon as we can, because that is the best way to prevent serious illness and ongoing effects.
I'll be keeping an eye on the CDC wastewater surveillance, which is a little hard to understand, but is the best we have now, since reported case numbers are now meaningless.
None of us have had Covid yet, so I feel like we're doing pretty good with our precautions (and privileges). Research is still a little unclear, but it's looking like having Covid repeatedly is going to seriously increase your risks of long-term complications with each infection, so I'm not going to change much after I catch it, not for the next year or so anyway.
posted by SaltySalticid at 10:45 AM on August 24, 2023 [29 favorites]
My spouse wears a mask to teach. I work from home, and wear masks in stores unless it's super quick, like buying donuts this morning. We don't wear masks with small indoor gatherings of friends, but we promote open and clear communication on if anyone has any signs of illness or recent exposure before meeting up. We have a good air filter we use whenever people are over.
I'll mask on busses, planes, and other crowded spaces, maybe forever. It's just not that inconveniencing to me, and being sick sucks (masks prevent flu transmission even better than covid transmission).
We always make sure to wash our hands when we get home, and sometimes use hand sanitizer when out.
Our family has as many vax shots as we can, and will be getting the new one this fall as soon as we can, because that is the best way to prevent serious illness and ongoing effects.
I'll be keeping an eye on the CDC wastewater surveillance, which is a little hard to understand, but is the best we have now, since reported case numbers are now meaningless.
None of us have had Covid yet, so I feel like we're doing pretty good with our precautions (and privileges). Research is still a little unclear, but it's looking like having Covid repeatedly is going to seriously increase your risks of long-term complications with each infection, so I'm not going to change much after I catch it, not for the next year or so anyway.
posted by SaltySalticid at 10:45 AM on August 24, 2023 [29 favorites]
Oh, and something I haven't worked out yet for myself. I have been dining in restaurants much more frequently since I got covid in March, I may choose more carefully now (outdoor patios, good ventilation).
posted by spamandkimchi at 10:47 AM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by spamandkimchi at 10:47 AM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
When wastewater shows that COVID is heading towards another surge in my area, I start carrying a mask around again and popping it on in situations that feel iffy. I don't worry so much about the big box stores these days as I usually shop when it's not very crowded and the ventilation is pretty good (commercial HVAC.)
I'm going to get the new COVID booster when it's available.
posted by rhymedirective at 10:52 AM on August 24, 2023 [4 favorites]
I'm going to get the new COVID booster when it's available.
posted by rhymedirective at 10:52 AM on August 24, 2023 [4 favorites]
Well, I just got my first bout of Covid beginning of this month, so that's one additional way to boost immunity. Not my first choice. I'm still planning to get a booster when the new one comes out (probably October.) I mask in indoor public spaces and transit, except of course restaurants. I'll remind friends and family that we're cancelling plans if anyone has any cold symptoms.
I'm more selective about being in crowded areas than I was--I wouldn't just sit down in an indoors coffee shop and read with a nice hot cup of coffee the way I used to, for example--but this is risk metering, not true avoidance. So I will probably go to a game convention before the end of the year.
posted by mark k at 10:52 AM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
I'm more selective about being in crowded areas than I was--I wouldn't just sit down in an indoors coffee shop and read with a nice hot cup of coffee the way I used to, for example--but this is risk metering, not true avoidance. So I will probably go to a game convention before the end of the year.
posted by mark k at 10:52 AM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
In addition to getting all three vaccines this fall, I plan to continue following Your Local Epidemiologist on Substack.
posted by ALeaflikeStructure at 10:55 AM on August 24, 2023 [12 favorites]
posted by ALeaflikeStructure at 10:55 AM on August 24, 2023 [12 favorites]
I recently got Covid (2nd time around) after a run-of-the-mill trip home from SF to New York to see family. We'd kind of been acting as if it was all over, but testing positive and a week of fairly mild symptoms slapped me back into reality: it's still out there and circulating. I have two co-workers out right now as well. I work in academia so it's on my mind (and this is the first week of classes). I am back to wearing a mask on my bus/train commute and in places I don't feel too safe (like my trip this past weekend to Home Depot - oh, the humanity). If we go out for a beer we generally choose a place with a patio or sidewalk tables so we can sit outside. In our grocery store I generally put on a mask unless it's empty. I will get the next booster as it's available - nothing different there.
posted by niicholas at 11:13 AM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by niicholas at 11:13 AM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
Booster, indoor masking, masking on the bus, outdoor hangs over the fall and winter. I have one more shared indoor meal for work coming up and after that no more restaurant meals until numbers are back where they were this summer. Over this summer, I went to the movies masked and had a couple of restaurant meals.
I had covid in April and still have a couple of mild lingering symptoms, so I don't want to press my luck.
It feels like we're finally getting better data on long covid risk, so it may be that next spring I'll feel ready to go back to normal - if vaccination definitely sharply drops long covid risk AND reduces the severity of lingering symptoms, which I think is likely based on the studies I've seen, and if vaccination drops the risk of dementia and long-term bad consequences of covid, I will probably stop masking except during real spikes and in big crowds.
posted by Frowner at 11:13 AM on August 24, 2023 [5 favorites]
I had covid in April and still have a couple of mild lingering symptoms, so I don't want to press my luck.
It feels like we're finally getting better data on long covid risk, so it may be that next spring I'll feel ready to go back to normal - if vaccination definitely sharply drops long covid risk AND reduces the severity of lingering symptoms, which I think is likely based on the studies I've seen, and if vaccination drops the risk of dementia and long-term bad consequences of covid, I will probably stop masking except during real spikes and in big crowds.
posted by Frowner at 11:13 AM on August 24, 2023 [5 favorites]
We've kept very strict since we have a baby in the family, and until she's vaccinated, we are masking like it's 2020. She'll be fully vaccinated by early October, and the family is going to have another check in about how we feel about precautions.
I'll get the new booster that is slated to come out in fall as soon as practical. I'll probably mask on flights forever, and in stores for a long while still. We will likely entertain going out to dinner inside now and then if it doesn't seem to be high covid time.
posted by advicepig at 11:14 AM on August 24, 2023 [4 favorites]
I'll get the new booster that is slated to come out in fall as soon as practical. I'll probably mask on flights forever, and in stores for a long while still. We will likely entertain going out to dinner inside now and then if it doesn't seem to be high covid time.
posted by advicepig at 11:14 AM on August 24, 2023 [4 favorites]
I'm team mask. Plane? Mask. Shopping? Mask. Dense outdoor event ? Mask. I'm planning on going to a pretty big concert, so ya'll know it's MASK TIME. May bring a personal electric fan or air purifier for that one as well. Honestly it's almost fire season, so the mask is good for that as well.
Not eating inside yet, but al fresco dining it lovely in SoCal. When I host Thanksgiving, I have windows open with air purifiers and ask people to test beforehand. I'm a great chef and my company is worth the price of admission, lol.
The real issue is when I go visit family in colder areas because there's no eating outside when there's 2 inches of snow. So I'll tend to eat before events, and if I choose to eat at an event, I'll mask before and after food. It's not perfect. It is what it is.
All that I don't mind. The booster, (I'm getting) I do because it hits me so hard. I'll deal and treat myself to pho delivery.
posted by Pretty Good Talker at 11:16 AM on August 24, 2023 [11 favorites]
Not eating inside yet, but al fresco dining it lovely in SoCal. When I host Thanksgiving, I have windows open with air purifiers and ask people to test beforehand. I'm a great chef and my company is worth the price of admission, lol.
The real issue is when I go visit family in colder areas because there's no eating outside when there's 2 inches of snow. So I'll tend to eat before events, and if I choose to eat at an event, I'll mask before and after food. It's not perfect. It is what it is.
All that I don't mind. The booster, (I'm getting) I do because it hits me so hard. I'll deal and treat myself to pho delivery.
posted by Pretty Good Talker at 11:16 AM on August 24, 2023 [11 favorites]
- I am bedridden with severe ME, which includes immune dysfunction; I've had it since 2004 and been severe since 2007, which is to say I *really cannot* afford to get COVID.
- Spouse is wearing an N95 while teaching and ventilates the room with fans and open windows
- He has asked his students to wear masks...and none of them are; as late as this this spring some were still willing
- He will hold office hours virtually
- When he has to present at a meeting he'll come in masked just for his presentation and leave again
- He'll pass on mass gatherings in the form of faculty retreats, the matriculation ceremony, etc.
- He will mask at home around me
- He'll test every 72 hours
- When we must take me to doctor appointments, we both will wear PAPRs, as we have since 2020
- I will wear an adhesive mask over my nose at an upcoming dental appointment I must keep and ask them to minimize my time in the building; they wear N95s
- We will both take the booster, even though it has caused long-term problems for me
- I'll keep an eye on wastewater levels
- I'll watch my friends and family posting pictures on the internet, going about their lives, not taking preventive precautions, and continue to feel like I'm being asked for my one little ewe lamb and it's never going to stop
posted by jocelmeow at 11:19 AM on August 24, 2023 [29 favorites]
- Spouse is wearing an N95 while teaching and ventilates the room with fans and open windows
- He has asked his students to wear masks...and none of them are; as late as this this spring some were still willing
- He will hold office hours virtually
- When he has to present at a meeting he'll come in masked just for his presentation and leave again
- He'll pass on mass gatherings in the form of faculty retreats, the matriculation ceremony, etc.
- He will mask at home around me
- He'll test every 72 hours
- When we must take me to doctor appointments, we both will wear PAPRs, as we have since 2020
- I will wear an adhesive mask over my nose at an upcoming dental appointment I must keep and ask them to minimize my time in the building; they wear N95s
- We will both take the booster, even though it has caused long-term problems for me
- I'll keep an eye on wastewater levels
- I'll watch my friends and family posting pictures on the internet, going about their lives, not taking preventive precautions, and continue to feel like I'm being asked for my one little ewe lamb and it's never going to stop
posted by jocelmeow at 11:19 AM on August 24, 2023 [29 favorites]
I'll be getting the new COVID booster whenever it comes out, probably Pfizer this time (I alternate, pretty sure there's no evidence that that helps anything), plus quadrivalent flu. I don't qualify for the RSV vaccine.
I'm going to start masking again, though I haven't decided if that's today or Monday (and I only stopped constant indoor masking in June). My heuristic for how concerned I am is "how many new remdesivirs did we make today?" Yesterday we made two, which is higher than any other day in many months. (Hospital is located in Rhode Island.)
I ordered a fresh batch of antigen tests and probably tomorrow I'll go through my stash and see if any expiration dates were extended.
At the moment I still plan on going to the three concerts I have tickets for (one in October, two in December). Planning on wearing an N95 for the October show, P100 for the first December show, and N95 for the second December show. (The P100 because the two December shows are within days of each other, and I'd really like to go to the second one.)
posted by smangosbubbles at 11:19 AM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
I'm going to start masking again, though I haven't decided if that's today or Monday (and I only stopped constant indoor masking in June). My heuristic for how concerned I am is "how many new remdesivirs did we make today?" Yesterday we made two, which is higher than any other day in many months. (Hospital is located in Rhode Island.)
I ordered a fresh batch of antigen tests and probably tomorrow I'll go through my stash and see if any expiration dates were extended.
At the moment I still plan on going to the three concerts I have tickets for (one in October, two in December). Planning on wearing an N95 for the October show, P100 for the first December show, and N95 for the second December show. (The P100 because the two December shows are within days of each other, and I'd really like to go to the second one.)
posted by smangosbubbles at 11:19 AM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
I'm so tired of masking. (Which is super fun in 100+ degree heat to boot.) I have started to slack off the last few months, especially when I'm eating indoors around humans because nobody will eat outside any more and I'm not even sure what the point of masking before and after the food consumption is. I need to stringently go back to masks on every damn time I'm indoors again, really, and make myself stick with it. I have continued to order free covid tests from my HMO (which is still doing them till November), will get vaccinated literally as soon as they let me do it.
I'm so sick of this nightmare never ending.
posted by jenfullmoon at 11:22 AM on August 24, 2023 [11 favorites]
I'm so sick of this nightmare never ending.
posted by jenfullmoon at 11:22 AM on August 24, 2023 [11 favorites]
I'll be getting the new booster, definitely, and otherwise just keeping an eye on things. If it seems like resuming masking is the thing to do, I will probably do that. Right now where I am it doesn't seem to be, yet. (I do still mask at airports/on planes because it's just so many people and so enclosed and for so long.) I'm lucky to WFH with no disease vectors--sorry, kids--around, so overall my exposure is less.
posted by We put our faith in Blast Hardcheese at 11:26 AM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by We put our faith in Blast Hardcheese at 11:26 AM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
Same as last fall/winter and most of the time since. I'll get vaccinated as soon as new vaccines are available to me, with whichever shot my local pharmacy is offering, absent some new information between now and then that some brand is much more effective than another. I will continue masking in public because I've never stopped masking in public. I will continue to work mostly-remotely, but will work 100% remotely from Thanksgiving through January because I have zero interest in participating in the germ pool that college students bring back after Thanksgiving and again at the start of the spring semester.
I'll do my best to schedule optional stuff around that window too, skipping a haircut (but still sending my beloved hairdresser an end-of-year tip), and trying to get mine and my pets' medical checkups handled early in the fall so I'm not in doctor's offices over the winter if I can help it.
Friend visits will continue to be outdoors, and that will mean fewer of them during the winter, but not none, and that's fine with me. Minimal in-person shopping but probably not none, sometimes we just need something same-day and we wear a mask to go get it and so be it. We're not going to restaurants or movies/concerts now and will continue to not do those things.
The only real question mark is whether I will be able to do again what I did last year and, a month or so after parents, siblings, and myself are all vaccinated and relatively protected, take a train trip to visit my parents. Currently I'm planning to, but we'll all check in once we have our shots scheduled and make sure everyone's comfortable with a bit of increased risk beyond what any of us do day-to-day, given various medical issues of the people involved.
posted by Stacey at 11:26 AM on August 24, 2023 [3 favorites]
I'll do my best to schedule optional stuff around that window too, skipping a haircut (but still sending my beloved hairdresser an end-of-year tip), and trying to get mine and my pets' medical checkups handled early in the fall so I'm not in doctor's offices over the winter if I can help it.
Friend visits will continue to be outdoors, and that will mean fewer of them during the winter, but not none, and that's fine with me. Minimal in-person shopping but probably not none, sometimes we just need something same-day and we wear a mask to go get it and so be it. We're not going to restaurants or movies/concerts now and will continue to not do those things.
The only real question mark is whether I will be able to do again what I did last year and, a month or so after parents, siblings, and myself are all vaccinated and relatively protected, take a train trip to visit my parents. Currently I'm planning to, but we'll all check in once we have our shots scheduled and make sure everyone's comfortable with a bit of increased risk beyond what any of us do day-to-day, given various medical issues of the people involved.
posted by Stacey at 11:26 AM on August 24, 2023 [3 favorites]
I'm planning to get the new booster (unless I learn some clear reason why I shouldn't) but I'm waiting until mid/late October. Last year I got boosted as soon as I could (first week of September) and then got COVID almost exactly three months later. I wasn't dangerously ill (yay!) but I tested positive for almost two weeks and had to miss a bunch of Christmas stuff and it bummed me out big time.
Basically I'd prefer to be at max immunity during those "lots of fun indoor event" months rather than during nice September/October weather or ski season.
I'm probably going to go back to masking on planes and transit, maybe for plays/movies/concerts as well, because I got a nasty cold (or possibly mild flu) last week after several hours of plane and train travel and some Broadway shows and it sucked.
I used my last N95 on an errand during the tail end of that cold so I've restocked. I have plenty of tests, pseudoephedrine, and Mucinex. I know where my water filter is so I can fill up my nasal irrigator without worrying about brain-eating amoebae.
posted by mskyle at 11:27 AM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
Basically I'd prefer to be at max immunity during those "lots of fun indoor event" months rather than during nice September/October weather or ski season.
I'm probably going to go back to masking on planes and transit, maybe for plays/movies/concerts as well, because I got a nasty cold (or possibly mild flu) last week after several hours of plane and train travel and some Broadway shows and it sucked.
I used my last N95 on an errand during the tail end of that cold so I've restocked. I have plenty of tests, pseudoephedrine, and Mucinex. I know where my water filter is so I can fill up my nasal irrigator without worrying about brain-eating amoebae.
posted by mskyle at 11:27 AM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
Southern hemi, still mask inside, avoiding large groups (although I've always done that!). Work alone and we have no kids and are not social so less risk. Am dbl vax and boosted and will keep doing, and had flu jab , spoke to a nurse at local hospital and she was like, this is not remotely over.
Government now doing almost nothing (appeasement of rightwing driving this imo - as we have election in 2 months). A few public spirited PH and stats people are trying to keep msging live esp David Hood (no link as on phone) Covid deaths are currently ~3 times the auto death rate - and it's just accepted!
But work requires meeting people, so mask indoors. Some males stare agressively at maskers, so I stare hard back.
Many people are very casual, even when they've had family members die of Covid.
In NZ masking is now a political statement, and this region is very right wing and so masking is prob <1%. It has been said that NZwhite culture is alcohol, selfishness and rugby - and the fascists have focussed on weaponising the selfish side.
posted by unearthed at 11:36 AM on August 24, 2023 [7 favorites]
Government now doing almost nothing (appeasement of rightwing driving this imo - as we have election in 2 months). A few public spirited PH and stats people are trying to keep msging live esp David Hood (no link as on phone) Covid deaths are currently ~3 times the auto death rate - and it's just accepted!
But work requires meeting people, so mask indoors. Some males stare agressively at maskers, so I stare hard back.
Many people are very casual, even when they've had family members die of Covid.
In NZ masking is now a political statement, and this region is very right wing and so masking is prob <1%. It has been said that NZwhite culture is alcohol, selfishness and rugby - and the fascists have focussed on weaponising the selfish side.
posted by unearthed at 11:36 AM on August 24, 2023 [7 favorites]
Several articles have recommended waiting for the new vax, and I am. 3 friends had Covid after a recent event, all were vaxxed, all are fine. The one with a chronic illness had an unpleasant bad cold/ mild flu, is recovered. I have not had Covid. I go shopping, I go to restaurants sometimes, I go to masked and non-masked events. I was really cautious for quite a while, but right now I'm treating it as I would a serious flu. Masking on a plane, in an airport, if I go visit family, definitely, and probably as a permanent thing. In addition to not getting Covid, not getting colds for 3 years was great.
I isolated seriously for 2 years and eased back slowly. Isolation was hard on my mental health. I will watch the news, added Your Local Epidemiologist email, thanks, ALeaflikeStructure. I'm trying to balance risk & reward.
i'd argue that this isn't chatfilter, though thank you for donating, This is a legit and useful Ask.
posted by theora55 at 11:41 AM on August 24, 2023 [3 favorites]
I isolated seriously for 2 years and eased back slowly. Isolation was hard on my mental health. I will watch the news, added Your Local Epidemiologist email, thanks, ALeaflikeStructure. I'm trying to balance risk & reward.
i'd argue that this isn't chatfilter, though thank you for donating, This is a legit and useful Ask.
posted by theora55 at 11:41 AM on August 24, 2023 [3 favorites]
Is there anyone here who will admit to not planning to get vaccinated?
Vaccines are only available on the NHS for over-65s this year.
I have no idea how to get a vaccine privately but it probably involves a long trip. But I spend a lot more of my free time outdoors since I left the city.
posted by doiheartwentyone at 11:48 AM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
Vaccines are only available on the NHS for over-65s this year.
I have no idea how to get a vaccine privately but it probably involves a long trip. But I spend a lot more of my free time outdoors since I left the city.
posted by doiheartwentyone at 11:48 AM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
These days my strategy is: get the booster and flu vaccine when they come out, probably in mid October to cover the fall/winter as best as I can. Otherwise, if I am feeling ill in any way, try not to go out, and if I really *have* to go somewhere, mask up. No mask otherwise since nobody else is wearing a mask anymore I don't really see the point especially since I know that the N95s I have do not have a good seal on me. But my caveat here is I am one of the people who has never tested positive for the virus. I did get sick last winter, but tests were negative, both pcr and rapid. So I've started to believe I have developed a really effective immunity to the virus. Like most people I am incapable of conceptualizing my own vulnerability until the moment where it strikes. The impossibility of death in the mind of the living.
posted by dis_integration at 11:51 AM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by dis_integration at 11:51 AM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
Our family gets all the shots when they come out and tests if someone gets a fever or has a very clear exposure to someone who tested positive. And that’s it. I think that’s pretty standard in our town. If rates go way back up we would likely start masking again for a while.
posted by chocotaco at 11:56 AM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by chocotaco at 11:56 AM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
I just got over my third bout (March '20, July '22, July '23). I'll mask at big indoor gatherings which I normally avoid, and I'll get my booster once they're out. If I was a leader in the new wave which seems to be highly contagious but mild, then I should be okay until around this time next year. If I had to get on a plane, 100% would mask. I usually also separate weekends going and doing with a dead weekend in case symptoms pop up, especially if going down to my parents is on the schedule.
posted by deezil at 11:57 AM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by deezil at 11:57 AM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
I'm an immunocompromised transplant patient and feel largely abandoned by the health care system. I intend to continue getting any vaccines literally the first day they are made available to me. I don't eat indoors at restaurants and wear a mask inside all the time, including on transit, primarily a head-strap N95.
I expect I'll continue to make trade-offs, where inside time is as limited as I can, although I may be switching to a new job that has me working in an office 3x per week. (I'll see if I can do more at-home hybrid in that case, but who knows?)
But it's about the value of the time - I've gone to events indoors, but having to mask means there's a little extra hurdle before deciding on an event. Is this worth the time, and money, and hassle, and now the risk? So I go out less, but I do have Bruce Springsteen tickets. And I'm risking a trip to Europe, but masking on transport and planning on eating on terraces.
Turns out all those people a couple of years ago who said "we can't mask forever!" were correct. Unfortunately what they were really saying was "we don't want to mask forever and don't care if the result is people like you have to."
posted by Superilla at 12:02 PM on August 24, 2023 [23 favorites]
I expect I'll continue to make trade-offs, where inside time is as limited as I can, although I may be switching to a new job that has me working in an office 3x per week. (I'll see if I can do more at-home hybrid in that case, but who knows?)
But it's about the value of the time - I've gone to events indoors, but having to mask means there's a little extra hurdle before deciding on an event. Is this worth the time, and money, and hassle, and now the risk? So I go out less, but I do have Bruce Springsteen tickets. And I'm risking a trip to Europe, but masking on transport and planning on eating on terraces.
Turns out all those people a couple of years ago who said "we can't mask forever!" were correct. Unfortunately what they were really saying was "we don't want to mask forever and don't care if the result is people like you have to."
posted by Superilla at 12:02 PM on August 24, 2023 [23 favorites]
[Trying again after accidentally hitting post too soon, flagged my erroneous comment for deletion]
I will get vaccinated as soon as the new booster is available.
I mask in some indoor settings, but not all. Not sure it's logical aside from trying to prioritize masking in places where either vulnerable people need to be able to go, or that seem especially high risk:
- stores
- doctor and dentist offices
- veterinary offices
- public transit, including airports and planes
- indoor concerts/crowded events
I don't mask at work, or if I'm going somewhere to eat or drink. I don't do the latter all that frequently, maybe once a week at most. I'm in the office twice a week.
My partner does not mask most places if any, so this may all be futile anyway.
I am flying to see my family for my parent's 50th anniversary next month and will probably avoid any unmasked indoor spaces for the week before the trip and will definitely mask in the uber/airport/plane/etc. They are in Texas and don't mask but I still feel a responsibility not to bring COVID to my elderly parents if I can avoid it.
I stay home from work and don't go out if I'm not feeling well, even if I am testing negative. I and my partner test if we have symptoms (or known exposure but that hasn't happened to us.) We've each separately had it once - didn't transmit to each other but not sure if it was worth the effort to isolate in our own house and don't know what I'd do if one of us got it again.
FWIW I have heard from a friend who works in hospital administration that cases are definitely going up, and she got it fairly recently and said it was awful, worse than the first time she got it. But it's clearly so individual. I got hit pretty hard by COVID the one time I had it and always get side effects from the vaccines so that's incentive for me to avoid it if possible.
posted by misskaz at 12:03 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
I will get vaccinated as soon as the new booster is available.
I mask in some indoor settings, but not all. Not sure it's logical aside from trying to prioritize masking in places where either vulnerable people need to be able to go, or that seem especially high risk:
- stores
- doctor and dentist offices
- veterinary offices
- public transit, including airports and planes
- indoor concerts/crowded events
I don't mask at work, or if I'm going somewhere to eat or drink. I don't do the latter all that frequently, maybe once a week at most. I'm in the office twice a week.
My partner does not mask most places if any, so this may all be futile anyway.
I am flying to see my family for my parent's 50th anniversary next month and will probably avoid any unmasked indoor spaces for the week before the trip and will definitely mask in the uber/airport/plane/etc. They are in Texas and don't mask but I still feel a responsibility not to bring COVID to my elderly parents if I can avoid it.
I stay home from work and don't go out if I'm not feeling well, even if I am testing negative. I and my partner test if we have symptoms (or known exposure but that hasn't happened to us.) We've each separately had it once - didn't transmit to each other but not sure if it was worth the effort to isolate in our own house and don't know what I'd do if one of us got it again.
FWIW I have heard from a friend who works in hospital administration that cases are definitely going up, and she got it fairly recently and said it was awful, worse than the first time she got it. But it's clearly so individual. I got hit pretty hard by COVID the one time I had it and always get side effects from the vaccines so that's incentive for me to avoid it if possible.
posted by misskaz at 12:03 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
I have a chronic health condition that already comes with pain, brain fog, and fatigue so getting Long COVID is something I genuinely dread as a possibility, because I would really, really hate to have more of those things. I also have some medically vulnerable family members I want to protect.
I have gotten the original COVID vaccine series, the booster, and the bivalent booster, and I plan to get the new updated monovalent booster as soon as it is available. I will get the flu vaccine as well but, as someone who historically has experienced some hard hitting side effects from both the COVID and flu vaccines, last year I spaced them a few weeks apart, and I think I will do that again this year.
We always keep a few COVID tests around the house and also basic supplies-- cold meds, nonperishable food, etc-- that will let us isolate for a few days if we get infected with something contagious.
When I want restaurant food I get takeout if there isn't' an outdoor option.
I never stopped wearing masks in crowded indoor spaces, but it's increasingly hard work mentally given the hostility mask-wearing provokes where I live in the lower Midwest. I had a doctor yell-- I mean actually raised voice yell-- at me for wearing a mask in the waiting room of a health care facility about a month ago, if you want a gauge of what it's like here. "THERE'S NO NEED FOR THAT! PEOPLE DON'T DIE FROM COVID ANYMORE! YOUR IMMUNE SYSTEM SHOULD BE ABLE TO HANDLE IT BY NOW!" were among the lovely things he said. I am a woman so I deal with more open and direct hostility than my husband or young adult son do with public mask wearing, but even they get tired of it at times.
Even people who aren't hostile often seem to be upset by my wearing a mask, maybe because it reminds them of things they'd rather not remember, or scared by it, like they're worried I'm sick, and might get them sick, and so they act nervous. It's draining. It makes me fantasize about moving someplace where people don't harass and/or freak out around people for being personally responsible. But I'm not sure such a place exists anywhere.
posted by BlueJae at 12:15 PM on August 24, 2023 [12 favorites]
I have gotten the original COVID vaccine series, the booster, and the bivalent booster, and I plan to get the new updated monovalent booster as soon as it is available. I will get the flu vaccine as well but, as someone who historically has experienced some hard hitting side effects from both the COVID and flu vaccines, last year I spaced them a few weeks apart, and I think I will do that again this year.
We always keep a few COVID tests around the house and also basic supplies-- cold meds, nonperishable food, etc-- that will let us isolate for a few days if we get infected with something contagious.
When I want restaurant food I get takeout if there isn't' an outdoor option.
I never stopped wearing masks in crowded indoor spaces, but it's increasingly hard work mentally given the hostility mask-wearing provokes where I live in the lower Midwest. I had a doctor yell-- I mean actually raised voice yell-- at me for wearing a mask in the waiting room of a health care facility about a month ago, if you want a gauge of what it's like here. "THERE'S NO NEED FOR THAT! PEOPLE DON'T DIE FROM COVID ANYMORE! YOUR IMMUNE SYSTEM SHOULD BE ABLE TO HANDLE IT BY NOW!" were among the lovely things he said. I am a woman so I deal with more open and direct hostility than my husband or young adult son do with public mask wearing, but even they get tired of it at times.
Even people who aren't hostile often seem to be upset by my wearing a mask, maybe because it reminds them of things they'd rather not remember, or scared by it, like they're worried I'm sick, and might get them sick, and so they act nervous. It's draining. It makes me fantasize about moving someplace where people don't harass and/or freak out around people for being personally responsible. But I'm not sure such a place exists anywhere.
posted by BlueJae at 12:15 PM on August 24, 2023 [12 favorites]
I just ordered a HEPA filter for the classroom I'll be starting class in on Monday; my lab already has one, and I carry a personal one to meetings. We continue to mask everywhere, and only eat outdoors. We have not yet flown. We'll get boosted soon; debating updated mRNA versus Novavax. I am planning on going (n95-masked) to a big (40k) conference in person in a nearby city in November, but will bail if it looks too bad. Also might start sniffing Enovid after days teaching this fall.
posted by Dashy at 12:19 PM on August 24, 2023 [5 favorites]
posted by Dashy at 12:19 PM on August 24, 2023 [5 favorites]
Will definitely get the new booster as soon as it's out, and holding off on getting a booster before then. I still mask on public transport (including planes), and opt for outdoor dining when possible. I have long been hanging out with friends indoors, unmasked, but trust if anyone felt sick they'd test.
I recently started a new job, which requires a fair bit of meetings indoors (including work lunches), where nobody masks (and this is in higher-ed), but it's still less compared to those in teaching roles, and I can work remotely 2-3 days per week. So in the grand scheme of things, it feels fairly low risk compared to most other jobs. My partner works in a grocery store, and masks at work.
Like others who have commented, my approach now is to minimize risk where possible, but I'm less keen to do so where there is a social cost. I'm not worried about getting it, but I do want to avoid spreading it - I have a stash of tests and will test if either I or my partner has symptoms.
posted by coffeecat at 12:24 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
I recently started a new job, which requires a fair bit of meetings indoors (including work lunches), where nobody masks (and this is in higher-ed), but it's still less compared to those in teaching roles, and I can work remotely 2-3 days per week. So in the grand scheme of things, it feels fairly low risk compared to most other jobs. My partner works in a grocery store, and masks at work.
Like others who have commented, my approach now is to minimize risk where possible, but I'm less keen to do so where there is a social cost. I'm not worried about getting it, but I do want to avoid spreading it - I have a stash of tests and will test if either I or my partner has symptoms.
posted by coffeecat at 12:24 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
I've always masked in my workplace office as the my CO2 monitor shows the air quality is not great there. In other buildings I've lapsed a bit, but I'm planning to get more strict now that disease season is upon us. In the two studios were I work out (aerials in one place, weightlifting in another), I've taken my chance being unmasked because there's good air circulation, a large space and very few people in either building at the same time. And as much as some masks are better than others, it's when exercising that I find really masking really uncomfortable.
I got my last booster in February, and the Alberta Health Services site says I'm not eligible for another. I'm hoping to get a combo flu/covid shot in the fall but I've been unable to find more information on that yet. If I don't see something come mid-September, I'll probably go to my local pharmacy and just make a case for another covid booster. There isn't a supply issue anymore to my knowledge.
I'm continually frustrated by a lot of things my provincial government is doing, but the lack of ability to get information for those of us who still want to protect ourselves is probably the most frustrating.
posted by Kurichina at 12:27 PM on August 24, 2023 [4 favorites]
I got my last booster in February, and the Alberta Health Services site says I'm not eligible for another. I'm hoping to get a combo flu/covid shot in the fall but I've been unable to find more information on that yet. If I don't see something come mid-September, I'll probably go to my local pharmacy and just make a case for another covid booster. There isn't a supply issue anymore to my knowledge.
I'm continually frustrated by a lot of things my provincial government is doing, but the lack of ability to get information for those of us who still want to protect ourselves is probably the most frustrating.
posted by Kurichina at 12:27 PM on August 24, 2023 [4 favorites]
My wife and I mask in indoor public places 100% and generally test with any symptoms. If I go visit family without her and have small group interactions indoors, we quarantine masked at the house for 48 hours before testing. I work out of the home, so I don't have a lot of office issues, but would mask if I had to go into my company's local offices. This has not changed significantly in the last year, but I did catch COVID (masked) at a concert last October and haven't had any desire since then to go to indoor public events with a lot of strangers.
We've tried to get the family habituated to testing before visits, but it's never gotten traction and we're done with the emotional labor of it.
posted by SoundInhabitant at 12:31 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
We've tried to get the family habituated to testing before visits, but it's never gotten traction and we're done with the emotional labor of it.
posted by SoundInhabitant at 12:31 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
Oh, I am back to masking in public once it gets cold. We are about to have an influx of university students who won't give a damn about masking because young = invincible. I have already gotten another booster, will be awaiting the new flu vaccine.
My husband and I were talking about object permanence in regards to our cats this morning, and given the rise of "Hey is a flu going around" posts on our local subreddit, I guess that applies to people too. Sigh.
posted by Kitteh at 12:34 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
My husband and I were talking about object permanence in regards to our cats this morning, and given the rise of "Hey is a flu going around" posts on our local subreddit, I guess that applies to people too. Sigh.
posted by Kitteh at 12:34 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
I'll be getting the new booster, definitely, and otherwise just keeping an eye on things. If it seems like resuming masking is the thing to do, I will probably do that. Right now where I am it doesn't seem to be, yet. (I do still mask at airports/on planes because it's just so many people and so enclosed and for so long.) I'm lucky to WFH with no disease vectors--sorry, kids--around, so overall my exposure is less.
This is pretty much my situation. I fly very rarely so I haven't had to assess that in quite some time.
If things pick back up, we'll probably dial down on things like going out to eat or going to in-person work events.
posted by Dip Flash at 12:45 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
This is pretty much my situation. I fly very rarely so I haven't had to assess that in quite some time.
If things pick back up, we'll probably dial down on things like going out to eat or going to in-person work events.
posted by Dip Flash at 12:45 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
I will be getting the new booster as soon as I am able.
I still wear a mask anytime I go indoors in a public place.
And we test a lot. Have only indoor dined a handful of times this year, but mostly for non-COVID health reasons. And when I have, mask off, take a bite, mask on. Likely won't change too much in the short term.
posted by Windopaene at 12:56 PM on August 24, 2023 [4 favorites]
I still wear a mask anytime I go indoors in a public place.
And we test a lot. Have only indoor dined a handful of times this year, but mostly for non-COVID health reasons. And when I have, mask off, take a bite, mask on. Likely won't change too much in the short term.
posted by Windopaene at 12:56 PM on August 24, 2023 [4 favorites]
Like rhymedirective upthread, I'm carrying a mask around and wearing it when a situation looks dicey and/or the masked outnumber the unmasked. It's almost always the other way around here in stores, on the street, restaurants, public events, etc. Masks aren't even required in doctors' offices anymore. I'm vaccinated and have had all the boosters I'm allowed to have. I'll get the next one for sure. I caught it in April last year and suffered through the worst cold for a week or so. It was at least July before I felt normal. I don't anticipate changing anything just because of colder weather. If anything, I might find a way to work from home more often, although we are basically required to be in the office at least two days a week now. (That said, the offices are virtually empty all the time and going to the office no longer means being exposed to coughing coworkers like the old days.)
posted by emelenjr at 12:58 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by emelenjr at 12:58 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
Neither Mr. Kouti nor I have caught COVID yet.
* Masking: N95s; we continue to mask indoors in public and avoid indoor dining. Maybe 20% of people locally still mask on transit, ourselves among them. Outside, we'll carry masks and put them on in crowded situations. Wondering about possible upgrades for work travel, especially for longer-haul flights. Also need to find black N95s for performing with our choir; we tried the "Broadway" masks last year and they did not work for our faces.
* Vaccines: we've gotten all the vaccines so far and will be first in line when the new one is released, though I will space COVID and flu vaccines this year, as I was pretty much knocked out for 48 hours when I got them together. (But I've historically had a bad reaction to the flu vaccine; better two days out of commission from the vaccine than 10 when I catch the actual flu.)
* Nasal sprays: need to do our reading to figure out what's effective, readily available in the US/Bay Area, comes in carry-on travel sizes. But this is a habit we intend to layer on as work travel season ramps up.
The initial email to our choir for this season after last year's mandatory masking and weekly testing routine said that masking would be optional this season, but subject to change per local conditions. At our first rehearsal of the season last night, maybe 1/3 of people were masking, even as one of the choir managers acknowledged the numbers were ticking up in our area and going back to mandatory masking was definitely possible in the next few weeks/months.
I do have tickets to a big outdoor stadium show later this fall, but will be monitoring the local wastewater numbers to decide if I can still go to it masked, or if really just no. I've also got tickets to a smaller indoors show in December that required masking last year; I think they've downgraded to "strongly recommend," so I'll be watching the crowds around there to see how I feel about it. And of course, Mr. Kouti and I are performing in shows this fall (see choir, above), and we intend to perform masked or not at all.
posted by Pandora Kouti at 1:02 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
* Masking: N95s; we continue to mask indoors in public and avoid indoor dining. Maybe 20% of people locally still mask on transit, ourselves among them. Outside, we'll carry masks and put them on in crowded situations. Wondering about possible upgrades for work travel, especially for longer-haul flights. Also need to find black N95s for performing with our choir; we tried the "Broadway" masks last year and they did not work for our faces.
* Vaccines: we've gotten all the vaccines so far and will be first in line when the new one is released, though I will space COVID and flu vaccines this year, as I was pretty much knocked out for 48 hours when I got them together. (But I've historically had a bad reaction to the flu vaccine; better two days out of commission from the vaccine than 10 when I catch the actual flu.)
* Nasal sprays: need to do our reading to figure out what's effective, readily available in the US/Bay Area, comes in carry-on travel sizes. But this is a habit we intend to layer on as work travel season ramps up.
The initial email to our choir for this season after last year's mandatory masking and weekly testing routine said that masking would be optional this season, but subject to change per local conditions. At our first rehearsal of the season last night, maybe 1/3 of people were masking, even as one of the choir managers acknowledged the numbers were ticking up in our area and going back to mandatory masking was definitely possible in the next few weeks/months.
I do have tickets to a big outdoor stadium show later this fall, but will be monitoring the local wastewater numbers to decide if I can still go to it masked, or if really just no. I've also got tickets to a smaller indoors show in December that required masking last year; I think they've downgraded to "strongly recommend," so I'll be watching the crowds around there to see how I feel about it. And of course, Mr. Kouti and I are performing in shows this fall (see choir, above), and we intend to perform masked or not at all.
posted by Pandora Kouti at 1:02 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
My husband and I were scrupulous about wearing masks and avoiding crowds until the rates went way down. We both got covid last December, but such mild cases that we stayed home and isolated primarily because we knew we should, not because we felt crappy. I've had more debilitating allergy attacks.
With the exception of my doctor's office, which still requires masks (although staff compliance is less than perfect), I haven't worn one in quite a while. When we dine out, we eat outdoors whenever we can, both to prevent covid and because the season when that is feasible is so short-lived here in Chicago. Otherwise, we avoid crowded situations and generally don't get any closer to people than we have to. Since we are both retired, we can do our shopping when stores are least populated and weigh invitations/events based on a risk-reward calculation.
My husband and I are fully vaxxed and line up eagerly whenever a new jab is available/recommended. We are both over 65 and he has a chronic condition (DMII), but we appear to have strong immune systems because we get sick only very very rarely, like once every decade or so.
posted by DrGail at 1:03 PM on August 24, 2023 [6 favorites]
With the exception of my doctor's office, which still requires masks (although staff compliance is less than perfect), I haven't worn one in quite a while. When we dine out, we eat outdoors whenever we can, both to prevent covid and because the season when that is feasible is so short-lived here in Chicago. Otherwise, we avoid crowded situations and generally don't get any closer to people than we have to. Since we are both retired, we can do our shopping when stores are least populated and weigh invitations/events based on a risk-reward calculation.
My husband and I are fully vaxxed and line up eagerly whenever a new jab is available/recommended. We are both over 65 and he has a chronic condition (DMII), but we appear to have strong immune systems because we get sick only very very rarely, like once every decade or so.
posted by DrGail at 1:03 PM on August 24, 2023 [6 favorites]
I need to make a decision about timing on the new booster, but probably early/mid-November to maximize effectiveness over the holidays. I never stopped masking inside in public (including not eating inside restaurants), so no decisions to make there. I might get pickier again about the quality of outdoor dining areas. I anticipate continuing to see small groups of friends/family inside unmasked, but will see how things go.
I'm considering whether a portable CO2 filter and air purifier make sense for me - they haven't so far since I work from home and don't do much in public, but I've got a couple weddings coming up and am wondering if I might feel better about risk management with some additional tools.
posted by EvaDestruction at 1:05 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
I'm considering whether a portable CO2 filter and air purifier make sense for me - they haven't so far since I work from home and don't do much in public, but I've got a couple weddings coming up and am wondering if I might feel better about risk management with some additional tools.
posted by EvaDestruction at 1:05 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
I've been a devoted N95 user, and I jumped at the chance to get vaccines. Non-negotiable travel over the last two years (an ailing elderly family member, academic job search) meant I haven't been able to avoid airplanes, and working in a lab has meant I've been at work in person since July 2020. So my base level of exposure has been higher than a lot of people on MeFi. That said, I had PCR testing through work through last fall (with no illness since), and have continued to do rapid tests whenever appropriate, so I'm fairly certain I've never had Covid. I've tended to feel like the futility of one-sided masking is a bit oversold as a result, but of course I'm just one datapoint.
(This was somewhat frustrating at job interviews this spring - it's dismaying how many professors in the sciences are part of the "why are you still masking?" crew. And man, I'd've masked to avoid getting a cold during the hellish job search and all the complicated interview scheduling and public speaking that entailed, let alone flu & Covid!)
I had eased up on masking this summer (except at concerts/on planes/at the doctor's/etc.) because wastewater numbers were so low, and because my regular exposure is to a limited number of labmates. And honestly in the summer heat, it was nice to avoid masking, and to give my ears and nose a break, since most N95s start to hurt one or both after 8+ hours. But while they've stalled in the last week or two, the wastewater numbers have been on the upswing, and I feel like I've seen an uptick of other people in the area (Boston/Cambridge) masking, so I may get back to more rigorous masking myself if it looks merited. Like rhymedirective, I've started carrying an extra foldable KN95 around in case things look iffy.
I'll definitely get the next booster when it's out - based on the past ones, I will feel miserable for a day, but eh, I'll take that over a few weeks of feeling like crap + the risk of long-term sequelae. I've done the same for flu shots since getting swine flu in 2009, which was miserable and left me with a secondary sinus infection that took me out for another week or two, and there seems to be at least as much reason to try to avoid Covid. Like Frowner, I'm also hoping we get more clarity on Long Covid risks, particularly for people who're exposed to current strains post-vaccination.
posted by ASF Tod und Schwerkraft at 1:08 PM on August 24, 2023 [3 favorites]
(This was somewhat frustrating at job interviews this spring - it's dismaying how many professors in the sciences are part of the "why are you still masking?" crew. And man, I'd've masked to avoid getting a cold during the hellish job search and all the complicated interview scheduling and public speaking that entailed, let alone flu & Covid!)
I had eased up on masking this summer (except at concerts/on planes/at the doctor's/etc.) because wastewater numbers were so low, and because my regular exposure is to a limited number of labmates. And honestly in the summer heat, it was nice to avoid masking, and to give my ears and nose a break, since most N95s start to hurt one or both after 8+ hours. But while they've stalled in the last week or two, the wastewater numbers have been on the upswing, and I feel like I've seen an uptick of other people in the area (Boston/Cambridge) masking, so I may get back to more rigorous masking myself if it looks merited. Like rhymedirective, I've started carrying an extra foldable KN95 around in case things look iffy.
I'll definitely get the next booster when it's out - based on the past ones, I will feel miserable for a day, but eh, I'll take that over a few weeks of feeling like crap + the risk of long-term sequelae. I've done the same for flu shots since getting swine flu in 2009, which was miserable and left me with a secondary sinus infection that took me out for another week or two, and there seems to be at least as much reason to try to avoid Covid. Like Frowner, I'm also hoping we get more clarity on Long Covid risks, particularly for people who're exposed to current strains post-vaccination.
posted by ASF Tod und Schwerkraft at 1:08 PM on August 24, 2023 [3 favorites]
Getting all the boosters I can get (I've lost count of how many I've gotten, pretty sure I'm very up to date).
Currently, I'm masking only occasionally, mostly in three situations:
On medical visits (don't want to catch anything, or spread anything)
On long-haul flights
If I'm feeling under the weather, sneezy or coughy, I'd wear a mask anytime I feel like I need to leave the house (again, if I think I might be in danger of spreading something)
Masking might be less about COVID specifically for me. Now that wearing a mask is a thing someone can do, it's protection against lots of things.
If there's an increase in community spread, I might consider masking during more public situations, like grocery shopping.
posted by gimonca at 1:17 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
Currently, I'm masking only occasionally, mostly in three situations:
On medical visits (don't want to catch anything, or spread anything)
On long-haul flights
If I'm feeling under the weather, sneezy or coughy, I'd wear a mask anytime I feel like I need to leave the house (again, if I think I might be in danger of spreading something)
Masking might be less about COVID specifically for me. Now that wearing a mask is a thing someone can do, it's protection against lots of things.
If there's an increase in community spread, I might consider masking during more public situations, like grocery shopping.
posted by gimonca at 1:17 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
Over-65 so I get boosters whenever available. I've now had six Covid shots, but never had Covid. Would now only mask on public transport or in a crowded cinema; but I'm lucky in that I can for the most part stay away from people.
posted by Rash at 1:17 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by Rash at 1:17 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
I am living my life. No additional steps against getting Covid. If asked to wear a mask, I will politely (silently without discussion) wear it, but I have no current plans to proactively wear one. While I am in multiple supposed high risk categories (old, overweight, heart issues), I have had two mild cases that kept me at home for a day or two each time. I got the original first booster but have not gotten one since.
I am still considering whether or not to get a flu shot. I don't recall ever getting one, but every years I say to myself, "Self, this is the year." But, I never seem to get around to it. I don't recall ever having the flu either. I have had both shingles shots and boy did the 2nd one kick my ass.
I do try to avoid people wearing masks in the just in case event I may be a carrier, the masked seem to be the ones who either medically cannot afford to get it or are very worried about getting it. I am an off hour grocery shopper by nature, but in the event I see a masked person, I give them a wide berth unless they proactively come up on me like wait in line behind me.
posted by JohnnyGunn at 1:20 PM on August 24, 2023 [4 favorites]
I am still considering whether or not to get a flu shot. I don't recall ever getting one, but every years I say to myself, "Self, this is the year." But, I never seem to get around to it. I don't recall ever having the flu either. I have had both shingles shots and boy did the 2nd one kick my ass.
I do try to avoid people wearing masks in the just in case event I may be a carrier, the masked seem to be the ones who either medically cannot afford to get it or are very worried about getting it. I am an off hour grocery shopper by nature, but in the event I see a masked person, I give them a wide berth unless they proactively come up on me like wait in line behind me.
posted by JohnnyGunn at 1:20 PM on August 24, 2023 [4 favorites]
All three of us: N95s when indoors out of our home or outdoors where there are people within arm's reach (parades etc). Includes workplaces. No restaurants unless it's take-out and taken to a park or bench where we can sit a significant distance away from others.
I had COVID once in 2021 and it sucked, with plenty of long-COVID systemic bullshit. Neither of the other people who live with me have got it at all, and we're keeping it that way.
We're last got vaxxed this past winter (I have had five so far) and are waiting for the new formula.
I have stopped hating people who don't mask indoors because it would require me to hate roughly 95% of everyone in Toronto. Instead I just think they're fucking clueless selfish morons and I get by ok with about that level of anger.
posted by seanmpuckett at 1:28 PM on August 24, 2023 [5 favorites]
I had COVID once in 2021 and it sucked, with plenty of long-COVID systemic bullshit. Neither of the other people who live with me have got it at all, and we're keeping it that way.
We're last got vaxxed this past winter (I have had five so far) and are waiting for the new formula.
I have stopped hating people who don't mask indoors because it would require me to hate roughly 95% of everyone in Toronto. Instead I just think they're fucking clueless selfish morons and I get by ok with about that level of anger.
posted by seanmpuckett at 1:28 PM on August 24, 2023 [5 favorites]
I am as vaccinated as I can be, and will get the booster and flu shot both when they are out. I will continue to mask in public places and at work (where I am the only one who regularly masks) as I have been, but am being a little more lax about having hang out with friends at my place, since the ones I invite over are close enough friends that I trust them to tell me if they feel ill or have an exposure. I haven't gone back to eating in indoor restaurants since 2020, so I'll eat outside at restaurants as long as restaurants in NJ will humor that, and then go back to just getting takeout when I want something nice. I basically do most normal things I used to before 2020 at this point as long as I can wear a mask in indoor public spaces. It's a nice balance between safety and living my life to me. Probably will not travel for the holidays this year, though I did fly for the first time since 2020 this summer, when cases were low.
posted by bridgebury at 1:31 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by bridgebury at 1:31 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
I have been super cautious all along (existing medical stuff makes me extremely wary of long Covid: I've already had post-viral awfulness that took years to get meaningfully better, let's not go near that again if we can help it.)
I mask in any space where I can't have a conversation about current health status, recent risks, etc. with everyone in that space - grocery, doctors appointments, errands, the hallways at work. Mostly I'm not wearing a mask for very long at a time - more like half an hour than hours at a stretch.
I have done some small unmasked gatherings with friends. Those include a religious gathering every six weeks at my home (first one in May) with conversation (and testing in advance) plus multiple air filters and attention to fresh air. Our plans for September involved being outdoors anyway. But given local wastewater, our backup plan is probably going to be online if it's raining, rather than in-person.
I don't mask in my office (currently splitting it with a coworker who is also about as cautious: we're in there on different days). It has external air via the HVAC (interior room), and we run an air filter all the time.
I also have a chronic cough, so one of the ways I put this is "I need to keep being extra cautious, but I've also got a chronic cough and allergies, so I'd like to help other people not worry about me."
I will absolutely be getting my vaccine promptly (and my flu vaccine), though timing it so I can take the next day off from work, given my tendency to feel like a truck ran me over.
I'm at the tail end of a week of routine medical appointments. My dentist remains super careful (masking required for everyone until they need access to your mouth, filters and ventilation, and everyone else in the space around you is masked), the others have been glad to mask on request, filters have been going, etc.
posted by jenettsilver at 1:34 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
I mask in any space where I can't have a conversation about current health status, recent risks, etc. with everyone in that space - grocery, doctors appointments, errands, the hallways at work. Mostly I'm not wearing a mask for very long at a time - more like half an hour than hours at a stretch.
I have done some small unmasked gatherings with friends. Those include a religious gathering every six weeks at my home (first one in May) with conversation (and testing in advance) plus multiple air filters and attention to fresh air. Our plans for September involved being outdoors anyway. But given local wastewater, our backup plan is probably going to be online if it's raining, rather than in-person.
I don't mask in my office (currently splitting it with a coworker who is also about as cautious: we're in there on different days). It has external air via the HVAC (interior room), and we run an air filter all the time.
I also have a chronic cough, so one of the ways I put this is "I need to keep being extra cautious, but I've also got a chronic cough and allergies, so I'd like to help other people not worry about me."
I will absolutely be getting my vaccine promptly (and my flu vaccine), though timing it so I can take the next day off from work, given my tendency to feel like a truck ran me over.
I'm at the tail end of a week of routine medical appointments. My dentist remains super careful (masking required for everyone until they need access to your mouth, filters and ventilation, and everyone else in the space around you is masked), the others have been glad to mask on request, filters have been going, etc.
posted by jenettsilver at 1:34 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
I will continue to mask because I don’t want to get sick, nor pass it along to others, or pass it along to those who can’t fight it off. Masking has worked for me* for the past 3.5 years, and I have no plans to stop doing so, given the information out there about the virus.
* when I had a medical appointment in June, I removed my mask, and got Covid. I took Paxlovid, which cleared it up, but not everybody has the option of taking Paxlovid or the other antivirals out there, which is why I continue to mask and take precautions with zero fucks given to certain people who might have a problem with that. Also, RBF, I think, has helped to deter said certain people from engaging with me in a negative manner.
posted by SillyShepherd at 1:50 PM on August 24, 2023 [3 favorites]
* when I had a medical appointment in June, I removed my mask, and got Covid. I took Paxlovid, which cleared it up, but not everybody has the option of taking Paxlovid or the other antivirals out there, which is why I continue to mask and take precautions with zero fucks given to certain people who might have a problem with that. Also, RBF, I think, has helped to deter said certain people from engaging with me in a negative manner.
posted by SillyShepherd at 1:50 PM on August 24, 2023 [3 favorites]
Have not to my knowledge had COVID yet. (Can't rule out an asymptomatic infection, though I'm old enough and have enough other risk factors for that to be unlikely.)
Someone at my department's daylong all-staff meeting on Monday felt ill and tested positive for COVID yesterday. Email about it went out (without the person's name, of course) this morning. So I left the in-person daylong meeting I was attending at the morning break, after explaining and apologizing to the organizers. I was n95-masked at the Monday all-staff and at today's meeting, at least, and I rapid-tested negative today.
I can work from home tomorrow and most of next week (spent some time today shuffling meetings), and I will. I have enough in-date rapid tests to test every 2-3 days for the next week. I'll continue my early-morning walks outside, but otherwise, I'll stay home with the cats. Delivery infrastructure is good where I am; I don't need to go shopping in person, so I won't. (I'm aware I'll need to restock my rapid tests. I'm good on n95 masks for a long time, though.)
I will continue masking at work, definitely into the fall semester (I teach in-person one day a week). I've been eating out some this summer -- outdoors or off-hours or ideally both -- but I'll stop until the current surge looks to be ending. I'm willing to attend live theatre and one concert from my absolute favorite band wearing an n95; I'm not willing to go to movies.
Will get the new vax ASAP. I don't do holiday travel, so for me protection while teaching is more important.
So yeah. I go on.
posted by humbug at 2:01 PM on August 24, 2023 [3 favorites]
Someone at my department's daylong all-staff meeting on Monday felt ill and tested positive for COVID yesterday. Email about it went out (without the person's name, of course) this morning. So I left the in-person daylong meeting I was attending at the morning break, after explaining and apologizing to the organizers. I was n95-masked at the Monday all-staff and at today's meeting, at least, and I rapid-tested negative today.
I can work from home tomorrow and most of next week (spent some time today shuffling meetings), and I will. I have enough in-date rapid tests to test every 2-3 days for the next week. I'll continue my early-morning walks outside, but otherwise, I'll stay home with the cats. Delivery infrastructure is good where I am; I don't need to go shopping in person, so I won't. (I'm aware I'll need to restock my rapid tests. I'm good on n95 masks for a long time, though.)
I will continue masking at work, definitely into the fall semester (I teach in-person one day a week). I've been eating out some this summer -- outdoors or off-hours or ideally both -- but I'll stop until the current surge looks to be ending. I'm willing to attend live theatre and one concert from my absolute favorite band wearing an n95; I'm not willing to go to movies.
Will get the new vax ASAP. I don't do holiday travel, so for me protection while teaching is more important.
So yeah. I go on.
posted by humbug at 2:01 PM on August 24, 2023 [3 favorites]
Southern Hemisphere here too.
I've been in isolation with my flatmate since shortly after Delta got into the community.
Both of us have auto-immune conditions that would likely mean getting chronically disabled if we get Covid & Long Covid.
We haven't been into a supermarket since. Supermarket shopping is Click & Collect to either their outside food lockers or to meet someone outside the door with a trolley (whilst we're also N95 masked, etc).
We don't dine or drink anywhere inside nor outside. If we're craving restaurant food then it's either delivered or takeaway ordered and collected outside the restaurant.
We maybe go into a specialist store (that can't deliver or click & collect) once every few months, but then would be N95, goggles & gloves, and in & out as quickly as possibly, also choosing the quietest time of the day and early on the day.
Everything delivered/collected is still sprayed down & sanitised (handled with gloves prior). Hot food is further oven heated too after delivery.
Anything that can possibly done online or by phone is done that way. Both of us had to leave our jobs because there was no way to do them covid safely. Fortunately we've been able to do some new work from home, but costs are currently exceeding income and there's no government support available.
When we do rarely meet up with anyone, we provide them an N95 mask if they don't have one, and only talk to them outside it in highly ventilated areas, and never in an enclosed area (ie a home).
If one of us is potentially and unavoidably exposed (ie emergency dental work) even with testing negative we still isolate for 2 weeks from the other.
We both had the original range of vaccines and boosters.
It's really hard emotionally. But taking a few years of emotionally challenging times in isolation feels like the better loss, than a lifetime of chronic fatigue and long covid.
posted by many-things at 2:04 PM on August 24, 2023 [5 favorites]
I've been in isolation with my flatmate since shortly after Delta got into the community.
Both of us have auto-immune conditions that would likely mean getting chronically disabled if we get Covid & Long Covid.
We haven't been into a supermarket since. Supermarket shopping is Click & Collect to either their outside food lockers or to meet someone outside the door with a trolley (whilst we're also N95 masked, etc).
We don't dine or drink anywhere inside nor outside. If we're craving restaurant food then it's either delivered or takeaway ordered and collected outside the restaurant.
We maybe go into a specialist store (that can't deliver or click & collect) once every few months, but then would be N95, goggles & gloves, and in & out as quickly as possibly, also choosing the quietest time of the day and early on the day.
Everything delivered/collected is still sprayed down & sanitised (handled with gloves prior). Hot food is further oven heated too after delivery.
Anything that can possibly done online or by phone is done that way. Both of us had to leave our jobs because there was no way to do them covid safely. Fortunately we've been able to do some new work from home, but costs are currently exceeding income and there's no government support available.
When we do rarely meet up with anyone, we provide them an N95 mask if they don't have one, and only talk to them outside it in highly ventilated areas, and never in an enclosed area (ie a home).
If one of us is potentially and unavoidably exposed (ie emergency dental work) even with testing negative we still isolate for 2 weeks from the other.
We both had the original range of vaccines and boosters.
It's really hard emotionally. But taking a few years of emotionally challenging times in isolation feels like the better loss, than a lifetime of chronic fatigue and long covid.
posted by many-things at 2:04 PM on August 24, 2023 [5 favorites]
Oh, and I did have one other small in-person meeting yesterday. If I test positive, I'll let the other meeting attendees know. I was n95ed up for that one too, at least.
posted by humbug at 2:04 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by humbug at 2:04 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
I continue to mask while flying (two weeks out of three) or bussing and when in indoor public spaces, refrain from indoor dining, ventilate my camp room via open window regardless of weather conditions. I don't really see any of that changing. I've found a N95 mask that fits (proven by its ability to filter out smoke particulates this week) and is comfortable enough I forget I'm wearing it.
Fully vaccinated and will get the booster when offered along with flu.
Currently also getting the shingles series and holy crap does that one hurt going in and afterwards for a couple days.
Less than 1% of the people I see whether at work or in public mask.
posted by Mitheral at 2:11 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
Fully vaccinated and will get the booster when offered along with flu.
Currently also getting the shingles series and holy crap does that one hurt going in and afterwards for a couple days.
Less than 1% of the people I see whether at work or in public mask.
posted by Mitheral at 2:11 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
wear a mask? simplistic answer, I know, but even here in the progressive Bay Area hardly anyone is masking any more. although I have relaxed my standards a little this past year, I still mask up on pubtrans, in the grocery store, etc., so I am back up to stricter mask wearing, for the time being...
posted by supermedusa at 2:16 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by supermedusa at 2:16 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
We’ll all (me, spouse, two elementary school aged children) take the booster as soon as it’s available next month, along with our yearly flu shots.
That’s about it. We’ve all had Covid at least once (me likely twice, but the first time was right in February 2020 coming home from Italy and no one could or would test in the absence of a cough). I have sequela from a random virus I got in 2018 so now have a cardiologist, and he’s not concerned. We will follow recommended masking guidelines if there’s a surge, of course.
After having spent a horrid afternoon at the Mass General ER because my father in law had a medical emergency, the fact that 1 in 10 (maybe less) of physicians, nurses, and residents were masked and absolutely none were masked on the neurological ICU floor, well, I’m sure they are way more medically savvy than I can get on the internet.
posted by lydhre at 2:18 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
That’s about it. We’ve all had Covid at least once (me likely twice, but the first time was right in February 2020 coming home from Italy and no one could or would test in the absence of a cough). I have sequela from a random virus I got in 2018 so now have a cardiologist, and he’s not concerned. We will follow recommended masking guidelines if there’s a surge, of course.
After having spent a horrid afternoon at the Mass General ER because my father in law had a medical emergency, the fact that 1 in 10 (maybe less) of physicians, nurses, and residents were masked and absolutely none were masked on the neurological ICU floor, well, I’m sure they are way more medically savvy than I can get on the internet.
posted by lydhre at 2:18 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
Going to get the booster when it's available (and, I imagine, every fall with my flu shot). That's pretty much it. I have a toddler in preschool and she brings home so many viruses that it doesn't seem possible to try not to get this one. We try not to be the problem by keeping her home when she's sick, staying home ourselves when sick, and wearing masks when we don't feel well and have to go outside. But that's all about trying not to be an asshole, not about trying to avoid getting covid.
posted by Ragged Richard at 2:20 PM on August 24, 2023 [7 favorites]
posted by Ragged Richard at 2:20 PM on August 24, 2023 [7 favorites]
I mask consistently around non-household members, and I don't eat indoors with others, unless everyone present has tested negative recently. Outdoors, I relax. I find that it's easier not to try to fine-tune my behavior around public data, especially since I know that the data are by and large not very good at this point. Oh -- and I'm as current on vax as policy allows (last boosted 9/22).
I think I had COVID once in March 2020 but I think I have not had it since. That's true even though I have a child in school (she masks, too).
posted by eirias at 2:22 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
I think I had COVID once in March 2020 but I think I have not had it since. That's true even though I have a child in school (she masks, too).
posted by eirias at 2:22 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
Immunocompromised. Booster every 6 months. Mask whenever I'm inside a public building. Meals at home, or alone in my office, in my car, or outside. Apparently forever.
posted by hydropsyche at 2:50 PM on August 24, 2023 [9 favorites]
posted by hydropsyche at 2:50 PM on August 24, 2023 [9 favorites]
I'm already pretty cautious because I'm worried about Long Covid. So I'll keep doing what I'm doing now, only more so: KN95 masks in all public indoor spaces, fewer exceptions for bars and restaurants (currently once every 3-6 weeks or so, will probably stop altogether while the wave lasts), avoiding crowds, being very selective about private indoor gatherings. There are a few folks I'll continue to see indoors and unmasked unless things get really bad. I had plans for a weekly activity in a busy but well-ventilated indoor space this winter; I haven't decided yet whether I'll go ahead with that.
I'll get boosted as soon as I can, which probably means November or December. I wasn't eligible for a spring booster (public health is weirdly restrictive here), so any immunity from my last shot has certainly waned. I wonder if it's worth trying to get boosted now to tide me over until the new shot is available?
posted by Gerald Bostock at 3:03 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
I'll get boosted as soon as I can, which probably means November or December. I wasn't eligible for a spring booster (public health is weirdly restrictive here), so any immunity from my last shot has certainly waned. I wonder if it's worth trying to get boosted now to tide me over until the new shot is available?
posted by Gerald Bostock at 3:03 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
We're (family of four, two little kids) down to just boosters when indicated, no masks or behavior changes. We test when we're sick, largely because I want to be able to take Paxlovid if it turns out to be COVID instead of something else, but no precautions when we're out and we're both back in the office.
With two kids at daycare I am sick constantly, but it's only been COVID once in the last year or so. (January—sucked for a day before Paxlovid kicked in but then I was just waiting until I tested negative.)
posted by Polycarp at 3:03 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
With two kids at daycare I am sick constantly, but it's only been COVID once in the last year or so. (January—sucked for a day before Paxlovid kicked in but then I was just waiting until I tested negative.)
posted by Polycarp at 3:03 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
I have written a long blog post about the precautions I take and why.
I follow 4 main principles to reduce my risk of catching COVID:
1. Avoiding sharing unfiltered air with people outside my household
2. Noticing how safe I am & raising precautions accordingly
3. Focusing on protecting myself over protecting unmasked people (in general)
4. Spending money
And I follow these protocols:
Vaccination: Get every booster as soon as possible.
Air quality and ventilation: Go outdoors or use fans, filters, and breaks, and use a carbon dioxide monitor to check.
Masking: N95, N99, or P100. More protection when I'm at more risk.
Self-testing (antigen and NAAT/molecular) and PCR: Self-test if I have symptoms, am seeing someone indoors in a private space, or am at a big event.
Nasal spray: Enovid before and after indoors time with strangers.
Staying apprised: Wastewater and test positivity data, plus general COVID news.
In case I catch it: Isolation, Paxlovid, metformin, Enovid, and rest.
Returning from a trip: Isolation, ventilation, and testing.
Since this post, I have started looking into mouthwashes, and switched to a Klein Tools P100.
posted by brainwane at 3:17 PM on August 24, 2023 [8 favorites]
I follow 4 main principles to reduce my risk of catching COVID:
1. Avoiding sharing unfiltered air with people outside my household
2. Noticing how safe I am & raising precautions accordingly
3. Focusing on protecting myself over protecting unmasked people (in general)
4. Spending money
And I follow these protocols:
Vaccination: Get every booster as soon as possible.
Air quality and ventilation: Go outdoors or use fans, filters, and breaks, and use a carbon dioxide monitor to check.
Masking: N95, N99, or P100. More protection when I'm at more risk.
Self-testing (antigen and NAAT/molecular) and PCR: Self-test if I have symptoms, am seeing someone indoors in a private space, or am at a big event.
Nasal spray: Enovid before and after indoors time with strangers.
Staying apprised: Wastewater and test positivity data, plus general COVID news.
In case I catch it: Isolation, Paxlovid, metformin, Enovid, and rest.
Returning from a trip: Isolation, ventilation, and testing.
Since this post, I have started looking into mouthwashes, and switched to a Klein Tools P100.
posted by brainwane at 3:17 PM on August 24, 2023 [8 favorites]
We wear masks while flying or if we feel off (or if the air is smoky...), but not generally. We don't eat at restaurants very often, but don't mind doing so and have been to a movie and a large craft show without masks this summer. We also plan to get any vaccines/boosters that are recommended and available to us.
If stats get notably bad again in the winter, I could see returning to masking and more regular testing, but I plan to wait and see. I could also see myself taking more precautions for a few weeks before a big event (e.g. Thanksgiving).
posted by catabananza at 4:07 PM on August 24, 2023 [3 favorites]
If stats get notably bad again in the winter, I could see returning to masking and more regular testing, but I plan to wait and see. I could also see myself taking more precautions for a few weeks before a big event (e.g. Thanksgiving).
posted by catabananza at 4:07 PM on August 24, 2023 [3 favorites]
My GF came home from a trip to California last night, felt sick, and immediately tested positive. I'm so bummed. Obviously I feel terrible for her, but we were apart for many days, and now we have to stay apart for a lot longer (I'm at my mother's home now), so it sucks extra for both of us. And of course, I could still get COVID myself, though my exposure was pretty brief, so fingers crossed.
We are taking a trip to Italy at the end of next month (somewhat ironically, I suppose, it's a trip we rescheduled from May of 2020) and have been planning to get boosters two weeks in advance in the hopes of maximizing our immunity while we're abroad. I guess at least one of us is about to get an extra dose of immunity anyway...
posted by Conrad Cornelius o'Donald o'Dell at 4:22 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
We are taking a trip to Italy at the end of next month (somewhat ironically, I suppose, it's a trip we rescheduled from May of 2020) and have been planning to get boosters two weeks in advance in the hopes of maximizing our immunity while we're abroad. I guess at least one of us is about to get an extra dose of immunity anyway...
posted by Conrad Cornelius o'Donald o'Dell at 4:22 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
Less than 1% of the people I see whether at work or in public mask.
Around here it is way less than 1%. Maybe a tenth or less of that, at a guess, and this is liberal area in a state that took covid very seriously. My dentist's office had been requiring it but stopped sometime before my most recent appointment. That was the last setting I've been in with mandatory masking. I need to make a medical appointment soon and am curious what their protocols are now.
Like someone mentioned above, I give people with masks on as wide a berth as I can, with the assumption that they have a reason to be careful and don't want to be breathing more of my air than necessary. I still keep masks everywhere (glovebox, backpack, etc.) but haven't worn one in quite a while.
posted by Dip Flash at 4:26 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
Around here it is way less than 1%. Maybe a tenth or less of that, at a guess, and this is liberal area in a state that took covid very seriously. My dentist's office had been requiring it but stopped sometime before my most recent appointment. That was the last setting I've been in with mandatory masking. I need to make a medical appointment soon and am curious what their protocols are now.
Like someone mentioned above, I give people with masks on as wide a berth as I can, with the assumption that they have a reason to be careful and don't want to be breathing more of my air than necessary. I still keep masks everywhere (glovebox, backpack, etc.) but haven't worn one in quite a while.
posted by Dip Flash at 4:26 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
I work with the public, in an indoor public space, with people of all ages but primarily children. I have been boosted as much as possible and will continue to do so. Outside of work, I don't frequent crowds because I need peace and quiet after all the people. I always test before getting together with friends or family, or just because, and as such I end up testing 1-2x a week. I wear a mask if anyone I know has tested positive, or has been exposed or if cases are going up. I stay home if I have any signs of an illness or cold.
However, despite my risky job and constantly testing, I have never had Covid, nor tested positive and been asymptomatic. This is true for some other members of my family. For reasons that are boring to go into, I know for a fact that we have the rare-ish immunogenetic type that recent research has suggested has a high probability of not having covid symptoms. This is part of why I constantly test, because I may never know if I have it.
posted by Maude_the_destroyer at 4:38 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
However, despite my risky job and constantly testing, I have never had Covid, nor tested positive and been asymptomatic. This is true for some other members of my family. For reasons that are boring to go into, I know for a fact that we have the rare-ish immunogenetic type that recent research has suggested has a high probability of not having covid symptoms. This is part of why I constantly test, because I may never know if I have it.
posted by Maude_the_destroyer at 4:38 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
My wife and I mask everywhere in public and have had all the available vaccinations (+flu). When we are required to go into the office (she's in 2 days/week, I only go once a month or so) we're masked the whole time.
Went to ComicCon and were masked the whole time. Maybe 2% of attendees were also masking. Went to see Taylor Swift outdoors and were masked due to crowd density. I'm planning the same for other large shows that are outdoors, but we're also seeing some small outdoor concerts and our level of caution is dependent on crowd density.
We've eaten a handful of meals indoors over the last few years but otherwise are eating outside or not eating out. We've traveled quite a bit and mask on planes and public transit. We have small indoor gatherings where folks don't show up if they're feeling bad or have been exposed and we've left gatherings that were planned safely but not executed safely.
We haven't had covid and are doing our damned best to never have it. My grandboss has it again, lots of people are testing (or not) positive, and if everyone's caution level would just fucking be any caution level we might actually get past this. As it is, I intend to mask indefinitely.
posted by komlord at 4:40 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
Went to ComicCon and were masked the whole time. Maybe 2% of attendees were also masking. Went to see Taylor Swift outdoors and were masked due to crowd density. I'm planning the same for other large shows that are outdoors, but we're also seeing some small outdoor concerts and our level of caution is dependent on crowd density.
We've eaten a handful of meals indoors over the last few years but otherwise are eating outside or not eating out. We've traveled quite a bit and mask on planes and public transit. We have small indoor gatherings where folks don't show up if they're feeling bad or have been exposed and we've left gatherings that were planned safely but not executed safely.
We haven't had covid and are doing our damned best to never have it. My grandboss has it again, lots of people are testing (or not) positive, and if everyone's caution level would just fucking be any caution level we might actually get past this. As it is, I intend to mask indefinitely.
posted by komlord at 4:40 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
Got the RSV vaccine, will get the flu vaccine, will get the new COVID booster when it comes out (I have gotten all the boosters). Medicare pays for it thank god. I mask in stores, on transit, on planes, and in meetings (N95). The grandchild was born just before the coronavirus and has been masking since before he was two, but is starting preschool soon and I’m assuming he will catch things. I will not babysit him any more as a result. I’m 72 and have asthma and when I got COVID when my husband was in the hospital (I was the only one in the family who did) the cough took a long time to subside.
I decided recently not to get a failed dental implant replaced after the post was removed because the oral surgeon’s staff were wearing their masks on their chins. I swear doctor’s offices have gotten worse at masking than they were before COVID. I try not to eat in restaurants or coffeehouses.
I’m often one of two or three people masked in any group because Philly is generally decent about masks.
posted by Peach at 4:44 PM on August 24, 2023 [3 favorites]
I decided recently not to get a failed dental implant replaced after the post was removed because the oral surgeon’s staff were wearing their masks on their chins. I swear doctor’s offices have gotten worse at masking than they were before COVID. I try not to eat in restaurants or coffeehouses.
I’m often one of two or three people masked in any group because Philly is generally decent about masks.
posted by Peach at 4:44 PM on August 24, 2023 [3 favorites]
The same thing I’ve been doing continuously since March 2020: wear an N95 mask anytime I’m in indoor public spaces, get all applicable vaccines, avoid crowded situations, keep the door to my office at work closed all the time, and run an air purifier in my office continuously.
posted by MexicanYenta at 4:55 PM on August 24, 2023 [6 favorites]
posted by MexicanYenta at 4:55 PM on August 24, 2023 [6 favorites]
I'm immunosuppressed (autoimmune problems plus drugs to keep my immune system from killing me) and I have masks in my bag and wear them pretty much everywhere indoors. I have permission from my doctor to go to concerts and be on planes with N95s, which I have done. I attended a tiny gaming con earlier this year where we all took lots of precautions (masks, Corsi-Rosenthal boxes, etc.) and nobody went home with COVID, or even con crud!
I got my last vaccine last fall and have been waiting for the new one to come out on doctor's instructions. We have a HEPA filter in the house as well and run it on the rare occasions we have guests.
I've been lax about restaurants since it's hotter than the nonexistent hot place, but as numbers have started going up locally, I'm restricting myself to Doordash more and more often. We do a lot of things delivery or curbside and are now being very careful about days and times to make sure we encounter as few people as we can. For instance, I got new glasses at Warby Parker in my local mall and when I got them adjusted, we went on a weeknight and were masked.
I feel like I should be doing more but I get out so rarely between the heat and other problems that even with the risks, going out at all is a victory. Most of my social life is online and honestly I feel like this is how it's going to be for the rest of my life.
posted by gentlyepigrams at 5:52 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
I got my last vaccine last fall and have been waiting for the new one to come out on doctor's instructions. We have a HEPA filter in the house as well and run it on the rare occasions we have guests.
I've been lax about restaurants since it's hotter than the nonexistent hot place, but as numbers have started going up locally, I'm restricting myself to Doordash more and more often. We do a lot of things delivery or curbside and are now being very careful about days and times to make sure we encounter as few people as we can. For instance, I got new glasses at Warby Parker in my local mall and when I got them adjusted, we went on a weeknight and were masked.
I feel like I should be doing more but I get out so rarely between the heat and other problems that even with the risks, going out at all is a victory. Most of my social life is online and honestly I feel like this is how it's going to be for the rest of my life.
posted by gentlyepigrams at 5:52 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
I am a Type 2 diabetic. I have a history of deep vein thrombosis (blood clot). I have no source of income except as a self-employed person. I am still dealing with the financial downfall of six hospitalizations and nine months of not being able to work in 2009. I have nobody who can take care of me (by any definition) if I get ill. Many of my clients are elderly and in delicate health; my own health aside, they cannot afford to risk having a cold, let alone the flu or COVID.
* I've got vaxxed in March/April 2001, October 2021, April 2022, and October 2022 (bivalent). My pharmacist retired and the new one refused to give me the 6-month booster this past April because I didn't "count" as immunocompromised, and I've been caught in the middle between my endocrinologist who wants me to get every booster and providers, who've been persnickety. AS SOON AS IT BECOMES AVAILABLE, I'm getting the next booster in Sept/Oct.
* I will get a flu shot. I've gotten a flu shot every year in the last week of September or first week of October for 30+ years with one exception; the year I didn't bother, I got so sick, I missed three weeks of work (old career), came back and passed out in the hallway the first day back, and missed another week of work. That was a bad flu year.
* I'm researching the RSV vaccine, but barring any concerns from my endocrinologist, I'll get that.
(I will space out all three shots: flu, COVID a week later, RSV a week after that. I understand the appeal of getting multiple shots in one day, but I have a complex medical history, and being able to trace symptoms to causes is important.)
* I never stopped masking. Since March 2020, I have worn a KN95 mask every place I've gone in public (grocery store, doctor's office, to get a hair cut). Every day. Always. When my car was stolen two weeks ago, I was in such shock, I answered the door to the police officer unmasked and almost immediately jumped back and ran back in to mask up.
However, I did stop masking while working with clients as long as we are about 6-8 feet apart, and they're vaxxed and feeling entirely well. (I've given them fee-free cancelations any time they feel icky, even with "allergies.".) In such cases, I'm in their homes or (private) offices and we are the only people present. For my clients for whom we're doing close-up work (like paper organizing), we're either masked or I'm doing virtual work on Zoom. If the clients have children who come home near the end of our session, I'm put my mask back on. (I absolutely love tiny humans, but they are germy.)
* I have not eaten IN a restaurant since March 13, 2020. I will eat on patios unmasked, provided the tables are widely spaced enough. I generally put my mask on when the server approaches. I have not been on an airplane since late 2019; I've given up a trip to Ireland, all of my conferences, and going "home." I have gone to no concerts, professional meetings, or anyplace where groups of people are together. Even masked in grocery stores, I go at the least crowded times, like late at night.
I'm scared of COVID, but I'm terrified of Long COVID. I will do anything I can financially or socially afford to prevent getting sick.
Meanwhile, where are you folks getting your Enovid?
posted by The Wrong Kind of Cheese at 6:18 PM on August 24, 2023 [10 favorites]
* I've got vaxxed in March/April 2001, October 2021, April 2022, and October 2022 (bivalent). My pharmacist retired and the new one refused to give me the 6-month booster this past April because I didn't "count" as immunocompromised, and I've been caught in the middle between my endocrinologist who wants me to get every booster and providers, who've been persnickety. AS SOON AS IT BECOMES AVAILABLE, I'm getting the next booster in Sept/Oct.
* I will get a flu shot. I've gotten a flu shot every year in the last week of September or first week of October for 30+ years with one exception; the year I didn't bother, I got so sick, I missed three weeks of work (old career), came back and passed out in the hallway the first day back, and missed another week of work. That was a bad flu year.
* I'm researching the RSV vaccine, but barring any concerns from my endocrinologist, I'll get that.
(I will space out all three shots: flu, COVID a week later, RSV a week after that. I understand the appeal of getting multiple shots in one day, but I have a complex medical history, and being able to trace symptoms to causes is important.)
* I never stopped masking. Since March 2020, I have worn a KN95 mask every place I've gone in public (grocery store, doctor's office, to get a hair cut). Every day. Always. When my car was stolen two weeks ago, I was in such shock, I answered the door to the police officer unmasked and almost immediately jumped back and ran back in to mask up.
However, I did stop masking while working with clients as long as we are about 6-8 feet apart, and they're vaxxed and feeling entirely well. (I've given them fee-free cancelations any time they feel icky, even with "allergies.".) In such cases, I'm in their homes or (private) offices and we are the only people present. For my clients for whom we're doing close-up work (like paper organizing), we're either masked or I'm doing virtual work on Zoom. If the clients have children who come home near the end of our session, I'm put my mask back on. (I absolutely love tiny humans, but they are germy.)
* I have not eaten IN a restaurant since March 13, 2020. I will eat on patios unmasked, provided the tables are widely spaced enough. I generally put my mask on when the server approaches. I have not been on an airplane since late 2019; I've given up a trip to Ireland, all of my conferences, and going "home." I have gone to no concerts, professional meetings, or anyplace where groups of people are together. Even masked in grocery stores, I go at the least crowded times, like late at night.
I'm scared of COVID, but I'm terrified of Long COVID. I will do anything I can financially or socially afford to prevent getting sick.
Meanwhile, where are you folks getting your Enovid?
posted by The Wrong Kind of Cheese at 6:18 PM on August 24, 2023 [10 favorites]
N95 masks or equivalent when asked, in crowded indoor spaces, or when spending time with immunocompromised friends. Fabric masks, last I checked, were not particularly better than no mask for covid, though they are better than nothing for various other things and very good for wearing when you are the one who is ill and need to be out and about.
Booster as soon as it’s available this fall, plus flu shot of course. Will probably hold off on visiting friends with kids until I have those shots once school starts for them.
I’ve spent the past year or so paying attention to different establishments I like to see about things like do the food workers wear masks and gloves, do they have good ventilation, what hours are the busiest, do they have hours that are slower than usual… As the weather turns I will inevitably make choices on where to eat and shop based more on those factors sometimes than distance or price. A lot of places that seemed gung-ho about worker protections and community safety dropped it all like the act it was in the last year, so the places that have kept it up will get my business.
I’m traveling next week, across the country in a plane, then a shuttle to a hotel, then meeting family, and upon return it will be a bus ride across states to the airport again. I intend to wear an N95 on the bus, in the two airports, and the shuttle, plus masking on the plane during boarding, takeoff, landing, and exit. Air circulation during those times on planes are when things get the most churned up - not masking during pressurized flight is a comfort risk I will decide when I’m there and can gauge the other passengers and my own health. I acknowledge that this is, you know, risky, but travel is a hell of sensory bullshit for me even without a pandemic.
posted by Mizu at 6:27 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
Booster as soon as it’s available this fall, plus flu shot of course. Will probably hold off on visiting friends with kids until I have those shots once school starts for them.
I’ve spent the past year or so paying attention to different establishments I like to see about things like do the food workers wear masks and gloves, do they have good ventilation, what hours are the busiest, do they have hours that are slower than usual… As the weather turns I will inevitably make choices on where to eat and shop based more on those factors sometimes than distance or price. A lot of places that seemed gung-ho about worker protections and community safety dropped it all like the act it was in the last year, so the places that have kept it up will get my business.
I’m traveling next week, across the country in a plane, then a shuttle to a hotel, then meeting family, and upon return it will be a bus ride across states to the airport again. I intend to wear an N95 on the bus, in the two airports, and the shuttle, plus masking on the plane during boarding, takeoff, landing, and exit. Air circulation during those times on planes are when things get the most churned up - not masking during pressurized flight is a comfort risk I will decide when I’m there and can gauge the other passengers and my own health. I acknowledge that this is, you know, risky, but travel is a hell of sensory bullshit for me even without a pandemic.
posted by Mizu at 6:27 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
I'll get a booster this fall or winter. I work indoors in a mandatory in person setting and have done so continuously, except for a few weeks in March 2020. I masked at work and in public when it was mandatory. I didn't have a problem with it. But in all honesty I'm done with masking now. I won't wear one again unless something huge changes or it becomes mandatory again. I am not planning on limiting any personal activities. Life's short and I'm moving on.
posted by bepe at 6:30 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by bepe at 6:30 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
Response by poster: Thank you for the answers! I was curiou - I'm a PH person and was reading Your Local Epi - we're clearly headed for a wave here in the n hemi so I was curious about folks' plans.
I'm vaxxed and boostered and bivalent boostered twice, anti-social, have had covid several times (I catch every single URI I'm exposed to - not being sick all winter every winter has been a revelation that has me happily mask-committed).
I still struggle with smell and brain. I wfh. I rarely eat/drink out but have occasionally, more in spring/early summer than after July. I masked religiously until the last month when I started slacking until air quality tanked (smoke), and am about to order more masks (h/t to projectn95.org! Careful with shipping but so nice to be confident of quality, function, and certifications).
I'm planning on the new booster ASAP, flu ASAP, and my only travel will be early Oct (fam), after which I will isolate and test. I'll still be surprised if I don't get covud/flu/rsv from my family or somehow during travel. I forget anyone considers surgical masks 'masking' - I'm n95/ kn95 or bust.
posted by esoteric things at 6:39 PM on August 24, 2023 [4 favorites]
I'm vaxxed and boostered and bivalent boostered twice, anti-social, have had covid several times (I catch every single URI I'm exposed to - not being sick all winter every winter has been a revelation that has me happily mask-committed).
I still struggle with smell and brain. I wfh. I rarely eat/drink out but have occasionally, more in spring/early summer than after July. I masked religiously until the last month when I started slacking until air quality tanked (smoke), and am about to order more masks (h/t to projectn95.org! Careful with shipping but so nice to be confident of quality, function, and certifications).
I'm planning on the new booster ASAP, flu ASAP, and my only travel will be early Oct (fam), after which I will isolate and test. I'll still be surprised if I don't get covud/flu/rsv from my family or somehow during travel. I forget anyone considers surgical masks 'masking' - I'm n95/ kn95 or bust.
posted by esoteric things at 6:39 PM on August 24, 2023 [4 favorites]
It feels weird writing this down, not just because I've never actually written it down, but also before reading this thread, I thought we were the only ones really still thinking about this and taking it deadly seriously.
We never stopped masking or taking the whole thing seriously. One of us has several health conditions that are totally fine, but are comorbidant with a COVID infection. Think: propensity for blood clots, potential cancer, etc. Sure, it seems like so many infections are no big deal, and long Covid is a small probability, but still...
But—big but here—we can get to eliminating something like 90% of the risk with really minor inconveniences. We mask (N95 or KN95) anytime we are inside with other people or in substantially crowded situations. We don't eat inside at restaurants. I'm the only one in my office that wears masks. I mean, that's about it—that eliminates nearly all the risk and we can otherwise live our lives. I've flown cross country twice but wore a mask (and both times was the only one masked). It totally sucks not wolfing down some beers at some punk show in a basement, but covid sucks more?
Of course this calculus would change if we had kids or jobs that would require something different than the typical copy/pasting of the white collar class. But, we don't, so why not just be a little vigilant?
Two weeks ago I spent three days in a really good rural hospital in Vermont while my mother died of non-covid-related causes. We were the only ones in the entire hospital with masks on for, which originally to me seemed a little odd, but in hindsight, I can understand the nurses, probably having already suffered 5-20 covid infections, rather just get it again than wear a mask for a 12-hour shift. I mean, it really starts rubbing you in hard ways and honestly hurts after awhile. Sleeping in one sucked. But we managed to not get the virus there, and, as far as we can tell, still haven't gotten it at all.
We both have all the vaccines we're allowed to: In the US I believe that means we both have had four jabs, but I may be missing one or or twelve (weirdly only the third knocked me out). Looking forward to the next one. Even before all this, I would never go a winter without a flu shot. This whole thing did remind me to get a tDap booster, so no tetanus for me either.
It is pretty great that I haven't been sick in three years.
posted by General Malaise at 6:45 PM on August 24, 2023 [8 favorites]
We never stopped masking or taking the whole thing seriously. One of us has several health conditions that are totally fine, but are comorbidant with a COVID infection. Think: propensity for blood clots, potential cancer, etc. Sure, it seems like so many infections are no big deal, and long Covid is a small probability, but still...
But—big but here—we can get to eliminating something like 90% of the risk with really minor inconveniences. We mask (N95 or KN95) anytime we are inside with other people or in substantially crowded situations. We don't eat inside at restaurants. I'm the only one in my office that wears masks. I mean, that's about it—that eliminates nearly all the risk and we can otherwise live our lives. I've flown cross country twice but wore a mask (and both times was the only one masked). It totally sucks not wolfing down some beers at some punk show in a basement, but covid sucks more?
Of course this calculus would change if we had kids or jobs that would require something different than the typical copy/pasting of the white collar class. But, we don't, so why not just be a little vigilant?
Two weeks ago I spent three days in a really good rural hospital in Vermont while my mother died of non-covid-related causes. We were the only ones in the entire hospital with masks on for, which originally to me seemed a little odd, but in hindsight, I can understand the nurses, probably having already suffered 5-20 covid infections, rather just get it again than wear a mask for a 12-hour shift. I mean, it really starts rubbing you in hard ways and honestly hurts after awhile. Sleeping in one sucked. But we managed to not get the virus there, and, as far as we can tell, still haven't gotten it at all.
We both have all the vaccines we're allowed to: In the US I believe that means we both have had four jabs, but I may be missing one or or twelve (weirdly only the third knocked me out). Looking forward to the next one. Even before all this, I would never go a winter without a flu shot. This whole thing did remind me to get a tDap booster, so no tetanus for me either.
It is pretty great that I haven't been sick in three years.
posted by General Malaise at 6:45 PM on August 24, 2023 [8 favorites]
Timed things so I can work entirely from home this year, mask with n95 in public (indoors or crowded outdoor settings), will get my next booster shot if and when my province allows it (not happy that I haven’t been allowed a booster since my last one last fall). My partner mostly masks at work, though has been a bit lax when no one else is around (their work is much quieter over the summers), and gets boosters when available on my reminder. We have been unmasked indoors with small consistent social group, but that includes two folks who have very public facing jobs, one of whom I recently learned doesn’t mask while at work. So my partner and I will have to have a conversation about that as cases increase this fall. (The other of whom, partner’s sibling, has an air filter indoors now, and has been okay at masking in the past, so probably will be again this fall when they go back to teaching the germy kids? I know I can talk to partner’s sibling before any visits, though, and they’ve been good at letting us know or cancelling if anyone in their family isn’t feeling well.) We eat at the occasional non-crowded outdoor patio, and order take out. We would almost certainly not have access to Paxlovid if we caught COVID, and I haven’t heard of anything like Enovid being available anywhere in Canada, so air filtration, masking, and vaccinations are what we’ve got.
We’ll be doing all that at least while my beloved but very senior, unvaccinated (because they don’t make covid vaccines for pets yet, even though cats have been show to also be susceptible), and with multiple relevant comorbidities cat is still alive. Hopefully they’ll have figured out the long covid stuff by the time we would potentially be re-assessing. I also worry about my parents in visiting them, but they were getting lax on masking last spring, despite my discussing precautions with them before my visit. So that might impact future family holiday visits this year/while cat is still around. I’ve also resumed visits with other close friends who live farther away so who I would only see once or twice a year anyway; but they have have been good at taking extra precautions in the lead-up to visits, including masking in public and rapid testing ahead of time (and also stay up to date on their vaccines). We’re fortunate to have a drive-in movie theatre in the general area, for low risk weekend entertainment.
posted by eviemath at 7:05 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
We’ll be doing all that at least while my beloved but very senior, unvaccinated (because they don’t make covid vaccines for pets yet, even though cats have been show to also be susceptible), and with multiple relevant comorbidities cat is still alive. Hopefully they’ll have figured out the long covid stuff by the time we would potentially be re-assessing. I also worry about my parents in visiting them, but they were getting lax on masking last spring, despite my discussing precautions with them before my visit. So that might impact future family holiday visits this year/while cat is still around. I’ve also resumed visits with other close friends who live farther away so who I would only see once or twice a year anyway; but they have have been good at taking extra precautions in the lead-up to visits, including masking in public and rapid testing ahead of time (and also stay up to date on their vaccines). We’re fortunate to have a drive-in movie theatre in the general area, for low risk weekend entertainment.
posted by eviemath at 7:05 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
Nobody masks at the vet anymore, and each of the two cats need twice annual senior blood work and check-ups. So that’s the other situation that worries me. At least their exam rooms have upgraded ventilation and air filtration.
posted by eviemath at 7:17 PM on August 24, 2023
posted by eviemath at 7:17 PM on August 24, 2023
Thanks for this thread, it prompted me to check my mask supply and make an order to stock up again! I had mostly stopped masking during the terribly hot weeks of summer but will be doing so again now that temperatures are bearable around here again. I will also be trying to time the transit commute for my (manadatory, sigh) in-office days for off-peak hours and getting the booster when I can.
Tbh probably the most impactful thing I'll be doing, public health-wise, is actually nagging, haranguing, and guilt-tripping my parents non-stop to get the booster ASAP once it is available to them - they are much, much more sociable and much more blasé about the whole Covid thing than I am.
posted by btfreek at 7:29 PM on August 24, 2023 [4 favorites]
Tbh probably the most impactful thing I'll be doing, public health-wise, is actually nagging, haranguing, and guilt-tripping my parents non-stop to get the booster ASAP once it is available to them - they are much, much more sociable and much more blasé about the whole Covid thing than I am.
posted by btfreek at 7:29 PM on August 24, 2023 [4 favorites]
I'm in the UK, where they're not giving boosters to under-65s at all this autumn/winter (except carers and those with certain health conditions).
You also can't get Paxlovid here unless you're extremely old/vulnerable. Not "can't get it on the NHS"-- you can't get it privately either. Or the booster.
I plan to be in the US for work in early November, so I could get boosted then. But I had the bivalent booster in late May, so maybe November is too soon?
(I'm jittery about the US trip because it is going to be a hotbed of pestilence. I'll mask up while travelling and in indoor public spaces generally)
Here in London I mask in crowded indoor spaces, including public transport.
If it's indoors but not crowded, often I'll leave the mask off. Maybe that's too lax? I don't know.
In those indoor spaces, I try to keep a distance from school-age kids and anyone who seems like they have respiratory symptoms, and generally be mindful of the "3 Cs" (closed spaces, crowds, close contact).
posted by Pallas Athena at 7:38 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
You also can't get Paxlovid here unless you're extremely old/vulnerable. Not "can't get it on the NHS"-- you can't get it privately either. Or the booster.
I plan to be in the US for work in early November, so I could get boosted then. But I had the bivalent booster in late May, so maybe November is too soon?
(I'm jittery about the US trip because it is going to be a hotbed of pestilence. I'll mask up while travelling and in indoor public spaces generally)
Here in London I mask in crowded indoor spaces, including public transport.
If it's indoors but not crowded, often I'll leave the mask off. Maybe that's too lax? I don't know.
In those indoor spaces, I try to keep a distance from school-age kids and anyone who seems like they have respiratory symptoms, and generally be mindful of the "3 Cs" (closed spaces, crowds, close contact).
posted by Pallas Athena at 7:38 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
At my last booster, the pharmacist said twice a year was a good frequency. US guidelines are even more frequent. So May to November sounds just about right.
posted by eviemath at 7:41 PM on August 24, 2023 [3 favorites]
posted by eviemath at 7:41 PM on August 24, 2023 [3 favorites]
(Side note: the three Cs were from back when they thought COVID was spread by droplets, before they figured out it was airborne. So the closeness part should probably be updated, though I’m not sure what starts with c that would encapsulate having good ventilation or air filtration?)
posted by eviemath at 7:44 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by eviemath at 7:44 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
I wear an N95 if I'm indoors with more than six people. That number reduces my statistical risk a good amount while still allowing me to have a social life (I have a hard time connecting with people while masked). I miss parties and concerts but not enough to take the risk of indoor ones.
posted by metasarah at 8:32 PM on August 24, 2023 [3 favorites]
posted by metasarah at 8:32 PM on August 24, 2023 [3 favorites]
South Africa.
Masked and isolated very carefully for 2020-2022 sometime? Got vaccinated and one booster.
My husband is not allowed to mask at work and there's no meaningful social distancing at his work since the pandemic began.
He's gotten Covid multiple times and so have I.
My husband's work gives him time off if he's had a positive test but not otherwise, and at least once he's had to go to work with Covid because the test was a false negative.
There's no access to boosters or home tests, we have to go to the doctor or a roadside clinic to be tested and it's expensive, so most people I know no longer get tested.
It's quite difficult to get hold of N95 equivalent masks, have tracked some down but they are so expensive we only wear them when we're actually sick and have to go out (doctors appointment etc) otherwise we don't mask at all.
I see a masked person about twice a month. It seems futile to mask with surgical masks (which is the best available to us) when hardly anyone else is masking at all. My masking does hardly anything to protect others because they're constantly exposed to other people not masking. There's no stigma around masking here, it was never politicised.
So tldr is that I'm not doing much to avoid getting Covid because it seems futile. I'm completely aware of the dangers, and have given up hope.
posted by Zumbador at 9:14 PM on August 24, 2023 [6 favorites]
Masked and isolated very carefully for 2020-2022 sometime? Got vaccinated and one booster.
My husband is not allowed to mask at work and there's no meaningful social distancing at his work since the pandemic began.
He's gotten Covid multiple times and so have I.
My husband's work gives him time off if he's had a positive test but not otherwise, and at least once he's had to go to work with Covid because the test was a false negative.
There's no access to boosters or home tests, we have to go to the doctor or a roadside clinic to be tested and it's expensive, so most people I know no longer get tested.
It's quite difficult to get hold of N95 equivalent masks, have tracked some down but they are so expensive we only wear them when we're actually sick and have to go out (doctors appointment etc) otherwise we don't mask at all.
I see a masked person about twice a month. It seems futile to mask with surgical masks (which is the best available to us) when hardly anyone else is masking at all. My masking does hardly anything to protect others because they're constantly exposed to other people not masking. There's no stigma around masking here, it was never politicised.
So tldr is that I'm not doing much to avoid getting Covid because it seems futile. I'm completely aware of the dangers, and have given up hope.
posted by Zumbador at 9:14 PM on August 24, 2023 [6 favorites]
Australia here - have had the original two shots plus one booster and no plans at this stage to get more, although they are readily available to anyone that wants them. I mostly don't wear a mask, but always have one with me and will put it on if I feel at all nervous about the environment I'm in. I do mask up on planes and trains. I do avoid people wearing masks because I assume they are vulnerable in some way.
We're leaving on a cruise tomorrow. They seem to have taken reasonable precautions, but who knows for sure? Everyone has to test negative no more than 24 hours before boarding, but that leaves room for people who have been infected but not far enough along to test positive, or for people who cheat on the (very lax) evidentiary requirements. We'll take masks everywhere with us, of course, but would only wear them if close contact was unavoidable.
No doubt COVID is more prevalent than reported, but it has been pretty much BAU around here over the winter. The only person I know who got COVID in the last year or so was my wife (I didn't get it then and have never had it) and she got it from a resident where she works (aged care facility) who gleefully announced that they'd tested positive a week earlier and didn't tell anyone. Probably 5% or so of people in public wear masks (I work from home so there may be more in some settings I don't see). There's no stigma with wearing a mask and, while some people no doubt have Opinions On The Topic, nobody seems to be getting attention for doing so.
I think I'm more or less in line with most people here - taking some precautions where there is an apparent risk, but 99% of the time just going about life. Avoiding people wearing masks seems like pretty common behaviour when I'm out and about.
posted by dg at 10:04 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
We're leaving on a cruise tomorrow. They seem to have taken reasonable precautions, but who knows for sure? Everyone has to test negative no more than 24 hours before boarding, but that leaves room for people who have been infected but not far enough along to test positive, or for people who cheat on the (very lax) evidentiary requirements. We'll take masks everywhere with us, of course, but would only wear them if close contact was unavoidable.
No doubt COVID is more prevalent than reported, but it has been pretty much BAU around here over the winter. The only person I know who got COVID in the last year or so was my wife (I didn't get it then and have never had it) and she got it from a resident where she works (aged care facility) who gleefully announced that they'd tested positive a week earlier and didn't tell anyone. Probably 5% or so of people in public wear masks (I work from home so there may be more in some settings I don't see). There's no stigma with wearing a mask and, while some people no doubt have Opinions On The Topic, nobody seems to be getting attention for doing so.
I think I'm more or less in line with most people here - taking some precautions where there is an apparent risk, but 99% of the time just going about life. Avoiding people wearing masks seems like pretty common behaviour when I'm out and about.
posted by dg at 10:04 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]
Unless we are reasonably sure that someone else's exhaled breath has been diluted by 10,000X we wear a mask. So outdoors when within 20 feet of people, and indoors always. Usually wear a P100, lately it's been a Stealth Lite.
I did go out for a drink at a bar with a friend. I was wearing a Drager 3300 with a sipmask installed, so I could drink with a straw without removing the mask.
Plan to get the Novax booster when it's available.
I just got a PAPR, will likely wear it on mass transit.
posted by Sophont at 10:11 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
I did go out for a drink at a bar with a friend. I was wearing a Drager 3300 with a sipmask installed, so I could drink with a straw without removing the mask.
Plan to get the Novax booster when it's available.
I just got a PAPR, will likely wear it on mass transit.
posted by Sophont at 10:11 PM on August 24, 2023 [2 favorites]
FWIW, there is already data out on Long Covid in people who are fully vaccinated - this is new as of July 2023, from the biggest Long Covid NIH RECOVER research project:
“When we look at people infected with the most recent, omicron variant, & were vaccinated we are still seeing a pretty substantive rate of Long Covid — about 10%”
https://twitter.com/loscharlos/status/1682453423650934784
posted by todolos at 10:56 PM on August 24, 2023 [5 favorites]
“When we look at people infected with the most recent, omicron variant, & were vaccinated we are still seeing a pretty substantive rate of Long Covid — about 10%”
https://twitter.com/loscharlos/status/1682453423650934784
posted by todolos at 10:56 PM on August 24, 2023 [5 favorites]
But there was a big review in JAMA in March which was much more optimistic. That's why I want to wait on more data - we're still getting a lot of contradictory stuff.
And I haven't seen much good data on post-vaccine/post-booster long covid that breaks it out by severity. Like, technically I have long covid (which does not thrill me, let me tell you!) - I had lingering breathlessness while biking for several months and I have increased frequency ocular migraines, probably due to nerve inflammation at least based on a couple of papers I found. This sucks, and it's one reason I really don't want another infection, but it hasn't had a major effect on my life. A ten percent chance of a few months of increased ocular migraines is really different from a ten percent chance of being bedridden.
And a lot of the data that I've seen doesn't do a good job breaking out long covid from background stuff - at any given point, of course, people are getting new illnesses and new symptoms regardless of covid, but only some of the research I've seen says something like "1 percent of people developed new-onset Condition when covid was not involved but 5 percent developed it after covid", so it's not always possible to get what I'd like for a good risk assessment.
Almost everyone I know has had covid, several twice now. A number of people have, like me, had lingering mild symptoms. One person has had serious long covid, but was infected in summer 2020. Now, to me this proves very little - it could be that once almost everyone I know has had multiple infections, things are going to look a lot worse, it could be that I know a bunch of outliers, it could be that further down the road we are all going to have more serious consequences. But because almost everyone I know has had covid and there has been very little definite bad post-covid stuff so far, that makes me feel that I would like more data.
I think that erring on the side of caution is the path to take but I do just see so much contradictory research that I don't really feel confident in any one specific assessment within a broad range of "covid is bad, some people get really extremely sick and you don't want to be one of them" viewpoints.
posted by Frowner at 4:43 AM on August 25, 2023 [8 favorites]
And I haven't seen much good data on post-vaccine/post-booster long covid that breaks it out by severity. Like, technically I have long covid (which does not thrill me, let me tell you!) - I had lingering breathlessness while biking for several months and I have increased frequency ocular migraines, probably due to nerve inflammation at least based on a couple of papers I found. This sucks, and it's one reason I really don't want another infection, but it hasn't had a major effect on my life. A ten percent chance of a few months of increased ocular migraines is really different from a ten percent chance of being bedridden.
And a lot of the data that I've seen doesn't do a good job breaking out long covid from background stuff - at any given point, of course, people are getting new illnesses and new symptoms regardless of covid, but only some of the research I've seen says something like "1 percent of people developed new-onset Condition when covid was not involved but 5 percent developed it after covid", so it's not always possible to get what I'd like for a good risk assessment.
Almost everyone I know has had covid, several twice now. A number of people have, like me, had lingering mild symptoms. One person has had serious long covid, but was infected in summer 2020. Now, to me this proves very little - it could be that once almost everyone I know has had multiple infections, things are going to look a lot worse, it could be that I know a bunch of outliers, it could be that further down the road we are all going to have more serious consequences. But because almost everyone I know has had covid and there has been very little definite bad post-covid stuff so far, that makes me feel that I would like more data.
I think that erring on the side of caution is the path to take but I do just see so much contradictory research that I don't really feel confident in any one specific assessment within a broad range of "covid is bad, some people get really extremely sick and you don't want to be one of them" viewpoints.
posted by Frowner at 4:43 AM on August 25, 2023 [8 favorites]
My precautions have decreased a huge amount in the past year. I was extremely cautious and rarely went out of the house at all (and always masked when not outdoors) until my toddler started daycare a year ago, and she got vaccinated around the same time. Now I'm closer to an average person and don't think about it on a daily basis unless someone is coughing nearby or I'm somewhere like a hospital.
To my knowledge, I haven't caught covid yet, although with my daughter in daycare catching a million colds that does seem unlikely so we may have missed it (her daycare caretaker even caught covid once, but we all tested negative and were asymptomatic). Almost everyone I know has caught covid, often repeatedly. My exposure level otherwise is quite low though since I work from home and rarely go out anywhere (e.g. 3 restaurant outings since 2020, all in the past 6 months). They've recently stopped offering free test kits here, and they're expensive, which is annoying.
I'm very pro-vax and will be following the local public health recommendation to get my next covid booster (and my daughter's, if recommended) closer to flu season instead of now, despite being due for it now.
I've stopped masking everywhere except doctors/hospitals, and it seems like a good idea to keep masking in those places forever. I take public transit sometimes and don't mask there (I occasionally see others that do). I don't attend concerts or other similar large events, though this is more due to preference than covid (if I went to one, I'd likely mask, depending on the nature and location of the event).
I haven't gone out while sick with covid-like symptoms (or covid itself) yet, but if I have to go out at some point I'll wear a mask.
posted by randomnity at 6:59 AM on August 25, 2023 [1 favorite]
To my knowledge, I haven't caught covid yet, although with my daughter in daycare catching a million colds that does seem unlikely so we may have missed it (her daycare caretaker even caught covid once, but we all tested negative and were asymptomatic). Almost everyone I know has caught covid, often repeatedly. My exposure level otherwise is quite low though since I work from home and rarely go out anywhere (e.g. 3 restaurant outings since 2020, all in the past 6 months). They've recently stopped offering free test kits here, and they're expensive, which is annoying.
I'm very pro-vax and will be following the local public health recommendation to get my next covid booster (and my daughter's, if recommended) closer to flu season instead of now, despite being due for it now.
I've stopped masking everywhere except doctors/hospitals, and it seems like a good idea to keep masking in those places forever. I take public transit sometimes and don't mask there (I occasionally see others that do). I don't attend concerts or other similar large events, though this is more due to preference than covid (if I went to one, I'd likely mask, depending on the nature and location of the event).
I haven't gone out while sick with covid-like symptoms (or covid itself) yet, but if I have to go out at some point I'll wear a mask.
posted by randomnity at 6:59 AM on August 25, 2023 [1 favorite]
Anyone in the know, how are things, COVID-wise, in the Netherlands? We'll be traveling there soon.
I haven't had to fly as much since COVID, and I did a few flights while masking was still required onboard. I've also taken trips since then, after masking was no longer required. Are the Dutch masking up on the regular, or is it pretty lax over there? I think I might try to get *a* booster, whichever I can, before I go. I know if I wait until after the trip, I'll have to answer yes to the travel abroad question, and I figure it would be better to avoid having to do that.
posted by emelenjr at 7:45 AM on August 25, 2023 [1 favorite]
I haven't had to fly as much since COVID, and I did a few flights while masking was still required onboard. I've also taken trips since then, after masking was no longer required. Are the Dutch masking up on the regular, or is it pretty lax over there? I think I might try to get *a* booster, whichever I can, before I go. I know if I wait until after the trip, I'll have to answer yes to the travel abroad question, and I figure it would be better to avoid having to do that.
posted by emelenjr at 7:45 AM on August 25, 2023 [1 favorite]
Frowner, I’ve been thinking about the gap too between formal and informal evidence about long Covid, and the best sense I can make is twofold. One, “post Covid condition” includes a whole lot of stuff that is bad but/and does not look like “bedridden.” Two, many of these other things are things we do not normally have an attribution for, and don’t generally look for one for, beyond “poor lifestyle choices,” which in America is somehow both true and false. If you know people who have developed new-onset diabetes that they would not have if not for a Covid case, for example, they aren’t going to go telling people about it, because they won’t know, and because diabetes (type 2 at least) is one of those conditions we treat as a mark of sin. They’re as likely to ascribe it to weight gain during the early pandemic, or a family history, or whatever. And it’s very normal to make that kind of analysis because we do not usually get a better one! Even when associations are clear — lead paint is bad for children — we cannot usually say “my child struggled in school BECAUSE I live in a house with contaminated windows.” It’s only in exceptional cases, I think, like HIV, where we might be able to say “I got Kaposi’s sarcoma BECAUSE I got HIV.”
tl;dr I think the “long Covid” story needs caveats it sometimes does not get, but I trust the formal analyses more than the informal ones.
posted by eirias at 7:48 AM on August 25, 2023 [7 favorites]
tl;dr I think the “long Covid” story needs caveats it sometimes does not get, but I trust the formal analyses more than the informal ones.
posted by eirias at 7:48 AM on August 25, 2023 [7 favorites]
P.S. this is a little bit off topic, but my newish nerdy hobby is learning about potential connections between infectious disease and neurodegenerative disease. There is an incredible long watch, if I can mutilate a phrase, on a potential relationship between Alzheimer’s disease and infectious disease, in particular herpesvirus. This is in no way settled science — there are talks that present what looks like really persuasive evidence followed by talks that dump a bunch of cold water on the idea — but it has been so illuminating to learn about how *complicated* it is to ask this question. And right around the lunch break there is a talk where the theme is, how do we usefully ask questions about the consequences of a virus where the prevalence is 100%? It was so so interesting to hear the scientists after this talk batting around ideas. We have no idea, yet, with Covid, Covid is a baby. (Covid doesn’t even come up in this seminar so far, by the way.) But if you are really interested in process issues around investigating long term consequences of acute infections, this is worth some of your time.
posted by eirias at 7:57 AM on August 25, 2023 [8 favorites]
posted by eirias at 7:57 AM on August 25, 2023 [8 favorites]
WaPo, no paywall. When you have covid, here’s how you know you are no longer contagious
posted by theora55 at 10:10 AM on August 25, 2023
posted by theora55 at 10:10 AM on August 25, 2023
To quote JohnnyGunn above, "I am living my life. [...] If asked to wear a mask, I will politely (silently without discussion) wear it, but I have no current plans to proactively wear one."
I'm in the SF Bay Area. Everyone I know is fully vaccinated. I rarely see people with masks but when I do, I leave them extra space.
I'll consider a fifth booster when new variant coverage is available. I've been repeatedly exposed but so far neither tested positive nor felt symptoms.
posted by tangerine at 12:51 PM on August 25, 2023
I'm in the SF Bay Area. Everyone I know is fully vaccinated. I rarely see people with masks but when I do, I leave them extra space.
I'll consider a fifth booster when new variant coverage is available. I've been repeatedly exposed but so far neither tested positive nor felt symptoms.
posted by tangerine at 12:51 PM on August 25, 2023
Still masking anywhere indoors besides my own house, still ordering takeout whenever we travel, haven’t been on a plane since 2017 (though my kid and spouse flew this past spring), still working remotely, and waiting anxiously for the next booster.
My kid is 10 and has a complex chronic health condition, so I will do literally anything to keep from adding long COVID to his burden. He masks at school without complaint but does eat lunch with the whole grade indoors, so I expect COVID to eventually hit us through that exposure route (or middle school band class). He’s done swimming lessons indoors without a mask, as I figured at a certain point the risk of drowning here in lake country was higher than dying of COVID.
I rejoined and then stopped playing in my community orchestra last fall because I sat in front of the brass instruments and could not get rid of aerosol-related anxiety. I have seen a couple movies with a friend during off-peak hours, masked. We sometimes have dinner at my parents’ house with all the doors and windows open, otherwise we eat on the patio. My husband and I had our biggest fight ever last month when he decided that my COVID anxiety was ruining his life. Then we had a relative test positive literally hours after visiting our house, and I haven’t heard a complaint about masks or my Corsi Rosenthal boxes since.
I just ordered a box of replacement filters for my Flo mask, a couple SIP valves to put in our N95s, and a new batch of masks for my kid to wear this fall. I might upgrade the Corsi Rosenthal boxes to commercial units because I find the duct tape assembly process to be a pain, but we’ll see how much my time is worth after I price them out for real.
posted by Maarika at 1:33 PM on August 25, 2023 [7 favorites]
My kid is 10 and has a complex chronic health condition, so I will do literally anything to keep from adding long COVID to his burden. He masks at school without complaint but does eat lunch with the whole grade indoors, so I expect COVID to eventually hit us through that exposure route (or middle school band class). He’s done swimming lessons indoors without a mask, as I figured at a certain point the risk of drowning here in lake country was higher than dying of COVID.
I rejoined and then stopped playing in my community orchestra last fall because I sat in front of the brass instruments and could not get rid of aerosol-related anxiety. I have seen a couple movies with a friend during off-peak hours, masked. We sometimes have dinner at my parents’ house with all the doors and windows open, otherwise we eat on the patio. My husband and I had our biggest fight ever last month when he decided that my COVID anxiety was ruining his life. Then we had a relative test positive literally hours after visiting our house, and I haven’t heard a complaint about masks or my Corsi Rosenthal boxes since.
I just ordered a box of replacement filters for my Flo mask, a couple SIP valves to put in our N95s, and a new batch of masks for my kid to wear this fall. I might upgrade the Corsi Rosenthal boxes to commercial units because I find the duct tape assembly process to be a pain, but we’ll see how much my time is worth after I price them out for real.
posted by Maarika at 1:33 PM on August 25, 2023 [7 favorites]
Also need to find black N95s for performing with our choir; we tried the "Broadway" masks last year and they did not work for our faces.
Just FYI Project N95 has a variety of N95 masks in black that you could try.
posted by decathecting at 1:50 PM on August 25, 2023 [1 favorite]
Just FYI Project N95 has a variety of N95 masks in black that you could try.
posted by decathecting at 1:50 PM on August 25, 2023 [1 favorite]
I'm taking the sort of precautions I would take for any winter cold season - hand washing after going places, and not seeing other people when my family is sick, or when other people are sick.
I don't mask anymore, unless I'm around someone who would like me to mask. Special precautions made sense in the first year or two of the pandemic. Now? What's the point? Life's too short to live that way.
posted by Happydaz at 7:30 PM on August 25, 2023
I don't mask anymore, unless I'm around someone who would like me to mask. Special precautions made sense in the first year or two of the pandemic. Now? What's the point? Life's too short to live that way.
posted by Happydaz at 7:30 PM on August 25, 2023
(Side note: the three Cs were from back when they thought COVID was spread by droplets, before they figured out it was airborne. So the closeness part should probably be updated, though I’m not sure what starts with c that would encapsulate having good ventilation or air filtration?)
Good ventilation is covered by "closed spaces" (though admittedly this doesn't clearly cover air filtration), and from what I've read aerosols are most concentrated in the air around an infected person, so "closeness" is still relevant.
Re the 3Cs, I'm sure that from very early on in the pandemic there were people in the health bureaucracy in Japan who realized that covid was being spread by aerosol transmission (eg in Feb 2020 there was a mass covid outbreak on the Diamond Princess cruise ship, quarantined in Yokohama, that could only be explained by aerosol transmission), even though the official line for the longest time was "droplets and surface contamination". There would be no reason to include "closed spaces" otherwise.
posted by mydonkeybenjamin at 10:09 PM on August 26, 2023 [2 favorites]
Good ventilation is covered by "closed spaces" (though admittedly this doesn't clearly cover air filtration), and from what I've read aerosols are most concentrated in the air around an infected person, so "closeness" is still relevant.
Re the 3Cs, I'm sure that from very early on in the pandemic there were people in the health bureaucracy in Japan who realized that covid was being spread by aerosol transmission (eg in Feb 2020 there was a mass covid outbreak on the Diamond Princess cruise ship, quarantined in Yokohama, that could only be explained by aerosol transmission), even though the official line for the longest time was "droplets and surface contamination". There would be no reason to include "closed spaces" otherwise.
posted by mydonkeybenjamin at 10:09 PM on August 26, 2023 [2 favorites]
I still wear a mask on the plane and in the airport, but not really anywhere else, though I'm happy to if asked.
I haven't had COVID as far as I know. I have had the vaccine and two boosters, and will get another booster as soon as it's available.
My job brings me in contact with the public and with staff who work with the public in multiple locations, and we went back to work in person in May 2020, so at this point I'm pretty fatalistic about the risks.
I eat in restaurants, go to the movies, shop at stores, hang out with friends indoors, but try to avoid super crowded spaces (like, earlier this summer I went to Comic-Con for a morning but decided to bail after a few minutes on the exhibit floor, it was a LOT of people in there!)
Virtual hugs to all of you who are still having to be extremely careful, wishing you all good health.
posted by exceptinsects at 6:09 PM on August 28, 2023 [2 favorites]
I haven't had COVID as far as I know. I have had the vaccine and two boosters, and will get another booster as soon as it's available.
My job brings me in contact with the public and with staff who work with the public in multiple locations, and we went back to work in person in May 2020, so at this point I'm pretty fatalistic about the risks.
I eat in restaurants, go to the movies, shop at stores, hang out with friends indoors, but try to avoid super crowded spaces (like, earlier this summer I went to Comic-Con for a morning but decided to bail after a few minutes on the exhibit floor, it was a LOT of people in there!)
Virtual hugs to all of you who are still having to be extremely careful, wishing you all good health.
posted by exceptinsects at 6:09 PM on August 28, 2023 [2 favorites]
I and my spouse have been and will continue to wear N95s or KN95s in all public indoor spaces. We're in the Bay Area, in a county where I still see about 20% of people regularly wearing masks in the grocery stores and farmers' markets that I shop at, mostly but not exclusively older folks. The number of people wearing masks has been going up in the past three weeks, as news about wastewater indications has spread. At a local health food store last week, the cashier and the bagger, both young people, were wearing masks. I said something about people acting like covid is over. They said, "It's not over. A bunch of us just got it. That's why we're wearing masks now."
Spouse plans to get the fall booster when it's available. I may get it, but I have to see what my doctor says about a medical thing first. We haven't eaten in an indoor restaurant since February 2020. We eat with other people outdoors, if the tables aren't crammed together. I have two Corsi-Rosenthal boxes, one in the bedroom that we use every night, the other for the guest room where one of us sleeps if the other has been exposed. I have been encouraging my brother to build one to use in his office at work.
Spouse's mother lives in the same city, so spouse can spend time with her relatively easily. She was hospitalized for covid in late August, but is out and testing negative now. She may have given it to her choir, because she is a soprano and all but two of the sopranos now have covid. I may make travel plans for Canada for summer 2024 to visit my 89 year old father, but I'm not happy about so many people ignoring risks of acute covid, long covid, and (probable, in my opinion) stealth effects of multiple infections on multiple organ systems, so I'm definitely not traveling this fall/winter and may stay put next summer. (Dad and I have a complicated relationship. Not sure seeing him in person is worth the risk.)
My calculus is based on us being introverts, my friendships with people who are immunocompromised / organ transplant recipients / having cancer treatments / etc, my relationships with people who are quietly struggling with or who have been sidelined by long covid, and the fact that I am trying to unlearn a lifetime of socially conditioned ableism by listening to disability justice activists and practicing what they advocate for. And it's based on what I hear from TWIV clinical updates, Michael Osterholm Updates, The Long Covid Sessions podcast, and people who are building communities of care like Patrick Farnsworth with his Last Born In The Wilderness podcast, and Kelly Hayes with her Movement Memos podcast. Kelly Hayes especially has been a lifeline. For me, life's too short for me to act like it's 2019.
posted by cybercoitus interruptus at 4:01 PM on September 4, 2023 [5 favorites]
Spouse plans to get the fall booster when it's available. I may get it, but I have to see what my doctor says about a medical thing first. We haven't eaten in an indoor restaurant since February 2020. We eat with other people outdoors, if the tables aren't crammed together. I have two Corsi-Rosenthal boxes, one in the bedroom that we use every night, the other for the guest room where one of us sleeps if the other has been exposed. I have been encouraging my brother to build one to use in his office at work.
Spouse's mother lives in the same city, so spouse can spend time with her relatively easily. She was hospitalized for covid in late August, but is out and testing negative now. She may have given it to her choir, because she is a soprano and all but two of the sopranos now have covid. I may make travel plans for Canada for summer 2024 to visit my 89 year old father, but I'm not happy about so many people ignoring risks of acute covid, long covid, and (probable, in my opinion) stealth effects of multiple infections on multiple organ systems, so I'm definitely not traveling this fall/winter and may stay put next summer. (Dad and I have a complicated relationship. Not sure seeing him in person is worth the risk.)
My calculus is based on us being introverts, my friendships with people who are immunocompromised / organ transplant recipients / having cancer treatments / etc, my relationships with people who are quietly struggling with or who have been sidelined by long covid, and the fact that I am trying to unlearn a lifetime of socially conditioned ableism by listening to disability justice activists and practicing what they advocate for. And it's based on what I hear from TWIV clinical updates, Michael Osterholm Updates, The Long Covid Sessions podcast, and people who are building communities of care like Patrick Farnsworth with his Last Born In The Wilderness podcast, and Kelly Hayes with her Movement Memos podcast. Kelly Hayes especially has been a lifeline. For me, life's too short for me to act like it's 2019.
posted by cybercoitus interruptus at 4:01 PM on September 4, 2023 [5 favorites]
My 94 year old father just died after getting COVID (yes he had comorbidities but so what) and my brother had to cancel a planned visit to me because he tested positive (probably Transatlantic plane flight caused it). I got the new Moderna vaccine and have cancelled plans to travel at Christmas time. This thing is not over.
posted by Peach at 4:11 PM on September 24, 2023 [3 favorites]
posted by Peach at 4:11 PM on September 24, 2023 [3 favorites]
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We are flying to Vegas and renting a campervan for the week of Thanksgiving. We will mask on the flight if circumstances warrant it. We'll be out in the desert camping all week, so not too worried about anything during the week as we won't be inside or around people.
posted by COD at 10:40 AM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]