COVID-19 hitting too close to home?

Nrdsb4, I’m so sorry to read your post! I admire your attitude

That’s awful, @Nrdsb4. Remodeling is stressful under normal circumstances, but add in a break-in and needing to replace things only adds to it. I admire your attitude though.

@Nrdsb4 that’s horrible and how frustrating. Do you think cameras would help?

You should get stronger doors, doorframes, and locks instead of the same thing. In wood frame houses, lock strike plates should be reinforced and anchored to the framing studs, not just the doorframe (unless you go for steel doors and doorframes).

Just today I had a colonoscopy in a big hospital, in their outpatient surgery department. I got there myself and my niece picked me up at the entrance, but while I was waiting, I heard people told that they could stay with their family member until the actual surgery, and in the recovery room I saw some of those pairs–patient and loved one.

This was at NYU Langone Brooklyn Hospital (formerly Lutheran Hospital).

Edited to add: (from the folder they gave me when I signed in):
Each adult patient may have visitors for a maximum of four hours per day. Only one visitor is permitted with a patient at a time. Individuals under the age of 18 will not be permitted to visit.

And a request to maintain a social distance of 6 feet…

It’s impossible to have across the board hospital/health care rules. Quite simply, more people = more risk.

Even within one hospital, policy is likely to change or remain stringent simply because of the community virus rates or the cases in the hospital or the % of available beds or…So many circumstances.

As someone mentioned medical staff realize there is advantage to having family members present for pre-surgery support and post surgery instructions, etc. - but depending on the current “that place, that moment” situation, where do you put your risks???

Hugs to those with sick friends, family members, co-workers, etc. Hugs to those with COVID related setbacks affection real life!

@Nrdsb4 -that’s awful. It happened to my brother last year at one of his projects. They took all the appliances in the house. He had to put in a security system to make sure it didn’t happen again.

Well this was a solid door with a deadbolt and knob lock, and the strike plates WERE anchored to the framing studs. Still not foolproof to a determined thief.

Sad face…

My mother received a cancer diagnosis in May and has been going through testing and then chemo and radiation. No one is allowed in with her except when my sister insists (she’s not a person afraid of nurses or security guards). It is terrible because we never get the right story. She brought home a ‘recipe’ for a throat syrup and that took 3 trips to the pharmacy and finally I just called the nurse. The nurses are very nice and always call back. She has about 640 different doctors, testing centers, nurses, appoints, instructions, and billing departments to deal with.

My brother had a medical crisis in January with lots of new diagnoses and he doesn’t drive, so I have gone to many, many appointments with him. In March I could go into the waiting rooms but no longer. I have to sit in the car. Big issue? Bathrooms. No, you can’t go in. If it is going to be more than an hour, I just go home and return for the pick up.

I think most hospitals around here are letting the parents in for young children or labor and delivery.

My cousin had an artery near his intestines rupture and was in ICU for about 2 weeks, not sure in the beginning if he was going to live or die. He was allowed one visitor at a time, two max, almost always his wife and mother. This was in western NY.

Fortunately it was at a time when my son was working in that hospital doing emergency medicine so he was able to pop in with his lab coat, etc, and not count as a visitor. The family really appreciated having someone they knew well who could translate medicalese for them, answer questions, and give them comfort. If he hadn’t been at that hospital doing that rotation it wouldn’t have worked out for him to be there.

(My cousin survived and is recovering well, though is still dealing with after effects, both physical and mental - all pretty much routine though.)

My SIL also hasn’t been able to accompany D to pre-natal visits, but I was surprised that he was allowed to accompany her for the first imaging appointment at the hospital. Glad they both got to see the little one. Not sure what the rules will be when she delivers, but I’ll probably be busy watching the older sister anyway. I can wait for them to come home. These days, I just want everyone healthy and safe

Wishing that to all your loved ones!

OMG @Nrdsb4 thats horrible!

Well, my niece is feeling awful—no fever, no loss of smell or taste but really feeling poorly. She’s been working from home in a rental condo, so likely gets shared air in their unit plus common areas including the lobby of the building, elevators, etc.

She’s going to get a covid-19 test tomorrow. Her mom (my sister) was providing childcare for her kids, plus having my 91 year old mom sleep at her home every night.

My sister thinks if her D has covid, she probably has it too, even tho she currently feels fine. While we await test results, I guess mom will be staying with us at night instead of my sister’s.

I hope everyone dodges the Covid bullet, @HImom.

I had to go to urgent care yesterday, a trip that did not thrill me. They were giving Covid tests in the office. After I checked in, they had me wait (a very long time!) in my car & called me directly into an exam room when they were ready for me. Everything was very clean, and I know they did their best to limit spread … but I will be very careful where I go & what I do for awhile. To top it off, I have my annual doctor visit Tuesday (yesterday’s issue couldn’t wait). But my doctor isn’t doing Covid testing in her office, so I am not as worried going there as I was in the urgent care. This whole pandemic thing is so difficult for everyone!

Son reports that two soldiers on post have tested COVID+. Contact tracing has turned up several more. He is two-degrees separated from one of the positives, and the entire post is locked down again. He was restricted to his house starting tomorrow for 14 business days anyway to complete a certification exam but was hoping to be out and about for a few hours each day between segments. He’s getting lonely.

Also, he’s been notified that he will be getting a two-shot COVID vaccine (not sure which one) this month or next along with the rest of the Army. When I asked him how he felt about that, he said, “The Army controls what goes into my arm, mom. I have no opinion.” Ok, then.

Ugh. We met a really nice Belgian couple on a cruise a few years ago. We’ve seen them on several cruises since and really enjoy being with them. They are in their 50s and very fit and attractive - she is in law enforcement but you would think she is a model. We were supposed to meet them at a resort in Spain in July but had to cancel. David just emailed them to see how they’re doing. This was their reply:

"At this moment, Ria and I are both ill - … corona.

It is really very very very very bad.

We sleep all day, pain everywhere, lazy, the flu, no hunger, nothing, nothing nothing…

We are both healthy persons, so we can imagine that persons that already have other health problems and then have corona, it must be hell and very dangerous.

I think I got corona at work.

I worked a lot of hours, my office is in a brand new building, with airco and climate regulation, and a lot of collegues are sick at home, the doctor says that one cannot avoid covid any more, it’s in the air.

Belgium is doing very very bad, it is a black coronaspot on the map."

I wish they had guidelines for what it considered mild, moderate, and severe. My definitions don’t match others. H texted our neighbor. He was a bit surprised they didn’t participate in TOT. They decorated their house all out. They love it. She told him that she is getting over covid. She had “mild symptoms.” She was originally in denial thinking it was allergies, but then she lost her sense of smell. It felt like a great hand was pressing on her chest. She tried to make the bed and would have to lie down mid way. 2 weeks later she is “almost fine” but “still gets winded.”

If I am still having problems getting winded after 2 weeks, I will not be happy. I would definitely not consider that mild.

A good friend got COVID. She already had doubts that it was really “real.” Her son visiting from college gave it to her. He had some body aches one night and that was it.

Her only symptoms were loss of taste and a little nasal congestion for one or two days. Now she’s really convinced it’s all a bunch of BS.

I was wondering how your home project was coming along and hopping it isn’t completely on hold @nrdsb4

BIL is a doctor. He treated a patient who was vomiting blood, in the same room with him for awhile. The patient’s COVID test later came back positive. Two days later, BIL has slight fever and food tastes metallic to him. He had two different types of COVID tests and both came back negative. Were the tests inaccurate or were his slight fever and taste issues something else?

Eight months into this thing, I still don’t know anyone personally who has become ill from COVID. I have friends and relatives all over the country.

I do see the other effects though. My dad is so isolated. He can handle email but doesn’t know how to ZOOM or Facetime. He has trouble with his computer. He’s 94.