How has the coronavirus affected your personal life?

[skjl47]

A lot of people think it is no worse than a cold because in some instances it isn't any worse than a cold, some don't even get cold symptoms, they are just carriers. Then the next thing we hear, some young dude who's healthy and as fit as butchers dog gets it and is at deaths door, or worse.

https://www.webmd.com/lung/covid-recovery-overview#1



https://www.breitbart.com/politics/...-plus-for-ages-69-and-younger-94-6-for-older/

The Covid-19 recovery rate is not 99.9% - Full Fact

Posts on social media have overestimated the Covid recovery rate.

fullfact.org

Hello; Just looked up the more recent information. Also to be found in the top two links above. CDC numbers I believe. Overall recovery rate is given at from between 97% to 99.75%. With 94.6% for 70 and older ( I am 73 so still not bad numbers)

For age groups it is told as this age 0 to 19 years old recovery is 99.997% ; age 20 to 49 recovery is 99.98%; 50 to 69 recovery is 99.5% and over 70 is 94.6 %.

The last link is included for the interesting take on things from the death rate and recovery rate to the vaccine effective rates recently announced. Largely something like living alone is not actually recovery. I do understand some folks have lingering effects.

I know we are supposed to be afraid because, in fact, some people do die from the infection. I am square in the at risk group but do like the 94.6% odds of survival. I guess if I get sick with covid19 my first hope will be just survival. If I survive then I will complain about lingering effects, if any.

It's been a few weeks since I ran into one of the currently active public school teachers I knew back in 2004 when I last taught in Middlesboro KY. We caught up for a bit. I asked about how the school was going and such. In the conversation I mentioned that I now live in TN and the schools here are having in person classes. He remarked something like "they don't care about the kids". I am not part of the school system here in Claiborne County TN so cannot for sure say how the decision to have in person classes was made. I have not heard of any school age kids becoming seriously ill so far.

I am 73 and have a slightly greater chance of a fatal outcome if I get covid19 . I also have a greater chance of dying if I get a goodly number of other infections at my age. I can even die from just being 73 years old and having a parts failure from worn out parts. I wear a mask in stores and buildings and do not go to as many places as I did before the virus showed up.
In general I do not want to be sick. Not from Covid19 or anything else. I also recognize something is going to get me some day. I do not have an answer for the fear about this virus. One one hand people get sick and a number have died at least with the infection, if not directly from the covid19 infection itself. So there is a real fatal outcome that cannot be dismissed. On the other hand the overwhelming majority who catch this virus will survive and be OK. I can hide away some better than other folks but still have to be out and about.

 

[skjl47]

Hello; Well my county will impose a mask mandate starting next Tuesday. Not sure of the details yet. Seems the testing is uncovering cases of positive results at an increased level lately.

 

[Ulu]

We have gone from yellow to red to tier purple restrictions. I didn’t know there was a purple. Perhaps red wasn’t a scary enough color.

Anyhow, this means that in addition to the previous restrictions we are now on quarantine between the hours of 10 PM and 5 AM. This started last night.
When asking about their fear level of Covid a lot of people are either ones or tens and they don’t seem to be any four, fives and sixes.

I’m not certain what this says statistically, but evidently most people either believe this is The Black Death all over again, or they believe it’s either a big hoax and/or just totally overblown across the Internet.

Meanwhile, two of my granddaughters from different households now have the sniffles and one of my daughters is maybe coming down with it. I’ve been having some stomach distress myself this past week, and everybody’s very nervous. My brother-in-law is very old and is in bad shape after two strokes. My wife was very nervous too and she didn’t want the granddaughters to bring their boyfriends to Thanksgiving.

In the end we just canceled the whole affair and we will have to wait for Christmas, I guess.

 

[skjl47]

I’m not certain what this says statistically, but evidently most people either believe this is The Black Death all over again, or they believe it’s either a big hoax and/or just totally overblown across the Internet.

Hello; If memory serves, there was an investigation some years ago about shark attacks. Seems the media had reported about shark attacks on people and there was a general feeling among the population that shark attacks were on the rise and becoming much more frequent. Turns out after the numbers were tabulated the number of attacks were well within the general average over time. I think the conclusion being the media hype had given the thinking the wrong take. Maybe since the increased ability to get real time information the last decades allowed the media to find out about other attacks and report about them made it seem there were many more attacks?

I recall a thing that would happen to me. Say a friend or relative got a new model of a car or a different used car. It then seemed I started seeing that same type car all the time all of a sudden. I realized it was merely my perception had changed. Those cars had been around but gone unnoticed before. They stood out only because there was a connection to the friend or relative.

I guess I am maybe at a 3 or 4 on a scale of one to ten. I see there is a real danger from being infected because some folks do pass from it. So it cannot be dismissed outright. I also see that nearly all recover or at least live thru the infection.
I know that some older or otherwise compromised folks also die each year from the flu that happens to go around. So is this covid19 actually worse than the seasonal flu? A question not yet fully known in my estimation. I have an unsupported notion at this time that the number of covid19 infected and recovered will turn out to be much higher than already estimated. I have a suspicion I might have already had the covid19 last spring. Thing is I have never been tested for the active virus and not yet tested for the antibodies. If, as reported, a large number get the virus and have no symptoms. Also there are still a very large number of people who have not been tested at all just like me so we do not know their status.

One last thing for me is the high blood pressure I have. Not sure how to gauge it but suspect my blood pressure may be a higher risk than the virus. My doctors are alarmed at my BP when they test it in an office. It is not so high when I test it at home but still high. My guess is I could have a number of things happen that would not be bad ion their own, but with the BP will be bad. So if I have not had the virus and do get it, it may be the BP which is the big flaw and not the virus so much. Without the high BP I may do fine with the Covid19. Same for the flu or some number of other things I may come across.

 

[skjl47]

For age groups it is told as this age 0 to 19 years old recovery is 99.997% ; age 20 to 49 recovery is 99.98%; 50 to 69 recovery is 99.5% and over 70 is 94.6 %.

Hello; I have been thinking about this. Decided to run the percentages to see how the numbers might work out. I decide to use deaths per one million. Note I do not have information about how the age distribution of any particular place may be. In some places the young will be a greater portion of the population and in other places the old will be the greater portion.

Please do not take these numbers as sure. I do think the numbers will be better (less dire) than this over time. I got this for a population of one million. Deaths per one million at age 0 to 19 = 30. Deaths per one million at age 20 to 49 = 200. Deaths per one million at age 50 to 69 =5000. Deaths per one million at age 70+ = 54,000.

All that said there are some still unknowns in play. If I recall from several months ago the projected death rates were much higher when reliable numbers were not to be had. My thinking is the numbers are far from settled. The trend seems to be that as more information is had the death rates go down. I hope this trend continues but we are maybe still only in the early second quarter to use a football analogy. Still way too many people who have never yet been tested for either the active virus, nor for the antibodies. All the numbers above will very likely have to be revised in time. My hope and also my guess ( but only a guess) is the numbers will continue to be revised toward a better outcome overall. Then there are the coming vaccines which, we hope, will change all of it to the better.

I do have a level of fear from being on the wrong side of conditions at my age. My fear is still at a lower range as more becomes known. Even without the vaccines there are some proven clinical treatments to be had. On top of that there is a chance that taking Vitamin D and zinc can help before I am exposed. ( I am not sure there is any definitive evidence for this but I was taking both already anyway.) I also take a low dose aspirin each day and there is some chance this can help with the potential blood clots associated with the virus.

I wear a mask when in buildings and have reduced my running around. Beyond this I have little control and just have to take a chance when I need groceries or some such. Wish I could have real good measure for how much to be afraid, but I do not. Best wishes to all.

 

[pacu mom]

We hit new records on Friday - 204,179 new cases

Here's something interesting. India came onto the COVID-19 scene fairly late. They came on like gang busters and in September they nearly caught up with the US and were only 800,000 cases behind the US. Since that time, the US rallied (if you can call it that, and if highest COVID-19 numbers is something to be proud of) and managed to get nearly 3.5 million cases ahead of India. At the start of this pandemic, there was talk about "flattening the curve", which India is doing. The US infections are doing the opposite and going up exponentially.












Total Cases: US 12,589,088; India 9,140,312

Recovered Cases: US 7,452,616; India 8,561,444

Active Cases: US 4,873,771; India 445,095

Total COVID-19 Deaths: US 262,701; India 133,773

My anti-mask, COVID-19 is a hoax friends attribute India's better numbers to "they do less testing".


Total Tests: US 180,672,356; India 131,733,134 No other countries come close to doing as many tests.


India has better numbers than the US. Less people are dying, and more are recovering faster (they have more recovered cases than the US)

I can't help but wonder if there is a malaria connection, or more specifically, a hydroxychloroquin connection. These countries have more than 50% of the malaria cases in the world: Nigeria, DRC, Uganda, Ivory Coast, Mozambique, Niger and India. In these contries, less people die from COVID-19, and those who recover seem to do so much faster than those in the US.

 

[pacu mom]

One last thing for me is the high blood pressure I have. Not sure how to gauge it but suspect my blood pressure may be a higher risk than the virus. My doctors are alarmed at my BP when they test it in an office. It is not so high when I test it at home but still high. My guess is I could have a number of things happen that would not be bad ion their own, but with the BP will be bad. So if I have not had the virus and do get it, it may be the BP which is the big flaw and not the virus so much. Without the high BP I may do fine with the Covid19. Same for the flu or some number of other things I may come across.

You have white coat syndrome. I also have that condition. My B/P was high when I went in all stressed out for a COVID-19 test after being exposed to a person who was positive. Now, every time I go to see the doctor, I'm stressed that my B/P will be high. And it is. He sent me home with a sheet of paper to record my readings. Right now, it is 125/72. It has been in the 160s at the doctor's office.

 

[skjl47]

I can't help but wonder if there is a malaria connection, or more specifically, a hydroxychloroquin connection.

Hello; I saw an interesting report on this a while back. Seems one of the studies about the use of hydroxychloroquine was based on a flawed use of the drug. The drug was being given to patients who were already seriously ill. The thinking is this drug has benefits when given very early such as when first infected but not after a person is seriously ill. My analogy is like putting on sunscreen after already being sunburned. Too late to do much good after already sunburned but good if used before the burn.
May be the same for hydroxychloroquine. Best used early but worth less after you get really ill. Anyway some medical folks have been treating patients and are reporting good results. It is (or was ) not so costly and the side effects are known for over 60 years. So I will ask for it if I get diagnosed.

 

[skjl47]

It has been in the 160s at the doctor's office.

Hello; I beat 160 in a doctors office.

 

[Ulu]

I read in the Fresno Bee that Christmas is probably verboten, and that we’re going to be under restrictions until May.

I don’t know if that’s true or if it’s just the professional speculations of some pundit-for-hire. They come out of the woodwork whenever there’s some kind of catastrophic event.

Meanwhile, my water softener is leaking & my hot water heater is ketteling, and because of the crisis every plumber willing to work is busy right now. We’ve had thousands of homes and other buildings burn down in recent fires, and people are desperately rebuilding or moving to old houses and patching them up.

Anyhow I took a hacksaw and cut the copper water softener pipes loose, inboard of the bypass valve, but I had to scoop out 300 pounds of salt by hand before I could move the thing.

The leaks have stopped, and because I retained the bypass valve I still have running water in my house.

Today I will try to get a new one and install it.