Covid-19

The virus can live on a surface for up to 9 hours or something like that. So an infected person handling shopping or a parcel and your friend then touching it could do it. Equally the virus is airborne so opening the door to anyone infected could have exposed them to it. 

Yeah - I've heard that too - mathematically ridiculous.     If each of those 10 people have another 10 they socialise with, and those 10 have others etc. etc.    It's exactly the same as no lockdown and no restrictions.     Why are politicians so dumb?     Why are the public so gullible for believing their garbage?

How many fools would willingly download the government's 'we now track you 24/7' spyware?     We all know how well they would safeguard our data.....oh, wait......

 Informing on neighbours being outside for over 1 hour?     This is all turning into 1930s Germany very, very quickly.   Papiere, Bicht!    Doing the Reich thing! 

There is talk of people being able to socialise in 'bubbles' of small groups of immediate family and friends soon so if you feel compellled that you have to follow the govt guidelines and none of you are in the vulnerable group with medical conditions that affect the immune system,cancer or breathing problems then you will be able to name your family as your 'bubble' to socialise with.

I agree on lots of the points plastic I've had trouble working out some of the stuff I cant make sense of. As you know I've had the virus. Healthy to still recovering after weeks! I think if people want to infect their friends and families let them theyll do it anyway. Even our local councillors have made it clear on social media their not taking it seriously so how will the local people. Let them get it if that's what they want. The rest of us can recover in peace

My friend is currently wondering how she got sick. She only had shopping and parcels delivered.

The only issue with identifying those who are infected is that many are asymptomatic so those who appear fit and healthy could be infected and putting others at risk - so there’s a fine line really - on one side you’ve got killing the economy and on the other killing people... finding that centre line where you do the least damage to both people and businesses is tough. I think you just need to look to the United States who took social distancing less seriously to see that there are done benefits but as I said a lot of it is just for show - like the daily briefing - every day the message barely changes... so I have mixed feelings. 

I think the NHS has done okay but the problem with it and I’ve said this for ages is the fact that there is way too much middle management. Cut them and spend the money on the shop floor so to speak... doctors, nurses, mental health, machinery etc. Sadly the inefficiencies only get shown up when excrement hits the fan. I think after this we need to restructure the NHS so money is spent where it’s needed and we need to pay nurses a lot more fairly as the middle management aren’t exposed to risk, do little work (because the nitty gritty duties happen below them and the major decisions above them), yet get high pay.... things need to change. I’m reluctant to call out the NHS as strongly as you have because I still think we have a better system here than in many countries but yeah it does need some heavy investment. 

Great points Plastic, totally agree

Absolutely agree - shield the infected and vulnerable - but imploding your economy by locking down healthy people?    Utter madness,    But it's a great way to have a recession and blame it on the Boogeyman.

While some people are still happy-clapping on a Thursday night, it's been shown in a German study that the UK has it worse than most *because* of the NHS - it's slow, dinosaur ways meant it couldn't react fast enough to a changing dynamic where all of the semi-private systems all over the EU worked much better and were able to adapt quickly.

Not so much of a sacred cow, really.

Very valid points - I think much like the testing is for reassurance and show rather than having practical value. Authorities need to be seen to act in order to maintain some degree of public confidence. This said I do think sensible precautions help - such as shielding the most vulnerable. 

The logic problem I have is with all this 'flattening the curve' being taken by many as they will avoid it.     It's a virus - almost everyone will get it eventually and most will have mild or no symptoms.      Some will have it bad - whenever they get it..      In the early stages, the hospitals were kicking the patients into respite or care homes - guess where almost all of the fatalities have been?     

There's also the misuse of PPE - I worked in the nuclear industry so you can equate spreading radioactive contamination with spreading a virus - you need to be scrupulously clean when dealing with it or is gets around very easily - and with poor hygiene standards in most hospitals and care facilities, it's a time-bomb..

The whole testing thing seems stupid - you can be tested clean on Monday and get infected on Tuesday - and with a two week incubation, it makes it a joke.   How can you test the millions of people everyday?     The lockdown makes no real sense either - sunlight and vitamin D are known to help your immune system so depriving people of that makes things worse.

The whole vaccine thing sounds suspicious too - there is no vaccine for all the other viruses over the years - AIDS, swine flu. avian flu, SARS etc. - so why do people think there with be one for this?   Are you going to live in your basement forever?   Never see your family again?

Would you trust a Microsoft Anti-Virus?      Gates can't protect his own lines of computer code - so why should we trust this Pro-Eugenics / Population Reduction Megalomaniac whose previous vaccines have a monstrous record in the third world?

I'm really uncomfortable with all the civil liberty grabbing too and the heavy-handed policing - that is strangely inconsistent in different cities - the police seem to have blind eyes where it suits their agenda.

"Those who give up freedom for security deserve neither."

That businessman is... well I’m not going to use the language I’d like to. Given that social distancing Has been proven to work - it appears that guy cares more about money than lives or people’s health - he implies it is about civil liberties but if you look at it carefully - thus is about getting his business up and running again. If you look at his calls:

- Schools to go back - is this not so his employees can work rather than having childcare arrangements? This would put kids in close confines to one another risking the spread not only between themselves but when they go home with their families.

- Allowing gatherings of up to 100 - he has 600 employees and 19 businesses so this averages at 60 employees per business. Some will be bigger, some smaller - so essentially he wants measures which allow his business to trade normally without having to make adjustments, again putting people at risk.

I hope this guy spends a fortune on the case and loses the lot and has to pay the governments costs. Restrictions aren’t in place for the hell of it, they are there because they are needed and people are getting ill and dying. 

*Rant over*

This said I agree it’s hard but we all need to do our bit so as the lives lost aren’t in vein and so as we can get back to some sense of normality. 

A businessman has launched a judicial review into the lockdown:

https://wedlakebell.com/legal-challenge-over-lawfulness-of-government-lockdown-launched-by-entrepreneur/

So hopefully it will be eased soon

Hi there,

I am an educational professional with a 29 year old son on the Autistic spectrum. I have written to my MP 2 weeks ago as I think people like my son, you and others who are supported at home, live in supported living, or live with their families or in their own homes have been totally neglected. 

I approached my son's psychiatrist for advice a couple of weeks ago. I now have a letter stating that my son can go out of his home more often than once a day, in fact as often as he needs to due to his autism. This is different from your situation, but I have been told that the Government guidelines, as regards going out, are flexible for people with Autism. 

My son has quite a large care team. To limit the possibility of contracting Covid-19 I reduced his team to 3 people and myself and his sister, so 5 people. I live alone and only mix with my son when it is my timetabled time on his rota. His sister is also very strict and only sees her brother. The other 3 carers also have very limited contact with others, basically the people they live with. So I feel I have limited the risk of passing on the infection as much as I can. We also have strict protocols at my son's flat. 

So to relate this to your situation. If your mum was your carer she would have to see you. If you had carers like my son you would have to mix with them. But your situation is different. 

I have heard ministers say that if a child's parents live at 2 different homes then the children can spend some time with one parent and the rest of the time with the other parent, so they move between the two houses.

Everyone also has to protect their mental health. 

I agree with other responses that say strictly speaking you should not visit someone else's house. You say none of you see anyone else, but presumably you, or your mum still go shopping so could contract the virus and if you visited each other's houses then pass on the infection.

Here are some suggestions:

Use video calls, Houseparty or Zoom to have contact. My son has used all 3. Hopefully this is possible for you via phones or other technology.

Telephone regularly to speak to each other.

Could you meet at a local park for a walk. Again strictly speaking you shouldn't even meet for a walk but you are in the open air and the risk of passing on an infection is less if you are outside (this was said on the Government briefing 29.4.20). You would still need to socially distance and stay at least 2 meters apart on the walk, then go back to your own houses.

If none of this works for you and if your mental health is seriously compromised then you will have to re-consider. I agree with other replies that if one of you passed the infection to one another this would be extremely serious but your mental heath is also important. You will have to make a judgement call.

I wonder if you considered isolating with your family? This may be too much contact or there may be no where for you to sleep, and technically this should have happened from early in lockdown. 

I have a coronavirus link on my website. Please have a look. There is some advice on there, comments , experiences of other families and photos and videos of what my son is doing to get through lockdown. 

Here is the link: https://annedonohoe.co.uk/new-corona-virus-support

All the best and good luck with your decision.

Anne

Hi there,

I am an educational professional with a 29 year old son on the Autistic spectrum. I have written to my MP 2 weeks ago as I think people like my son, you and others who are supported at home, live in supported living, or live with their families or in their own homes have been totally neglected. 

I approached my son's psychiatrist for advice a couple of weeks ago. I now have a letter stating that my son can go out of his home more often than once a day, in fact as often as he needs to due to his autism. This is different from your situation, but I have been told that the Government guidelines, as regards going out, are flexible for people with Autism. 

My son has quite a large care team. To limit the possibility of contracting Covid-19 I reduced his team to 3 people and myself and his sister, so 5 people. I live alone and only mix with my son when it is my timetabled time on his rota. His sister is also very strict and only sees her brother. The other 3 carers also have very limited contact with others, basically the people they live with. So I feel I have limited the risk of passing on the infection as much as I can. We also have strict protocols at my son's flat. 

So to relate this to your situation. If your mum was your carer she would have to see you. If you had carers like my son you would have to mix with them. But your situation is different. 

I have heard ministers say that if a child's parents live at 2 different homes then the children can spend some time with one parent and the rest of the time with the other parent, so they move between the two houses.

Everyone also has to protect their mental health. 

I agree with other responses that say strictly speaking you should not visit someone else's house. You say none of you see anyone else, but presumably you, or your mum still go shopping so could contract the virus and if you visited each other's houses then pass on the infection.

Here are some suggestions:

Use video calls, Houseparty or Zoom to have contact. My son has used all 3. Hopefully this is possible for you via phones or other technology.

Telephone regularly to speak to each other.

Could you meet at a local park for a walk. Again strictly speaking you shouldn't even meet for a walk but you are in the open air and the risk of passing on an infection is less if you are outside (this was said on the Government briefing 29.4.20). You would still need to socially distance and stay at least 2 meters apart on the walk, then go back to your own houses.

If none of this works for you and if your mental health is seriously compromised then you will have to re-consider. I agree with other replies that if one of you passed the infection to one another this would be extremely serious but your mental heath is also important. You will have to make a judgement call.

I wonder if you considered isolating with your family? This may be too much contact or there may be no where for you to sleep, and technically this should have happened from early in lockdown. 

I have a coronavirus link on my website. Please have a look. There is some advice on there, comments , experiences of other families and photos and videos of what my son is doing to get through lockdown. 

Here is the link: https://annedonohoe.co.uk/new-corona-virus-support

All the best and good luck with your decision.

Anne

That’s not something that the police will consider - the rules apply across the board. It’s also worth remembering that people can be asymptomatic which is essentially where you could have covid-19 but exhibit no symptoms but could pass it on. Sadly there are no exceptions which your circumstances fall into - as such if you did go to them, or then to you - you are in breach of the rules and could be fined or get into trouble with the police. 

I see your point. But there is literally no risk at all. We haven't been into contact with anyone or out of the house. Neither have they. Its impossible for us to have gotten it. 

You dont want to risk it. I only had a temperature day 1 and it was the herd immunity rubbish. We were allowed out but I thought its probably not the virus but if it is I'd feel awful if I passed it on and someone got very sick. I couldnt live with the guilt personally.

In a household of 4, one had fever 40 vomited, short breath for a few minutes and a cough for a few days

1 no symptoms 

1 had the virus but was able to carry on

1 very sick no underlying health conditions

Technically no - the guidelines are that you should not associate with anyone outside of your household. Obviously you can chance it but the police could fine you legitimately.