Who here has not gotten COVID? Who has long COVID?

Is the CEO trying to back away from the announcement previously made?

A dear friend with MS that had been stable for many years was on fire two days after getting the vaccine. A flare that was unquestionably caused by the vaccine, but their case never made it into any peer-reviewed research, which highlights the limitations of peer-reviewed research. Garbage in, garbage out.

A similar limitation with the observation period of a study is seen. When the publication is written, that is the end of the data and observations, even though further tracking is warranted.

Years ago, before vaccines for many childhood illnesses, my brother had mumps and measles at the same time - then he ā€œgotā€ juvenile diabetes. The theory was that he had a genetic predisposition for diabetes, and the double whammy flipped his switch. My S, like his uncles, went on Accutane after much consideration. He has friends who ended up with Crohnā€™s disease after being on Accutane. It can happen from an illness, a drug, a vaccine (shingles vaccine can lead to a diagnosis of Guillain-BarrĆ© syndrome), or stress. Thereā€™s really no way to know beforehand who will be affected. Public health, such as for vaccines, has to focus on the majority. Personal choice, for things like taking Accutane, has to focus on the pros and cons for the individual (as my brothers, who were on Accutane as teens, said ā€¦ the risk for them of not taking it was suicide). There is no for sure in life, which is why statistics are used so much in making decisions.

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I was part of a study done by Johns Hopkins, for those with autoimmune/chronic conditions. I have not seen the results. It mainly focused on antibody responses.
Since I have an autoimmune condition and have researched, there are a few cases of conditions being triggered or flaring after the vaccine , and posts on this on various forums. Of course causation cannot be proven.

My kid got type 1 diabetes after the coxsackie virus, a suspected culprit. That is thought to be through molecular mimicry. That is a different issue than stoking the immune system and thereby enhancing an already existing autoimmunit.

Or, a flare that was going to happen that day, but the personā€™s vaccination appointment just happened to be two days prior.

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My husband came down with a headache and
a minor fever about a couple of weeks ago. Covid test - positive! Took his BP - out of the ballpark! If it wasnā€™t for thatā€¦ Off to look for Paxlovid. He is in the right age group, so youā€™d think it would be easy to get the drug. Noooo! After a little uphill battle, he finally got the prescription. Two days on the meds, and he was back to normal. BP went down. A few day after he finished his course of treatment, we both tested. He was negative, I tested positive! :flushed: So weird. I had no symptoms. None. Nada. Wow. Glad we had a stash of tests in the fridge. No public events for us for a while.

Covid is definitely not over for the most vulnerable peopleā€¦

https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/as-pandemic-precautions-fall-seniors-remain-the-most-likely-to-die-of-covid-in-u-s/

Thatā€™s interesting re your Hā€™s bp. I wonder how many peopleā€™s bp spikes with covid, and they have no idea? Did you get Paxlovid, also?

Covid is definitely not over, and it is unfortunate that the masses have decided that it is. The monovalent booster should be out towards the end of September. I wonder how many people will get it, considering the abysmal uptake of the bivalent booster?

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That linked page contains this sentence: " ā€œInfection control principles must be better enforced in nursing homes,ā€ he continued. ā€œIn general, the enforcement in this setting is much more lax than in hospitals.ā€ "

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I know I donā€™t believe that Covid-19 is over. I havenā€™t had Covid-19 as far as I know. Last Christmas, I had a household of close family members were 5 out of 6 came down with Covid. I also had another family member go to a indoor party last month with ~100 people and it became a superspreader event (He has confirmed at least 25 people at the party tested positive for Covid and their were others who had not been tested despite having symptoms). The close family members who had Covid in December have not had any signs of Long Covid, and we will see what happens to the party goers, but their have been no serious cases reported to my family member so far.

I made a decision to stay up to date on my vaccinations, and socially distance when possible (I was socially distancing myself in public way before Covid), but I have only masked in required places and all medical/assistant living facilities since the Spring of 2022. I eat indoors at restaurants, but tend to go during non-peak hours, joined a gym again but go during non-peak hours. I fully understand the risks of Long Covid and the possible serious complications related to Covid and even understand that there can be underlying conditions and issues that we are not aware of. I accept those risks, both known and unknown, and I think that most people have made a similar decision. I do not believe that most people believe that Covid-19 no longer exists, but that the risks of serious complications are much lower than they were in March 2020.

I have close family who still mask in all situations outside of their home and I support them as they try to do what they think is best including wearing masks when I am in their presence.

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No Paxlovid for me. Since I did not have any symptoms (and am technically not in the high risk group age- or health-wise), I did not look for a prescription. Covid is definitely not over. So many folks we know had it recently, but thankfully no long Covid.

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Iā€™m rejoining this conversation after a long hiatus.

Covid will never be over. I know a LOT of people in the last month or two who have had it. A good friend is just getting over it. Last time she had it, she felt horrendous, but told herself she didnā€™t need paxlovid, then left it too late and had to suffer being really sick. This time she got paxlovid immediately and while she was definitely sick, she felt MUCH better.

I have friends with long Covid. Yes, their lives are tough. I have a friend who was unable to speak and was on complete voice rest for two months, and yes, whispering is forbidden too. She carried a whiteboard everywhere with her during that time. Her voice is still messed up. My kid had it in October and lost her voice. The minute she gets a slight cold now, she immediately develops laryngitis.

Itā€™s here to stay, itā€™s still dangerous for some, it still kills some, it still causes lasting adverse effect for some. Just like with any other nasty illness, donā€™t be the j___ who gets on the plane when you know youā€™re sick. If you get on the plane with the flu and you know it, sorry, but youā€™re a j___. If you just tested positive for Covid or think you have it, donā€™t go see your grandparents or the friend whose immune system is shot due to cancer treatment.

Thereā€™s so much we still donā€™t know. Iā€™m more than amazed that there are actually still people out there who donā€™t believe itā€™s anything more than flu, who think itā€™s over, who wonā€™t take paxlovid, who wonā€™t get a vaccine (well, they will for any other disease, but not this one, and they will go to the doctor for any other illness, but not this one), who think itā€™s still some political tool, who think they know enough about it.

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(Un?)fortunately, those likely might have more future ā€œgo-aroundsā€, to eventually force them to adapt their thinking to reality. :stethoscope:

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Gosh Iā€™m sorry. I lost my voice for 10 days with it in January. I hadnā€™t heard of anyone else losing it with covid. And yes, whispering is the last you want to do if you have laryngitis. Itā€™s much harder on the voice box. My sister loses it a lot so I know from her experiences.

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Btw, to clarify, most people donā€™t need paxlovid. I didnā€™t need it when I had Covid, neither did my hubby. Iā€™m saying that for those who get really sick with Covid or are at risk, use it.

I will be interested to know what we learn about Covid in the future. Is my near-constant congestion due to Covid, or age, or something else? We canā€™t blame everything on Covid, but I do think it seems clear that some people suffer greatly with long Covid symptoms, while others might have such mild after effects they may not realize it was triggered by Covid.

Another anecdote, but a good friend developed full-blown celiac disease after having Covid. Sheā€™s in her early 60ā€™s. Never had an issue before. Maybe it could have developed anyway, but we are aware that viral illnesses can trigger autoimmune responses. She wasnā€™t that sick, but she wonders if paxlovid had been available, would it have made a difference?

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All good food for thought

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Iā€™d look for a rapid PCR to confirm the home(?) test as they are not as accurate as PCR.

Those lateral flow tests are pretty accurate if the test is clearly positive. A negative could be a question mark though.

Many places that did PCR testing around here have scaled down or stopped offering it altogether, which is too bad.

Hereā€™s the result of a natural experiment.

My boss, age 54, does not ā€œbelieveā€ in the covid vaccine. Never got any version of it. Neither did her husband or college-age children. She never masked anywhere, even in 2020 (unless absolutely required). She frequented covid speakeasies ā€“ yes, just as it sounds ā€“ bars/restaurants that operated underground in 2020/2021.

As a side note, when the pandemic began, she was two years post chemo for colon cancer.

So ā€¦ in an individual who has done zero mitigation over 3.5 years, how many times has she gotten covid?

Three.

Can we assume that with no mitigation we can expect to get covid once/year?

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My neighbor is currently dealing with her 3rd Covid infection. Fully vaxxed/up to date. And sheā€™s been pretty careful.