Thank you, very helpful, @thumper1 .
Some good tips!
Hope your friends are better and your MIL is well.
vaxxed and boostered. SIGH. was it the new variant? Were they symptomatic.?
So now that soon you wont be considered vaccinated unless you got a booster, if your first shot was JnJ and you decide to go with Moderna or Pfizer, you only need one shot, right?
Since someone mentioned testing before a gathering, I thought Iâd pass along that I read an article today (canât remember where, sorry) that said omnicron replicates so quickly that you should test within a few hours before going to an event, rather than testing the day before.
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@thumper were they two weeks out from boosters?
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Are you going to the holiday gatherings?
We were invited to a holiday open house last weekend. While I know the hosts were vaxxed (and probably boosted), there was no mention of attendees being asked to do so. That seems to be the case around here â no one asks. Itâs a âyou do youâ area. H noted that mask compliance in a grocery store last week was about 30% (employees were masked).
I think boosters are pretty available where I live. My familyâs been boosted. When I was boosted a while back at a state vax clinic, there was no wait. My friend got boosted there a week or so ago, and she said there was an hour wait. So more people are getting boosters now. Unfortunately, there are plenty who wonât. (And plenty who didnât get vaccinated with the primary series.)
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Two a little symptomatic. One felt like the flu. No info on variantâŠ.I doubt that was tested.
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Yes, they were more than two weeks out from their boosters.
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The only holiday gathering I am going to is a stroll around our local lake to celebrate the Winter Solstice. Masks are required even though weâll be outside. We did it last year and it was lovely to see the string of lights and lanterns going around the lake.
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Had Pfizer 1 and 2 â no reaction at all except a slightly sore arm for #1 and when I had a spike protein antibody test run 2 months after the second shot, my titers were disappointingly low (about 350, when I was hopint for >2500). I am not immunocompromised, as far as I know.
SoâŠfor booster. Thoughts on Pfizer #3, Moderna Booster, or Moderna âregularâ?
If you want more antibodies, perhaps consider Moderna.
If you want to stimulate your immune system somewhat differently (T-cell emphasis), perhaps consider J&J.
It is expected that antibody levels decline somewhat if not needed by another infection or vaccination, since only a few of the B-cells stimulated by infection or vaccination become long lived ones producing a lower level of antibodies over the long term.
I went to a holiday party last Saturday night with about 70 people. It was indoor/outdoor and we spent all of our time outdoors staying near heaters when cold. There were some people who wore masks, but most didnât.
We are hosting Christmas at our house with D2 and a few friends. We will have 7 people total. Everyone has been vaccinated and had their boosters. Since we are in San Diego we will have doors and windows open if the sun is out. I plan to serve the late afternoon meal outside unless it is raining.
I know so many people have had breakthrough cases of Covid.
Minor cases all. It spread rapidly through the family groups, not all live together, and daycare families and kids.
Could this have been Omicron? Supposedly very contagious, but not severe symptoms.
Do the PCR tests automatically test for variants? or does it need to be a specific request?
It would actually be nice to know if these latest cases were actually Omicron as it would explain how it hit everyone so quickly. We have not isolated at all from the beginning of the pandemic and this is the first anyone in our large group has come up positive.
We will be having Xmas at home. Honestly, I am happy to do so. Itâs just a lot to consider with everyoneâs personal expectations and safety concerns.
Had these same questions yesterday so I searched it, and what I found is, No, standard pcrâs do not differentiate, and Yes, special sequencing is required to test for a variant.
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Not automatically, although âSeveral labs have indicated that for one widely used PCR test, one of the three target genes is not detected (called S gene dropout or S gene target failure) and this test can therefore be used as marker for this variant, pending sequencing confirmation.â ( Classification of Omicron (B.1.1.529): SARS-CoV-2 Variant of Concern )
I believe thereâre two different sub-lineages of the Omicron variant. Only one of them has the property you described.
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Urgh. Daughter and I both got boosters about six weeks ago, but her dadâs planning on having lots of family over for Christmas, some from out of state. Some will have boosters, others no. Her dadâs just decided everyone should wear masks, but theyâre so haphazard about things, and space will be so tight, that I donât see how this is going to help. Sheâd been thinking about going over to hang around outside, now realizes itâs just going to be a zoo, probably will not go over.
Her plan had been to hang out in the dorm for a few extra days after finals week and testing before coming back here, staying here a few days, then going to her dadâs for a few before going to friendsâ and the dorm, but nowâŠwho knows. I mean really who knows. She might avoid her dadâs altogether, but come the end of January, sheâs in a dorm full of kids on a campus thatâs anti-mask, no vax mandate.
That suggests that if a positive PCR test finds the S gene dropout and it is noticed, then Omicron is likely, but the lack of S gene dropout or not noticing whether that is present does not rule out Omicron.
But wonât there be food and drink? Masks come off and generally stay off, then.
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Wondering the same thing here. Husband and I both had Pfizer 1 and 2, no real reactions other than a sore arm and a little tired. Pfizer booster is really hard to find where we live so we both have appointments for Moderna booster later this week. Hopefully thatâs the right choice, but since cases are starting to surge locally, I guess any booster is good!