Coronavirus - how is it/has it affected you?

[Slab]

They get too close when walking. But that said - to date we have been very diligent in our adherence to the rules in our meetings with our daughter (who lives not 2 miles from us). Like everyone is experiencing, we do find it sad and difficult that we haven't been able to give her a peck on the cheek or hug in greeting since March as she has been very supportive of us through difficult family times...but we know that we are well down that spectrum compared with the many who cannot do similar with those close who are in care or in hospital.

You strike me as the kind of guy that would be diligent, so with the practical safeguards before, during and after they met (i.e distancing, masks, sanitizer, washing, showering, change of clothing, not touching face, etc) from both parties, it’s actually gonna be pretty hard for them to pass/receive it

I agree it'll be tough (and pretty frustrating) not to hug it out etc but it is what it is for the time being, better safe than sorry, chin up

 

[PNWokingham]

Thing is though it’s not rubbish. It’s a medical professional with expertise in the field. And you seem to be just buying into certain conspiracy theories which are easily debunked.

grow up. I never ventured an opinion on what he said, i just reiterated my view - DRW stated many issues that back it up, as do the media everywhere. What nobody from all sides can do is a very good quantification of anything apart from the £200bn or so it this has cost the country so far (and maybe double that for the full year) and the misery it has caused by covid and the consequences for everyone in the country. There needs to be a balancing act it treating covid, preventing it spreading too fast and shielding vulnerable alobng with limiting dage to the economy so we can maintain resources for treatment and everything else in the economy. I support local restrictions but not national measures. The track and trace is a joke and we could have done many things better and clearly locking down a few weeks earlier in Feb/March would have helped. But we cannot have a national lockdown for a month, come out for a month or so and repeat. We do not know what vacinnes or treatments will appear and when and how successful they will be. But the world cannot go on like this for another 6 months or more without dire human and financial conseqences

The Great Barrington declaration has the support of thousands of experts. I have not read or looked into what they say too much, but as the experts on here trash it i as nonesence, I guess it is!

 

[SocketRocket]

grow up. I never ventured an opinion on what he said, i just reiterated my view - DRW stated many issues that back it up, as do the media everywhere. What nobody from all sides can do is a very good quantification of anything apart from the £200bn or so it this has cost the country so far (and maybe double that for the full year) and the misery it has caused by covid and the consequences for everyone in the country. There needs to be a balancing act it treating covid, preventing it spreading too fast and shielding vulnerable alobng with limiting dage to the economy so we can maintain resources for treatment and everything else in the economy. I support local restrictions but not national measures. The track and trace is a joke and we could have done many things better and clearly locking down a few weeks earlier in Feb/March would have helped. But we cannot have a national lockdown for a month, come out for a month or so and repeat. We do not know what vacinnes or treatments will appear and when and how successful they will be. But the world cannot go on like this for another 6 months or more without dire human and financial conseqences

The Great Barrington declaration has the support of thousands of experts. I have not read or looked into what they say too much, but as the experts on here trash it i as nonesence, I guess it is!

You have still not quantified the details of how your preferred plan would work.

Who and how many are the vunrable that we should shield.

How do we shield them, how do we do that safely and what would be the cost.

What would happen to those not shielding who catch Covid.

Could the NHS cope with the potential number of hospitalisations if Covid is allowed to spread unrestrained.

Would other countries ban UK residents from entry if there was no control.

Is it realistic to make comparisons between the UK and especially England with countries that have a fraction of the population density.

I could go on but these are all matters needing answers before considering a herd immunity policy.

 

[GB72]

Can we just stop this pointless bickering. This was a great thread where people could express their personal feelings about lockdown and how it is impacted them. It was actually a useful release as well as being very informative about how this was impacting people in other countries. As someone who tends to follow the somewhat counterproductive stiff upper lip approach in front of friends and family, it was nice to be able to let the guard down a bit and vent to what are, in many cases, complete strangers.

And what have people done with that thread, turned it into the political thread mark 2 where it is just a constant back and forth about whether you believe in lockdowns or not, who is hiding what date etc and you know the irony of it (seems to be my word of the day) the political thread was created to keep the petty bickering off this thread which was started to discuss this whole situation on a more personal and sometimes emotional level.

You may say 'well don't ready it then' but I persist because there are times where people succeed in turning the thread back to what it was and it is worth reading for their moments. If you want to argue the toss about the rights and wrongs lockdowns, start a thread about it and see how long it lasts.

Sorry, rant over.

 

[SocketRocket]

Can we just stop this pointless bickering. This was a great thread where people could express their personal feelings about lockdown and how it is impacted them. It was actually a useful release as well as being very informative about how this was impacting people in other countries. As someone who tends to follow the somewhat counterproductive stiff upper lip approach in front of friends and family, it was nice to be able to let the guard down a bit and vent to what are, in many cases, complete strangers.

And what have people done with that thread, turned it into the political thread mark 2 where it is just a constant back and forth about whether you believe in lockdowns or not, who is hiding what date etc and you know the irony of it (seems to be my word of the day) the political thread was created to keep the petty bickering off this thread which was started to discuss this whole situation on a more personal and sometimes emotional level.

You may say 'well don't ready it then' but I persist because there are times where people succeed in turning the thread back to what it was and it is worth reading for their moments. If you want to argue the toss about the rights and wrongs lockdowns, start a thread about it and see how long it lasts.

Sorry, rant over.

Surely the current discussion is about differing ways a country can manage the Covid pandemic and how a certain policy would affect people. I honestly can't see why such a discussion should be a problem to anyone. I can see that if the debate breaks into name calling or personal insults there would be an issue but that's the same with just about any thread on a forum.

 

[Deleted member 16999]

Surely the current discussion is about differing ways a country can manage the Covid pandemic and how a certain policy would affect people. I honestly can't see why such a discussion should be a problem to anyone. I can see that if the debate breaks into name calling or personal insults there would be an issue but that's the same with just about any thread on a forum.

Totally agree, many on here have been affected by the coronavirus on a personal/family level and as much as the thread title asks how is it/has it affected you and we are all entitled to our opinion and to tell “our story” it is not easy to read some of the attitudes and proposals on how to deal with the virus and these opinions on a forum can be respectfully questioned.

Many times a thread will wonder off track and either be re-focussed naturally or the mods will step in.

 

[bluewolf]

Surely the current discussion is about differing ways a country can manage the Covid pandemic and how a certain policy would affect people. I honestly can't see why such a discussion should be a problem to anyone. I can see that if the debate breaks into name calling or personal insults there would be an issue but that's the same with just about any thread on a forum.

It's only a discussion if people are willing to listen/read.

As with most things online, people just want to continually spout their "opinions" whilst ignoring facts and expertise in favour of what Barry from Dagenham has posted on Facebook recently.. It's why I don't frequent these (or any other) boards that much anymore. I prefer to discuss face to face. It keeps the discussion honest...

 

[GB72]

Surely the current discussion is about differing ways a country can manage the Covid pandemic and how a certain policy would affect people. I honestly can't see why such a discussion should be a problem to anyone. I can see that if the debate breaks into name calling or personal insults there would be an issue but that's the same with just about any thread on a forum.

Actually, no, you are totally wrong and the title of the thread pretty much explains that. Not sure how a thread asking how it affect you and invites comments about personal experience can be interpreted as an invite to discuss how a country should manage a pandemic and that is not what this thread is about. It was set up for personal impacts of the pandemic and lockdown and a place to express may be even more important over the next few weeks. You want to argue in general terms about lockdowns and policy I would say, firstly, that it is a political debate and so not permitted and, secondly, if you think it should be allowed then start a thread, lockdowns and policy, right or wrong.

Anyway, had my say and whilst I am always happy discuss matters, I will avoid the irony of taking the thread off track again by arguing about whether the thread has gone off track.

 

[Ethan]

grow up. I never ventured an opinion on what he said, i just reiterated my view - DRW stated many issues that back it up, as do the media everywhere. What nobody from all sides can do is a very good quantification of anything apart from the £200bn or so it this has cost the country so far (and maybe double that for the full year) and the misery it has caused by covid and the consequences for everyone in the country. There needs to be a balancing act it treating covid, preventing it spreading too fast and shielding vulnerable alobng with limiting dage to the economy so we can maintain resources for treatment and everything else in the economy. I support local restrictions but not national measures. The track and trace is a joke and we could have done many things better and clearly locking down a few weeks earlier in Feb/March would have helped. But we cannot have a national lockdown for a month, come out for a month or so and repeat. We do not know what vacinnes or treatments will appear and when and how successful they will be. But the world cannot go on like this for another 6 months or more without dire human and financial conseqences

The Great Barrington declaration has the support of thousands of experts. I have not read or looked into what they say too much, but as the experts on here trash it i as nonesence, I guess it is!

I agree with some of that. Clearly a balance ends to be struck between containing the virus and the rest of normal life. That debate can be boiled down to whether one thinks these two aspects (Covid and the economy) are in opposition or locked together. I think some of the data cited on other effects is rather suspect and the same projections were not borne out in Sweden over the summer. Also, distant effects are normally discounted. Present day costs and benefits carry more value than distant ones, and there are formulae used by NICE and others to do this. I doubt these were applied to these calculations.

I agree test and trace is disastrous and barely worth doing in its current form, and that effective measures in Feb/March with greater short term pain would have paid off now. But does that not suggest that the best stragey now, short of time travel back, is to lockdown hard and try to make a job job of it, otherwise a half-arsed version only makes a further episode more likely? They also need to test close contacts, and are missing asymptomatic transmission by not doing so.

As for Great Barrington, the article was actually written by an American libertarian lobbying group based in Great Barrington. The prominent names attached include Sunetra Gupta, a zoologist/epidemiologist from Oxford who published a controversial and largely discredited paper suggesting a much higher prevalence of immunity than anybody else, and Karol Sikora, an oncologist associated with the private University of Buckingham, which was started by American libertarians. They, and others, make vague statements about protecting the vulnerable whilst letting normal life continue. They have never explained exactly how this can be achieved, but many of us would live to hear. But it also makes a bit of a binary distinction between vulnerable and everybody else, and the population isn't divided that way. Herd immunity, if it is even possible, carries a very large price and most of it will be paid by middle aged people who are still economically active and have dependents. It doesn't make a lot of economic sense. And it will place enormous strain on the NHS, which is currently creaking, and make worse exactly the problem that many have highlighted, the effect of displacing other types of care. It is a magical thinking option.

Despite the views of several here, I actually don't want to pick keyboard fights with people, but I will strongly debate my points and attempt to offer evidence and coherent arguments for them. I am happy for anybody to ask me to justify anything I say, so long as I can ask the same of them.

 

[Deleted member 21258]

Decided to take a day off work with the impending lockdown and enjoy the outside and go for a nice relaxing walk.

Have to say, my heart wasn't really in it and feel I kind of wasted a day off, wish I had gone last week but grateful for the time off and great weather. Always got to find something to be positive about.

Going to be a long month or so.

 

[Deleted member 16999]

Actually, no, you are totally wrong and the title of the thread pretty much explains that. Not sure how a thread asking how it affect you and invites comments about personal experience can be interpreted as an invite to discuss how a country should manage a pandemic and that is not what this thread is about. It was set up for personal impacts of the pandemic and lockdown and a place to express may be even more important over the next few weeks. You want to argue in general terms about lockdowns and policy I would say, firstly, that it is a political debate and so not permitted and, secondly, if you think it should be allowed then start a thread, lockdowns and policy, right or wrong.

Anyway, had my say and whilst I am always happy discuss matters, I will avoid the irony of taking the thread off track again by arguing about whether the thread has gone off track.

Sorry, the thread title and the op do not back up what you say, it was posted 8 months ago prior to the lockdown and before the World woke up and the post owner had no idea how this thread would/should or could evolve.

Feel free to read the first 20 posts and how even in that short period the response to the title wasn’t as focused as you describe it.

 

[GB72]

And to go back to a personal level, I have to admit that this lockdown has got me far more concerned than the last one did. Actually, with both my wife and I in stable jobs, the financial side is far less of a concern last time but the time of year makes this a far more challenging prospect. Last time I could do work in the garden, sit out on the drive with a glass of wine and chat to villagers walking past on their hour of exercise etc and just the whole prospect was not as daunting with the sun shining. This time, I fear we are pretty much going to be shut indoors for 4 weeks and that is something which is very concerning as to how I will cope. Only had one day off work since last Xmas due to this and had planned a few bits and pieces over the coming weeks as had got the courage up to start on meals out a bit further afield and had even agreed to do an air bnb for a couple of nights. Sadly all cancelled now.

 

[GB72]

Sorry, the thread title and the op do not back up what you say, it was posted 8 months ago prior to the lockdown and before the World woke up and the post owner had no idea how this thread would/should or could evolve.

Feel free to read the first 20 posts and how even in that short period the response to the title wasn’t as focused as you describe it.

Perhaps then consider that was the very reason that the political thread was created after it started taking over and has reverted back on to this one since it was removed.

Anyway, you want to keep arguing about the benefits or not of lockdown on here then feel free.

 

[Kellfire]

grow up. I never ventured an opinion on what he said, i just reiterated my view - DRW stated many issues that back it up, as do the media everywhere. What nobody from all sides can do is a very good quantification of anything apart from the £200bn or so it this has cost the country so far (and maybe double that for the full year) and the misery it has caused by covid and the consequences for everyone in the country. There needs to be a balancing act it treating covid, preventing it spreading too fast and shielding vulnerable alobng with limiting dage to the economy so we can maintain resources for treatment and everything else in the economy. I support local restrictions but not national measures. The track and trace is a joke and we could have done many things better and clearly locking down a few weeks earlier in Feb/March would have helped. But we cannot have a national lockdown for a month, come out for a month or so and repeat. We do not know what vacinnes or treatments will appear and when and how successful they will be. But the world cannot go on like this for another 6 months or more without dire human and financial conseqences

The Great Barrington declaration has the support of thousands of experts. I have not read or looked into what they say too much, but as the experts on here trash it i as nonesence, I guess it is!

What were you saying about people replying aggressively?

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

It's not easy to comment about how we are impacted as individuals by the coronavirus as the impacts we experience largely come about through government policy. But when we comment on a policy that is deemed 'political' - when in fact it only becomes 'political' when individuals take stances on it reflecting political positions - when in fact the only position that actually matters when discussing the impact on us is the position taken by the government.

As a result I should, for instance, be able to observe (without political comment or being accused of being political) on the furlough scheme as it might apply to a Scottish Lockdown. I can surely observe that in the HoC yesterday the PM confirmed to the Leader of the Scottish Conservatives that the furlough scheme in place for the English Lockdown will apply equally to any future Scottish lockdown. But today I hear that there is some 'rowing back' on this. Why does that matter to me? Because some of my immediate family and relatives in Scotland could be severely impacted by a Scottish Lockdown...and they will depend upon government support.

And I should be able to express my concern about this and wonder why our government might not extend the 80% furlough scheme to a Scottish Lockdown - and I might wonder about how that would play with a Scottish electorate with Holyrood elections coming up in almost precisely 6 months time. These are concerns and observations. I take no political stance.

However i do recognise that the above might generate political discourse - discourse that I will not engage in - but it is surely that discourse that would be out of bounds...

 

[Deleted member 16999]

Perhaps then consider that was the very reason that the political thread was created after it started taking over and has reverted back on to this one since it was removed.

Anyway, you want to keep arguing about the benefits or not of lockdown on here then feel free.

It’s not arguing, it’s discussing, and as others have said so long as no one over steps the forum rules, what is really wrong with that, maybe some are able to cope with what’s happening by having these discussions about the wider aspects of coronavirus.

Personally, having 3 out of 4 in the household in the high risk category and the 3 of them only venturing out of the house for a combined total of 5 times it has been very helpful to me see all sides of these discussions and how they are counteracted, almost cathartic to read.

 

[chrisd]

I take no political stance.

You sure?

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

You sure?

If you can see a political stance in my post tell me. I have simply reported a fact from the HoC yesterday and my understanding of a change since then (which may be unfounded I grant you) - and I have explained how I would be affected if it were true.

 

[Slab]

It's not easy to comment about how we are impacted as individuals by the coronavirus as the impacts we experience largely come about through government policy. But when we comment on a policy that is deemed 'political' - when in fact it only becomes 'political' when individuals take stances on it reflecting political positions - when in fact the only position that actually matters when discussing the impact on us is the position taken by the government.

As a result I should, for instance, be able to observe (without political comment or being accused of being political) on the furlough scheme as it might apply to a Scottish Lockdown. I can surely observe that in the HoC yesterday the PM confirmed to the Leader of the Scottish Conservatives that the furlough scheme in place for the English Lockdown will apply equally to any future Scottish lockdown. But today I hear that there is some 'rowing back' on this. Why does that matter to me? Because some of my immediate family and relatives in Scotland could be severely impacted by a Scottish Lockdown...and they will depend upon government support.

And I should be able to express my concern about this and wonder why our government might not extend the 80% furlough scheme to a Scottish Lockdown - and I might wonder about how that would play with a Scottish electorate with Holyrood elections coming up in almost precisely 6 months time. These are concerns and observations. I take no political stance.

However i do recognise that the above might generate political discourse - discourse that I will not engage in - but it is surely that discourse that would be out of bounds...

You can 'observe, express and comment' on all these things.... Just not on this forum, there's loads of other outlets to use, crack on

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

You can 'observe, express and comment' on all these things.... Just not on this forum, there's loads of other outlets to use, crack on

The point I have made is that I would be impacted...and that is what the thread is about. The Lockdown and Furlough payment impact all of us and result from policy made by a group of politicians. Any comment on the impact is a comment on the result of policy made by politicians. That does not make my comment political.