Coronavirus prep
Replies
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Here in Belgium, we are now in a semi-lockdown. All restaurants, pubs and schools are closed; most people who can work from home do so.
Hospitals are preparing for a peak in ER care by the end of this week, as we only started to shut down a few days ago. It is an economic catastophy already, but still some people don't take this seriously. As all pubs were closing down on Friday at midnight, hugh "lockdown parties" were organized so people could party while they still could.
The next day our neighbour country, The Netherlands, were invaded by Belgians going to non-essential shops and pubs that weren't closed yet. Luckily they have now closed down as well.
Nothing official yet, but the general expectation is that we will go into a full lockdown by the end of the week.
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If people are being confronted with empty supermarket shelves, I notice that in London at least, hoarding behaviour hasn't hit the asian grocer's yet. I've been to two this week and they were both well stocked.
Around here the "mass market" grocery stores were hit first and hard. The smaller "mom and pop" and ethnic ones were not hit very hard at all.
For realz...the Walmart was crazy when I drove by - lines out into the parking lot like Black Friday. I kept on driving. Went to the small local market (my favorite place to go) and there were only a few shoppers, plenty of products and no wait to check out. The prices are always a little higher than Walmart anyway, but it was well worth paying slightly more to skip the hassle and drama. Got everything I needed and left with a smile on my face.
Here in NYC... all stores big and small, Asian or not are being hit hard. No meat, no supplies, long lines and short tempers.5 -
I will make a couple of recommendations from our experience here in Italy. I know they tell you that masks don't work, but the Chinese experts think they do. We were reprimanded for too many people without. We need them to go shopping or the pharmacy. They are now introvabile. Please don't hoard them. If someone in your family gets the virus and you need to tend them you should have a mask. Buy what you need. I had to make my own from cheesecloth with a pocket to slip a filter in. I made a double rectangle and put elastic bands on. The fabric has to be strong enough to be disinfected every time you take it off and don't touch the front while doing so. I plan to disinfect mine and throw away the filter every time. I'm using a swiffter like sheet for the filter. I hope it works--I don't have other options.
Lightweight plastic gloves--luckily I had a box on hand. I put them on before entering the supermarket--carts can have many germs and we don't have wipes here. Throw them after use.
If you have important medication get it refilled now.
If your supermarkets aren't out buy some nuts and dried fruit. With dried fruit you can make pies. These are calorie dense--portion them out.11 -
@snowflake954
Thank you for your reports from Italy and the advice. Heading to my store now....need a few things. I hope people arent ugly
@rheddmobile A lovely sentiment and good reminder. Thank you!3 -
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moonangel12 wrote: »
I’ll admit, I would be way more skeptical and in denial of what is going on in the world if it weren’t for this thread, especially @snowflake954’s updates from Italy. I keep trying to talk logical sense into people (the lady this morning is also spreading the “flatten the curve” message) without fear mongering.
me, too - my initial thoughts at the beginning of this thread have drastically changed as it has grown in length!
I was a little frustrated with the pastor's wife yesterday morning. She had the attitude that this is all overkill and devastating the economy which she claims will cause more deaths in the long run itself. And then there are number of people who aren't bothered at all, having the attitude that "God will take care of me". *shakes head* Every time I heard that, I couldn't help but wonder how many people blew off the Spanish flu in 1918 with that attitude, or better yet, the Black Plague. I"m a Christian and believe in God and the Bible, but I'm also a firm believer that God expects us to use common sense, too, and treating a disease like this as though its trivial is about as far from sensible as one can get. (DISCLAIMER: this is just my particular belief and isn't meant to start any sort of religious discussion as I'm sure there are many others of a variety of faiths who are doing the same thing - so please don't take this and delve into an area that's going to get us in trouble with the moderators!)
anyway, I was trying to explain the flattening of the curve thing, too, but it wasn't getting much traction, sadly. I hate to even think it, but its going to take people getting sick and hospitalized and perhaps worse before most people in my area start to take this seriously.
On the mask front, I have a respirator style mask that fits tight against my face that I use when making my soap, so I hope that would be adequate if it comes to the place where I need it. Also makes me think I'd better stop at Lowe's on the way home and see if I can get another pack of those, as the one I have is getting a little old and could probably stand to be replaced......
My best friend called me on Saturday to tell me that her company was requiring her to set up to work from home, and she was complaining about it as she works in a call center and would have to spend the weekend re-arranging her computer setup to accommodate it. She too was claiming this wasn't any worse than the flu and this is all over kill, so I tried to explain the difference to her. She asked me to send her links to read, so I sent her the John Hopkins link from earlier and a link to this thread lol
I hope she reads this as she lives in the metro area of the state capitol and she has weak lungs and is very susceptible to anything that infects the respiratory system, so if she does catch this, it has a very good potential of being very bad for her, and even worse, she's the type that waits until the very last minute to go to the doctor, meaning she'll let it get very severe before seeking medical help. And she lives alone and I'm her only contact
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snowflake954 wrote: »I will make a couple of recommendations from our experience here in Italy. I know they tell you that masks don't work, but the Chinese experts think they do. We were reprimanded for too many people without. We need them to go shopping or the pharmacy. They are now introvabile. Please don't hoard them. If someone in your family gets the virus and you need to tend them you should have a mask. Buy what you need. I had to make my own from cheesecloth with a pocket to slip a filter in. I made a double rectangle and put elastic bands on. The fabric has to be strong enough to be disinfected every time you take it off and don't touch the front while doing so. I plan to disinfect mine and throw away the filter every time. I'm using a swiffter like sheet for the filter. I hope it works--I don't have other options.
Lightweight plastic gloves--luckily I had a box on hand. I put them on before entering the supermarket--carts can have many germs and we don't have wipes here. Throw them after use.
If you have important medication get it refilled now.
If your supermarkets aren't out buy some nuts and dried fruit. With dried fruit you can make pies. These are calorie dense--portion them out.
I appreciate all your updates. Getting many more from France, Germany and Italy from others as well. YouTube has many videos of how to make your own mask. Perhaps they will help, I'm not sure, but they would not hurt if this gets bad and the mask shortage continues. I do think they would help.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNjpH5lBZ8w 3 -
Potential great news but it's too early to tell if this will work. I'm hearing of rapid potential treatments, not vaccines. One is the one Snowflake mentioned around a week ago -- the RA drug which slows the progression in the lungs. This other one, which slows the replication of the virus, might show a lot more promise. It was developed for Ebola.
https://www.biopharmadive.com/news/coronavirus-remdesivir-gilead-antiviral-drug-covid-19/573261/
There's also another strategy I've heard of as well. They take the antibodies from those that have had it and recovered and administer them to people that haven't had it yet. That would be a longer term play, though.
It's not they won't find a vaccine, I think they will, but these are strategies meant to minimize deaths until we find a vaccine. World wide, pharmaceutical companies are working hard to find solutions.6 -
bmeadows380 wrote: »moonangel12 wrote: »
I’ll admit, I would be way more skeptical and in denial of what is going on in the world if it weren’t for this thread, especially @snowflake954’s updates from Italy. I keep trying to talk logical sense into people (the lady this morning is also spreading the “flatten the curve” message) without fear mongering.
me, too - my initial thoughts at the beginning of this thread have drastically changed as it has grown in length!
I was a little frustrated with the pastor's wife yesterday morning. She had the attitude that this is all overkill and devastating the economy which she claims will cause more deaths in the long run itself. And then there are number of people who aren't bothered at all, having the attitude that "God will take care of me". *shakes head* Every time I heard that, I couldn't help but wonder how many people blew off the Spanish flu in 1918 with that attitude, or better yet, the Black Plague. I"m a Christian and believe in God and the Bible, but I'm also a firm believer that God expects us to use common sense, too, and treating a disease like this as though its trivial is about as far from sensible as one can get. (DISCLAIMER: this is just my particular belief and isn't meant to start any sort of religious discussion as I'm sure there are many others of a variety of faiths who are doing the same thing - so please don't take this and delve into an area that's going to get us in trouble with the moderators!)
anyway, I was trying to explain the flattening of the curve thing, too, but it wasn't getting much traction, sadly. I hate to even think it, but its going to take people getting sick and hospitalized and perhaps worse before most people in my area start to take this seriously.
On the mask front, I have a respirator style mask that fits tight against my face that I use when making my soap, so I hope that would be adequate if it comes to the place where I need it. Also makes me think I'd better stop at Lowe's on the way home and see if I can get another pack of those, as the one I have is getting a little old and could probably stand to be replaced......
My best friend called me on Saturday to tell me that her company was requiring her to set up to work from home, and she was complaining about it as she works in a call center and would have to spend the weekend re-arranging her computer setup to accommodate it. She too was claiming this wasn't any worse than the flu and this is all over kill, so I tried to explain the difference to her. She asked me to send her links to read, so I sent her the John Hopkins link from earlier and a link to this thread lol
I hope she reads this as she lives in the metro area of the state capitol and she has weak lungs and is very susceptible to anything that infects the respiratory system, so if she does catch this, it has a very good potential of being very bad for her, and even worse, she's the type that waits until the very last minute to go to the doctor, meaning she'll let it get very severe before seeking medical help. And she lives alone and I'm her only contact
Haven't the people in your church heard the old saying "God helps those that help themselves?" I grew up with that. I agree with you that some people are in for a rude awakening. I'm trying to tell my family. This thread has been so interesting because people chime in from all over the world with whats happening--it's truely global. And I, like you, have seen the thread change and evolve and people are changing their ideas. I certainly hope this goes better for all of you in the rest of the world. All the things bought can be used. Unfortunately this thing is moving like a train.10 -
MikePfirrman wrote: »Potential great news but it's too early to tell if this will work. I'm hearing of rapid potential treatments, not vaccines. One is the one Snowflake mentioned around a week ago -- the RA drug which slows the progression in the lungs. This other one, which slows the replication of the virus, might show a lot more promise. It was developed for Ebola.
https://www.biopharmadive.com/news/coronavirus-remdesivir-gilead-antiviral-drug-covid-19/573261/
There's also another strategy I've heard of as well. They take the antibodies from those that have had it and recovered and administer them to people that haven't had it yet. That would be a longer term play, though.
It's not they won't find a vaccine, I think they will, but these are strategies meant to minimize deaths until we find a vaccine. World wide, pharmaceutical companies are working hard to find solutions.
Thanks Mike, that's what I'm hearing too in TV interviews with the researchers. Italy is going to be testing these treatments, and I'll update when they report how they're working. Thanks for posting. I wish we had others in this camp that could tell us more---any one out there?5 -
just_Tomek wrote: »Although not required around here yet, I have made a choice to stop going to the gym for a while. Do the smart thing ppl, really practice this social distancing.
But the advice that, my company for example, you see posted in a workplace, are simply laughable. You either want ppl to self isolate and stay home, or you dont. Cause posting that we should stay 2m away from eachother at work, is really a joke.
Sadly I'd have to say you're doing the smart thing. The choice was taken away from me because my health center was closed a couple weeks ago. My son is searching YouTube for things he can do at home and is doing well. He filled 2 backpacks with books, weighed them, and does lifting. I told him he can manage to do almost everything. Convicts can get muscular in their cells, so it's possible.8 -
snowflake954 wrote: »MikePfirrman wrote: »Potential great news but it's too early to tell if this will work. I'm hearing of rapid potential treatments, not vaccines. One is the one Snowflake mentioned around a week ago -- the RA drug which slows the progression in the lungs. This other one, which slows the replication of the virus, might show a lot more promise. It was developed for Ebola.
https://www.biopharmadive.com/news/coronavirus-remdesivir-gilead-antiviral-drug-covid-19/573261/
There's also another strategy I've heard of as well. They take the antibodies from those that have had it and recovered and administer them to people that haven't had it yet. That would be a longer term play, though.
It's not they won't find a vaccine, I think they will, but these are strategies meant to minimize deaths until we find a vaccine. World wide, pharmaceutical companies are working hard to find solutions.
Thanks Mike, that's what I'm hearing too in TV interviews with the researchers. Italy is going to be testing these treatments, and I'll update when they report how they're working. Thanks for posting. I wish we had others in this camp that could tell us more---any one out there?
I'm mostly staying off the threads about it because those that don't believe it never will until it impacts them either directly or the government forces them to shelter in place. This week, I have a girl (in her 20s) that my daughter is driving from Austin to San Diego to stay with her parents with a pit stop here. Her immune system is compromised, she has severe lung function compromised and she's scared to death as everyone around her isn't taking it serious. My two kids are coming home this week - one was selling solar in San Diego door to door, making great money. They are all now out of work. My daughter is telecommuting in cyber security (very busy for her right now).
What aggravates me the most currently are the terms "fear mongering" and "media driven". The Sect of Health in Ohio put it well (and I've read letters from Epidemiologists all week begging people to take it serious). She said something like, "I know I'll sound a bit like Chicken Little at the front end, but at the back end you'll say that you didn't do enough.". One Epidemiologist said that every one person now we can stop being infected will stop it from spreading to 500 in a month. That's the kind of stuff we're talking about. She wanted to dispell this whole linear thing. It's not linear at all. It's an exponential graph, doubling every 2 to 3 days.
There is more indication Summer will slow it, but likely not in time for us at this point. I think by Fall we will have a better grip on it. If there's any good news, it's when it hit us. Summer might give us a small breather I pray.
Please, please stop saying it's the flu or a cold or it's overblown. The media is not your enemy. They are just reporting what is going on and why scientists are so concerned. There is not a conspiracy to tank the US stock market before the election. 400 in Italy didn't die in one day for our US election. It's so absurd it's not funny. It's pathetic actually.17 -
I take everything that's serious, seriously but also reasonably, as I've with this virus. For instance I won't take shelter within New Jersey because a tornado's occurring within Texas but when I've gotten tornado warnings, that's when I took shelter & did've groceries/necessities.
However there was no reasonable belief, that this virus'd strike close enough to me since others didn't {at least not, within my lifetime} & thus I didn't prepare.2 -
My employer this morning sent an email asking everyone who can work from home to work from home. That includes me, so I'll be heading home this afternoon until . . . ?14
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janejellyroll wrote: »My employer this morning sent an email asking everyone who can work from home to work from home. That includes me, so I'll be heading home this afternoon until . . . ?
I'm home indefinitely too. They are telling us MAYBE May 1st we'll be back. I work with specialized equipment, so there is not much I can do from home. But my boss is telling me I should spend my time doing online tutorials and learning new software, so I guess I'll do that.4 -
SuzySunshine99 wrote: »janejellyroll wrote: »My employer this morning sent an email asking everyone who can work from home to work from home. That includes me, so I'll be heading home this afternoon until . . . ?
I'm home indefinitely too. They are telling us MAYBE May 1st we'll be back. I work with specialized equipment, so there is not much I can do from home. But my boss is telling me I should spend my time doing online tutorials and learning new software, so I guess I'll do that.
Fortunately, I'm pretty flexible. I'll just miss my nifty second monitor.
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snowflake954 wrote: »just_Tomek wrote: »Although not required around here yet, I have made a choice to stop going to the gym for a while. Do the smart thing ppl, really practice this social distancing.
But the advice that, my company for example, you see posted in a workplace, are simply laughable. You either want ppl to self isolate and stay home, or you dont. Cause posting that we should stay 2m away from eachother at work, is really a joke.
Sadly I'd have to say you're doing the smart thing. The choice was taken away from me because my health center was closed a couple weeks ago. My son is searching YouTube for things he can do at home and is doing well. He filled 2 backpacks with books, weighed them, and does lifting. I told him he can manage to do almost everything. Convicts can get muscular in their cells, so it's possible.
I honestly think that's a great idea. I'm an "indoor rower" and I have Assault Bike and a host of other things. I'm extremely fortunate, but many only have the gym. Perhaps in this thread or another one -- ideas to stay fit at home and workout at home. Tai Chi is fantastic for those that can't do water aerobics and all over YouTube. Fitness Blender is another one. I love pushups and squats, planks. All great.1 -
My work (london financial company) has got us splitting our teams and doing two weeks in office and two weeks working from home, to reduce any spread and allow for deep cleaning of desk areas. Our useless government is doing nothing. My son is having to come home from his travels around SE Asia as no countries will let europeans in any more.7
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I took up Jiu-Jitsu about 3 weeks ago. In our class session on Friday, the instructor told us that for now, the classes will still be held, but its on a day to day basis, and if he has to close the studio, he plans to video some training things we can do at home by ourselves and post them on the website.4
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I’m worried I’m going to get stuck at work. I’m a corrections office in a Washington jail, but live just over the border in Idaho. What if they announce a state travel quarantine while I’m working? I think others worry about it too, but part of me thinks I’m over reacting and they’d let us go home.8
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Pipsqueak1965 wrote: »My work (london financial company) has got us splitting our teams and doing two weeks in office and two weeks working from home, to reduce any spread and allow for deep cleaning of desk areas. Our useless government is doing nothing. My son is having to come home from his travels around SE Asia as no countries will let europeans in any more.
@Pipsqueak1965 what's this business about the UK government is pushing herd immunity? they're taking a huge gamble and more people will die. My husband is from the UK and is extremely angry at the news from there.6 -
Managers are going around our office and telling everyone to pack up, go home and telework immediately.10
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@MikePfirrman Understood and appreciated. Everything we do right now affects the concentric circles around us.
We need to work together to flatten the curve and slow the spread. While it may be difficult to plan ahead we need to think fast on our feet on a day-by-day basis. This is not the uzhe (usual) flu and it's not business as normal. Sticking our heads in the sand won't fix anything. We need to adapt to the daily changes.4 -
I'm upset at how people in my metro area aren't taking this seriously. I saw a photo of a bar downtown on Saturday just as packed as it always is, with a line going down the block. It's only a matter of time until our city closes down like NYC did, right? I wish our leaders would just pull the trigger and close stuff down so we can move our way through this. Our metropolitan area is less dense so it will take longer to spread but I'm sure it will eventually especially with everyone not taking it seriously and going on with their lives as usual. People at work don't seem to think it's a big deal either although our two IT guys are working on getting things figured out as far as working at home. I am a good candidate to WFH because I'm an accountant and don't require a lot of paperwork and things. I have young kids so when the schools and daycares close I will have no choice, anyway. (everyone else in my office is either older or they don't have kids, so I'm the only one here that has to worry about schools and daycares)6
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Managers are going around our office and telling everyone to pack up, go home and telework immediately.
I'm jealous. There are no leaders in my office taking any sort of initiative and making decisions. Or maybe they are and they're just not communicating with us. It's so frustrating.8 -
MikePfirrman wrote: »snowflake954 wrote: »MikePfirrman wrote: »Potential great news but it's too early to tell if this will work. I'm hearing of rapid potential treatments, not vaccines. One is the one Snowflake mentioned around a week ago -- the RA drug which slows the progression in the lungs. This other one, which slows the replication of the virus, might show a lot more promise. It was developed for Ebola.
https://www.biopharmadive.com/news/coronavirus-remdesivir-gilead-antiviral-drug-covid-19/573261/
There's also another strategy I've heard of as well. They take the antibodies from those that have had it and recovered and administer them to people that haven't had it yet. That would be a longer term play, though.
It's not they won't find a vaccine, I think they will, but these are strategies meant to minimize deaths until we find a vaccine. World wide, pharmaceutical companies are working hard to find solutions.
Thanks Mike, that's what I'm hearing too in TV interviews with the researchers. Italy is going to be testing these treatments, and I'll update when they report how they're working. Thanks for posting. I wish we had others in this camp that could tell us more---any one out there?
I'm mostly staying off the threads about it because those that don't believe it never will until it impacts them either directly or the government forces them to shelter in place. This week, I have a girl (in her 20s) that my daughter is driving from Austin to San Diego to stay with her parents with a pit stop here. Her immune system is compromised, she has severe lung function compromised and she's scared to death as everyone around her isn't taking it serious. My two kids are coming home this week - one was selling solar in San Diego door to door, making great money. They are all now out of work. My daughter is telecommuting in cyber security (very busy for her right now).
What aggravates me the most currently are the terms "fear mongering" and "media driven". The Sect of Health in Ohio put it well (and I've read letters from Epidemiologists all week begging people to take it serious). She said something like, "I know I'll sound a bit like Chicken Little at the front end, but at the back end you'll say that you didn't do enough.". One Epidemiologist said that every one person now we can stop being infected will stop it from spreading to 500 in a month. That's the kind of stuff we're talking about. She wanted to dispell this whole linear thing. It's not linear at all. It's an exponential graph, doubling every 2 to 3 days.
There is more indication Summer will slow it, but likely not in time for us at this point. I think by Fall we will have a better grip on it. If there's any good news, it's when it hit us. Summer might give us a small breather I pray.
Please, please stop saying it's the flu or a cold or it's overblown. The media is not your enemy. They are just reporting what is going on and why scientists are so concerned. There is not a conspiracy to tank the US stock market before the election. 400 in Italy didn't die in one day for our US election. It's so absurd it's not funny. It's pathetic actually.
Strangely after I wrote that last post to you the same science program that I first heard it from--the new treatments--was on again and was about both of them. Bear with me, I'm just a housewife. They will start testing the ebola one here, but are looking at 2 months for any data. The reumotoide treatment is already started up North and is promising, but way too soon to tell for sure. Please keep posting to us. I enjoy the sciencey end even if I don't understand it all. Thanks, and sadly, you're right. The naysayers will find out when it's knocking on their door. Economic gain is behind many things, but this is going to arrive like a train. Batten down the hatches.5 -
Just a reminder to all: Please be careful about where you're looking for information about COVID-19. Malicious actors are taking advantage of the current events to prey on people's desire for information. Drive-by downloads of malware on sites showing "live maps" for the virus spread (mimicking the JHU one) have been found as has a malicious app for Android devices.
Remember, only download apps from the official app stores for your smart phones. Never click on random links or attachments in emails, no matter how much you might want to know what it promises to tell you. Don't click on random website ads. Always take care what URLs you're visiting.
Be safe, all. 29 -
corinasue1143 wrote: »
I ran out of vitamin d. Didn’t even think about stocking up on vitamins. Now the question is: stay home alone, or go out and take a chance to get the very vitamins that might save me. Guess I need to go find some dice to roll.If it is a nice day where you are can I encourage you all to get outside even if just to your yard or local park. I am not sure and the evidence is not in for covid-19 but Vitamin D in normal get some sun every day levels been shown to help immune system fight off other viruses. Also a bit of fresh air and exercise helps with anxiety, depression. So yeah get outside if at all possible at least 20 minutes a day.
I get all my vitamins online. I used to use iherb.com a lot, but since moved to Amazon and Emerson Ecologics (you have to be some sort of medical provider to use this site - I'm ordering via my aunt.)
If Amazon is out of stock, I'd recommend iherb.com.2 -
File this one away, but I thought it to be very helpful. Vacuum bags and tea towels are a potential simple solution for cheap for a DIY mask for the most at risk. This found a Tea Towel, double layer, protects as well as a mask.
https://smartairfilters.com/en/blog/best-materials-make-diy-face-mask-virus/3 -
Just put my personal training on hold for a month and my trainer sent me "homework" 15
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