Coronavirus prep

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  • ahoy_m8
    ahoy_m8 Posts: 3,053 Member
    https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/21/health/covid-vaccine-antibodies-t-cells.html
    A good read. The lede:
    How long until you need another covid shot? Not for many months, and perhaps not for years, according to a flurry of new studies. Three doses of a Covid vaccine — or even just two — are enough to protect most people from serious illness and death for a long time, the studies suggest.

    “We’re starting to see now diminishing returns on the number of additional doses,” said John Wherry, director of the Institute for immunology at the University of Pennsylvania.

    People here are getting 4th shots. I waited until December for my 3rd (to maximize antibodies for when 3 DD came home for extended holiday - and it was a petri dish here!). I'll probably wait until the next variant wave for the 4th.

    About masks, I've followed a pretty simple guideline for almost a year.
    • I wear a mask places that are generally non-discretionary for vulnerable people--pharmacies, grocery stores, public transit, medical settings.
    • I don't places that are discretionary-- restaurants, bars, entertainment venues (unless required by the venue). I figure vulnerable people can avoid those spots if they need to.
    That said, we have been very sparing about eating out.
  • ahoy_m8
    ahoy_m8 Posts: 3,053 Member
    PAV8888 wrote: »
    Does anyone get the impression that even people who have been generally compliant with wearing a mask are now "ready to ditch the masks" on the strength of "I just had COVID and it wasn't so bad" Omicron?

    Yea, I did too and it was a non event. Could see the metrics tanking on Fitbit (heart rate variability down, resting heart rate up, breaths per minute going up, one day of oxygen saturation going down in spite of bpm going up) and was feeling like on the way down with a nasty nasty cold/flu that was just starting to take hold for a couple of days and then overnight it reversed to "I just had the flu a day or so ago and I'm now recovering or fully recovered". Which lasted for just about 10 days--and no evidence of anything going on via Fitbit other than on one day when I was really short of sleep and both metrics and mild symptoms appeared.

    So, I get it: non event for most of us... well, except for the number of people who still ended up in hospital.

    When looking around, there exist a number of people who got both Delta and Omicron. So Omicron is unlikely to confer magical immunity.

    Why are we all so sure that there is no future Delta lurking out there just because Omicron was so wide spread? How painful is it really to wear a mask when out amongst people?

    I am planning to continue to, though I suspect that given the anti-masking vehemence I may choose to just leave venues as oppose to argue the case.

    With countries like Syria that have a 2% vaccination rate, I’m pretty sure there will be another variant as transmissible as omicron sooner or later. Whether it causes sickness more or less severe is a roll of the dice. The CDC seems to be saying it’s ok to take a break from masks when numbers are low but warns masks will be needed again when infection rates rise. It’s just a dynamic situation.

    BTW, glad it was a non-event for you!
  • SModa61
    SModa61 Posts: 3,114 Member
    AnnPT77 wrote: »
    ahoy_m8 wrote: »
    https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/21/health/covid-vaccine-antibodies-t-cells.html
    A good read. The lede:
    How long until you need another covid shot? Not for many months, and perhaps not for years, according to a flurry of new studies. Three doses of a Covid vaccine — or even just two — are enough to protect most people from serious illness and death for a long time, the studies suggest.

    “We’re starting to see now diminishing returns on the number of additional doses,” said John Wherry, director of the Institute for immunology at the University of Pennsylvania.

    People here are getting 4th shots. I waited until December for my 3rd (to maximize antibodies for when 3 DD came home for extended holiday - and it was a petri dish here!). I'll probably wait until the next variant wave for the 4th.

    About masks, I've followed a pretty simple guideline for almost a year.
    • I wear a mask places that are generally non-discretionary for vulnerable people--pharmacies, grocery stores, public transit, medical settings.
    • I don't places that are discretionary-- restaurants, bars, entertainment venues (unless required by the venue). I figure vulnerable people can avoid those spots if they need to.
    That said, we have been very sparing about eating out.

    It's refreshing to see someone who's so clearly parsing out when and where their actions can reduce risk for other (possibly more vulnerable) people, vs. acting different when and where people are signaling behaviorally that they're accepting greater risk for themselves. That seems both smart and kind.

    I also appreciate seeing those distinctions made.
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,885 Member
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    PAV8888 wrote: »
    Does anyone get the impression that even people who have been generally compliant with wearing a mask are now "ready to ditch the masks" on the strength of "I just had COVID and it wasn't so bad" Omicron?

    I'm sure for some...but for many it's fatigue with the whole thing. Almost everyone I know personally is fully vaxed and boosted and has worn masks everywhere as mandated by the state...vaccination and mask compliance in my state is very high, at least in most of the urban population...and almost everyone I know personally contracted COVID in January. I think there comes a point where people ask, "what really is the point?" Add to that, so many situations where the mask mandate just didn't make sense at all...like having to wear one to enter a restaurant, but being allowed to take it off as soon as you sit down...but have to put in on to walk to the bathroom...but you can sit there for an hour without one and eat and drink...same for brew pubs, bars, movie theaters, sports and concert venues, etc.

    This is consistent with a lot of what I've noticed except I actually don't know that many who had omicron. Some, definitely. And vax compliance in my state and city is only okay, but it varies a lot by location and in my part of the city it has been very high, and so has mask compliance. (And as noted above, the date we are lifting the mask mandate is not yet determined, although there's going to be some sort of update this afternoon that might include that information.)

    I generally agree with much of the rest of what you said too.
  • T1DCarnivoreRunner
    T1DCarnivoreRunner Posts: 11,502 Member
    At this point, the unvaccinated will not change their minds. They have access to that same knowledge and ignore it.

    What I want to know is when we need a 4th shot. Has anyone heard if it is a booster every 6 months?
  • snowflake954
    snowflake954 Posts: 8,399 Member
    edited February 2022
    T1DCarnivoreRunner wrote: »
    At this point, the unvaccinated will not change their minds. They have access to that same knowledge and ignore it.

    What I want to know is when we need a 4th shot. Has anyone heard if it is a booster every 6 months?

    In Italy what they're saying is 4th dose in September for medical personal, over 80, and those with autoimune diseases. That's unless a strong variant appears.

    Our restrictions are slowly lifting as our numbers go down. People still need to wear a mask indoors and the government is arguing about when to abolish the restriction. My take--like @cwolfman13 we had omicron sweep through in January, and we got it in our family--pretty light, and I had no symptoms at all. After that I'm not afraid any longer, the vax worked.

    As we move into spring and summer and it gets hot in Italy, masks are highly uncomfortable--miserable. I don't plan on wearing one unless it's required. Those who want to, or need to should, and I'll respect that, however, you can't continue to ask the masses to suffer for a few. There is already pushback, and that means an explosion down the road.

    Every country or region has different rules. We are a high level tourist city (Rome), and they are already arriving.
  • nooshi713
    nooshi713 Posts: 4,877 Member
    Restaurant food prices have increased dramatically. I’m sure that is due to a combination of reasons including increased transportation costs due to increased fuel prices, increased price of good, and increased wages.
  • rheddmobile
    rheddmobile Posts: 6,840 Member
    edited February 2022
    ahoy_m8 wrote: »
    T1DCarnivoreRunner wrote: »
    At this point, the unvaccinated will not change their minds. They have access to that same knowledge and ignore it.

    What I want to know is when we need a 4th shot. Has anyone heard if it is a booster every 6 months?

    I posted a nyt link (that I thought was a pretty good discussion) above. https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/21/health/covid-vaccine-antibodies-t-cells.html

    tl;dr: B- and T-cell training lasts years even though the post-boost antibody flood recedes in a few months. Also, B-/T-cells are able to recognize and to disable a much, much broader range of variants than antibodies. The 3rd shot makes a big difference for T-/B-cell training. So unless you have a particular immune issue that would hinder B-/T-cell training, you *may* not need a 4th for years. Data still coming in.

    I read that article, and unfortunately in my opinion it’s a bad article. All of the discussion of antibodies in the article is theoretical, whereas real world results are indeed starting to trickle in and have found a dramatic reduction in real world effectiveness at preventing hospitalization during the Omicron wave after four months. Real world trumps theory every time.

    In fact if you scroll down to the bottom of the article you posted, the article about effectiveness waning is currently the top rated article on the same news site.
  • SuzySunshine99
    SuzySunshine99 Posts: 2,989 Member
    edited February 2022
    nooshi713 wrote: »
    Restaurant food prices have increased dramatically. I’m sure that is due to a combination of reasons including increased transportation costs due to increased fuel prices, increased price of good, and increased wages.

    My brother is a chef and he told me that while wages have increased, the menu price increases are almost ALL because of the food cost. Food cost is up because of the increased transportation costs and supply issues. Many restaurants are changing and shrinking their menus to accommodate ingredients they can consistently get at a price that has the least impact on their profit margin.

    The restaurant business is tough. Even successful restaurants in the best of times have very narrow profit margins. I once complained to my brother about the cost of certain restaurant items...like a glass of wine or a baked potato. "Why do they charge $6.00 for a baked potato that cost them 10 cents?" He responded, "Because they lost money on the $40 steak you ordered and they have to make it up somehow."
  • T1DCarnivoreRunner
    T1DCarnivoreRunner Posts: 11,502 Member
    ReenieHJ wrote: »
    @PAV8888 Yeh, sad but I see it locally. Many people aren't masking up anymore. In fact, my nephew works at a very large company in Texas, brand new building, grand opening, lots of people coming through to check it out. He said there were 3 people wearing a mask(he was 1 of them) and people were making fun of them. :( WTH??

    I ran into someone at the grocery store Sunday a.m., she started discussing the vaccines. She wears a mask because she's not vaxxed and doesn't plan on getting it. She says she's never gotten Covid yet knows of many who've been vaxxed that have gotten sick from it. I hope she never does get it. :(

    At this point, I feel naked without a mask in public places.

    I happen to work at a brand new decent sized building in Texas also. Large for normal standards, small to mid-sized for a manufacturing plant. Our corporate office has made a mask requirement at all facilities. Where we have issues is when the CEO visits, and when the Regional Director is here (more often), they walk around without masks because they know they can. Corporate EHS says we need masks, but when other managers open break the policy, that makes it tough for us local managers to enforce it. We have a lot of people from corporate, other plants, and vendors here also.

    Having said that, I rarely wear a mask where it is not required. When I shop, I just don't. I am figuring my vaccine should do it's job.

    Our customer facility (also in Texas) had a lot of absenteeism last month due to Covid. They even had to cut entire shifts of production because they had too few workers.
  • MargaretYakoda
    MargaretYakoda Posts: 2,997 Member
    ReenieHJ wrote: »
    I buy coffee in canisters and usually wait for sales when I can get it for 4.99 or 5.99. This week the sale price is 8.49. :(

    We usually get our coffee in bulk at a restaurant supply store. We just got a case for $70, that works out to about $4/pound.
    We bought a case six months ago and it was $20 cheaper.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    Regarding the CDC‘s new masking guidance, here is an article with a link for looking up your county’s status: https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2022/02/25/1082249002/cdc-says-americans-can-now-go-unmasked-in-many-parts-of-the-country

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