Corona Virus Now Spreading

[aliceneko]

Amazing. My mom had that. And survived. I thought they'd eradicated it in the US.

I don't know about now, but I remember a girl at my primary school had Scarlet Fever here in the UK. I'm in my early 20s so this wasn't that long ago - mid 2000s.

 

[pearl99]

Braved the petri dishes today.

Bank lobbies were closed... call for an appointment if you have a transaction that requires a person.

JoAnns, Michaels, and Hobby Lobby were closed. If you want to make masks, it will have to be with whatever you happen to have laying around.

Costco was splitting their line in two, one for seniors, and the other for everyone else. Thing is, both lines were being let in at the same time... so we were all in the store at the same time... so the only purpose to this was to allow seniors to essentially cut to the "front" of the line. It was odd.

There was no tp, bleach, or iso alcohol to be found at Costco, Winco, or Walgreens

Canned goods, however, were re-appearing.

At Winco, the bulk bins that used scoops for "ready to eat" items were purposely emptied. So, no bulk dried fruits, baking necessities (flour, baking pwdr, baking soda, sugar, yeast, etc.,.), limited pasta, limited snacks. Candy, however, was plentiful (I don't get it).

People were still stupid. At both Costco and Winco, the people behind me in line were at least 2-3 feet away. I still saw family groups, and they usually took up the entire aisle without consideration for others. There were a few more people wearing masks... but not nearly enough in my opinion. Costco had employees sanitizing the carts, but you were on your own at Winco, and very few people wiped down. I'd say only about half the people were conscientious about social distancing once they got in the store. ugh!

Even with my mask, and my trusty soapy bleach cloth (which I draped on the cart handle, so I was essentially always wiping my hands), I still felt like I was on high alert the entire time. It's become a draining chore. I actually wish the stores that used to be open 24 hrs would go back to that, because I would love to go back to doing my shopping at midnight, thankyouverymuch!

Joanne's here lets you order online and then do curbside pickup between certain hours, the hours were posted on the store doors. But maybe not everywhere.

 

[glittercat]

So. I am exceedingly mildly not sober) after two weeks at home by myself, though I am working during the day).

Don't forget that healthcare professionals are exposed to a massive viral load from treatment of multiple patients, PPE or not. Far more than average Joe would be exposed to wandering around the supermarket etc.

Makes no difference then if they have underlying conditions or not, the assault on their immune systems is huge. Severe viral load = far less ability to fight off.

Was going to say more but don't want to get in trouble and can't face typing it all on small screen after a couple of very large glasses of wine....

Really should have food!!!

PS worth reading The Hot Zone as referred to earlier in the thread. It is really fascinating.

 

[pearl99]

I don't know about now, but I remember a girl at my primary school had Scarlet Fever here in the UK. I'm in my early 20s so this wasn't that long ago - mid 2000s.

Working in pediatrics in the 1980's we had kids that had scarlet fever, it comes with developing strep throat in some people.

 

[pearl99]

So Gov. Polis announced we should wear facial coverings whenever out in public now, here in Colorado.
Was just out this morning getting a few things to make some facemasks, good timing.

 

[terestrife]

So. I am exceedingly mildly not sober) after two weeks at home by myself, though I am working during the day).

Don't forget that healthcare professionals are exposed to a massive viral load from treatment of multiple patients, PPE or not. Far more than average Joe would be exposed to wandering around the supermarket etc.

Makes no difference then if they have underlying conditions or not, the assault on their immune systems is huge. Severe viral load = far less ability to fight off.

Was going to say more but don't want to get in trouble and can't face typing it all on small screen after a couple of very large glasses of wine....

Really should have food!!!

PS worth reading The Hot Zone as referred to earlier in the thread. It is really fascinating.

i always thought that the more exposed you are to illnesses, the more immunity you develop. is that not the case with viruses?

 

[Willowy]

The South Dakota governor doesn't want to call a statewide stay-at-home order, because Freedom! I kind of understand her reasoning, but the problem (well, one problem!) with it is that at-risk workers won't be allowed to take off work, and if they choose to stay home they'll lose their jobs and not get them back, and then the state will have to pay a lot more unemployment claims.

Of course another problem with it is that a lot more people will get the virus all at once, and it's not like our hospitals were so great to begin with. I suppose death is freeing, in a way :/.

 

[Talien]

i always thought that the more exposed you are to illnesses, the more immunity you develop. is that not the case with viruses?

It does, but you have to survive it first. If you're inundated with something all at once your immune system is going to be struggling to fight it off and produce those antibodies while you're dealing with the symptoms.

 

[denice]

I think one of the things that is very different about this virus is how it affects different people. Outside of health workers who are getting a huge exposure to it. Two people same age, no underlying health issues, one has mild symptoms another dies. They thing there are people who never develop symptoms, if they ever come up with mass antibody tests we will know if that is true. With the viruses that we are familiar with, seasonal flu and colds, you don't see that huge variation in how it affects people.

 

[molly92]

Using a face mask incorrectly can be worse than not wearing one at all, so when you wear one, remember to:

• Wash your hands before putting one on
• Wash your hands after you've finished putting it on and adjusting it
• Do not touch your mask again, but if you do, wash your hands again
• When you're done with your mask, remove it from behind, not in front, and either immediately dispose of it or place it in a bag to be washed if it's cloth. And then wash your hands again
• Don't reuse if possible. If making cloth masks, have multiple you can go through throughout the day before you need to wash them.

The reason these steps are important is because, if the mask is at all effective, it's trapping lots of viral particles. Either they're from you breathing them out if you have the virus, or from other people breathing it out and drifting onto your mask. Either way, every time you touch the mask, you're introducing viral particles to your hand and you can now transfer that to whatever you touch next.

You can also wear glasses or sunglasses when out in public to protect your eyes, but the same rules apply.

Non-woven fabrics like felt are going to better at trapping the virus, and multiple layers provide more protection too. Of course there will be a balance to find what is still comfortable enough to be able to tolerate. But remember, homemade masks only reduce the amount of virus that can make its way through, not eliminate it. So keeping your distance from people is still very important even with a mask.

 

[terestrife]

It does, but you have to survive it first. If you're inundated with something all at once your immune system is going to be struggling to fight it off and produce those antibodies while you're dealing with the symptoms.

That makes sense. After all of this, i hope hospitals give health care workers some much needed time off or compensation of some kind.

 

[pearl99]

i always thought that the more exposed you are to illnesses, the more immunity you develop. is that not the case with viruses?

It can be. But viruses can also mutate and become a different virus that people aren't immune to. That's a fear with covid-19. Or any illness.

 

[tarasgirl06]

How a "chronic disease warrior" like myself has stayed alive, against all odds, and how my specialists recommend I protect myself and my family while we stay at home. A.M. Carter, saving chronic disease warriors and COVID19 warriors, during this shite storm of a war zone nightmare. A touch of humor, much dry wit, mythbusting, and how to avoid panic and obsession while keeping ourselves safe; 3 big tips, we must do, over and over, establish the routine, becomes muscle-memory we easily adjust to without Stress or Fear or misunderstanding. Be well, Be safe, Peace be with you. #covid19chronicdiseasewarrior #covid19warriors #covid19AMCartersavingchronicdisease #covid19seniorwarriors #covid19senioradvocate #overcomecovid19 #notonemorevet #slowthespread #flattenthecurve #calltodutyvets #stayhome #stayinghome #gohomestayhome #staythefuckhome #weareinthistogether #covid19squashed #youmatter #youareimportant #fightcovid19 #bethechange

A wonderful article, and TYSM for sharing it, mentat

 

[molly92]

It can be. But viruses can also mutate and become a different virus that people aren't immune to. That's a fear with covid-19. Or any illness.

Viruses do mutate a lot and that's why we have so many different colds, and COVID-19 does indeed mutate, so this issue is a concern, but probably not a big one.

This virus actually has double-checking mechanisms that reduce the rate of mutation in important areas. The most important feature of the SARS-CoV-2 virus is undoubtedly the protein spike on the outside. This spike is what antibodies will be designed to recognize by immune cells. For a loss of immunity to occur, the spike on the virus would have to change enough that the antibodies no longer recognize it. I think this is unlikely to happen, not only because of the double-checking mechanisms, but also because this spike is what makes the virus so effective. The spike happens to bind incredibly well to human cells, which is what many believe may make this virus so contagious. If that spike were to change, it would be less effective at binding to cells and less contagious, and that strain would not be as successful. (That's partially speculation, but is supported by data on the mutation rate of the virus so far.)

Antibody production by your own cells can fade over time, so that is another way to lose immunity, but no one knows at this point how long immunity lasts.

 

[Graceful-Lily]

My mom and I drove around for about 2 hours looking for a store that wasn't flooded with people. Not only that but parking lots were littered with gloves and face mask everywhere. It was truly disgusting. The lines stretched for what seemed like several meters.

I don't even want to leave the house to go grocery shopping anymore. Couldn't find cat food though so I'll have to go back out tomorrow morning. There wasn't much options because people bought them out.



At my sister's work place, the workers are also refusing to work because the proper protection isn't being provided in order for the PSW's and nurses to look after the elderly in the long-term care home.

 

[EmersonandEvie]

Georgia finally called a stay-in-place. Both B and I are considered essential workers, though we work with maybe 6 people max at a time. We have badges and paperwork if we are to be pulled over on the way to or home from work.

I other news, we need a new hot water heater. We called a local guy who, as of now, is not considered essential so he can't come out (he is trying to get basically an override from the mayor)...I would think any major appliance business would be considered essential. Certainly more essential than what myself or B do....

 

[kittyluv387]

What I can't get is a decent thermometer. All out of stock. Sigh.

 

[MoonstoneWolf]

I was just thinking of something while at the store and picking up cat food. I got a Clorox wipe and wiped down the outside of the cat food bag, not where you tear it open and then it dawned upon me how far I've come in the past year. Last year I would have freaked, cried on here in the forums, scared that somehow that would leak through the bag into the cat food and poison the cats and I thought to myself "You have sure come a long way from being paranoid over everything" although I'm still paranoid about some things.

 

[pearl99]

Viruses do mutate a lot and that's why we have so many different colds, and COVID-19 does indeed mutate, so this issue is a concern, but probably not a big one.

This virus actually has double-checking mechanisms that reduce the rate of mutation in important areas. The most important feature of the SARS-CoV-2 virus is undoubtedly the protein spike on the outside. This spike is what antibodies will be designed to recognize by immune cells. For a loss of immunity to occur, the spike on the virus would have to change enough that the antibodies no longer recognize it. I think this is unlikely to happen, not only because of the double-checking mechanisms, but also because this spike is what makes the virus so effective. The spike happens to bind incredibly well to human cells, which is what many believe may make this virus so contagious. If that spike were to change, it would be less effective at binding to cells and less contagious, and that strain would not be as successful. (That's partially speculation, but is supported by data on the mutation rate of the virus so far.)

Antibody production by your own cells can fade over time, so that is another way to lose immunity, but no one knows at this point how long immunity lasts.

Very interesting and helpful, gives some good hope!

 

[pearl99]

Georgia finally called a stay-in-place. Both B and I are considered essential workers, though we work with maybe 6 people max at a time. We have badges and paperwork if we are to be pulled over on the way to or home from work.

I other news, we need a new hot water heater. We called a local guy who, as of now, is not considered essential so he can't come out (he is trying to get basically an override from the mayor)...I would think any major appliance business would be considered essential. Certainly more essential than what myself or B do....

Here there is an appliance store refusing to close down, he has been forced to close and is appealing- I mean really if your washer or dryer or both give it up and won't work you're supposed to go to a laundromat and get infected and infect more people? Or wash and dry everything by hand maybe?
Also they forced Hobby Lobby to close, they were refusing to.