Coronavirus 7: Ring in Delta Plus and then Omicron Takes Over

[Coconut Flan]

Continued from here:

 

Edited December 24, 2021 by Coconut Flan

[nokidsmom]

Well, I will start off on a positive note:  getting my Pfizer booster in less than 48 hours.  I qualify for the booster due to my work.   Mr. No got his booster (he's over 65) a couple of weeks ago.  

Stress tested our vaccines while traveling through areas of the US, some with Covid mitigations in place, some not, and managed to survive it all.  Did mask up in most places and didn't always do inside dining.  Still, will be happy to get that little extra Pfizer boost!

[TeaGrannie]

I’m hoping that my group will soon qualify for a booster. I’m a type 2 diabetic and I would feel better going into winter with strong immunity. 

[47of74]

Yeah I got the notice as well from my primary care clinic that the Moderna booster is now available.  Just waiting to see what my doctor's thoughts are on the matter if he wants me to get one early or not.

[Ozlsn]

The Nature paper being referenced is here. Pretty damn amazing.

Edited October 28, 2021 by Ozlsn

[CTRLZero]

More reminders that Covid is still out there:

My neighbor was planning to have another family join her and her granddaughters for trick or treating.  Unfortunately, the other family is currently in quarantine since the mother has a breakthrough infection.  Her symptoms are fairly mild, thanks to being vaccinated.

Another neighbor just returned from his sister’s funeral in California.  She died of Covid and was approximately 50 years of age.  We assume she was not vaccinated, but of course we didn’t want to inquire.

Now I am really longing for my booster…  

 

[Cartmann99]

Spoiler

 

 

[NotQuiteMotY]

I'm so glad the CDC okayed the covid shot for 5-11. I get to finally, finally call Elder's pediatrician about that shot and protect him!

[FiveAcres]

I have an appt to get my pneumonia vaccine this afternoon, having received my COVID booster a month ago. I am not brave enough to double up on getting different ones at the same time. 

[Coconut Flan]

This was an interesting find:

https://www.news-medical.net/news/20211103/SARS-CoV-2-neutralizing-antibodies-discovered-in-a-20-year-old-human-antibody-library.aspx

[Coconut Flan]

The US has had more deaths than the population of three states.  Which state would we not have missed?

https://deadline.com/2021/11/covid-750000-american-deaths-us-1234867737/

[Miranda]

Well, losing Alaska would finally rid us of Sarah Palin.

[Audrey2]

Darn. I was hoping that South Dakota would be on the list. I think right now Kristi Noem is even scarier and Sarah Palin. Sarah Palin is pretty much done but like a zombie keeps popping up. I think Kristi still thinks she has places to go. She does seem to be one of the darlings of the Republican party, at least in my opinion.

[meep]

37 minutes ago, Audrey2 said:

Darn. I was hoping that South Dakota would be on the list. I think right now Kristi Noem is even scarier and Sarah Palin. Sarah Palin is pretty much done but like a zombie keeps popping up. I think Kristi still thinks she has places to go. She does seem to be one of the darlings of the Republican party, at least in my opinion.

All I know of Kristi Noem is that in her state, she signed through a law that allows homeschooling families to skip out on testing. 🙃

[47of74]

Yep 

Quote

In October, 25 out of every 100,000 residents of heavily Trump counties died from Covid, more than three times higher than the rate in heavily Biden counties (7.8 per 100,000). October was the fifth consecutive month that the percentage gap between the death rates in Trump counties and Biden counties widened.

Some conservative writers have tried to claim that the gap may stem from regional differences in weather or age, but those arguments fall apart under scrutiny. (If weather or age were a major reason, the pattern would have begun to appear last year.) The true explanation is straightforward: The vaccines are remarkably effective at preventing severe Covid, and almost 40 percent of Republican adults remain unvaccinated, compared with about 10 percent of Democratic adults.

Charles Gaba, a Democratic health care analyst, has pointed out that the gap is also evident at finer gradations of political analysis: Counties where Trump received at least 70 percent of the vote have an even higher average Covid death toll than counties where Trump won at least 60 percent.

As a result, Covid deaths have been concentrated in counties outside of major metropolitan areas. Many of these are in red states, while others are in red parts of blue or purple states, like Arizona, Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, Oregon, Virginia and even California.

 

[47of74]

Yeah cause fuck knob and the GQP I don't think we'll get out of COVID

Quote

Covid-19 is here to stay.

It's highly unlikely that the United States, let alone the world, will be able to completely eliminate the coronavirus that causes Covid-19.

But there will come a day when it's no longer a pandemic, when cases are no longer out of control and hospitals aren't at great risk of overflowing with patients. Many experts predict the spread of coronavirus will look and feel more like seasonal influenza.

What's less clear is how and when that will happen.

 

[Coconut Flan]

It's been obvious for over 18 months COVID was going to be endemic.   The articles now are preparing the public for what the epidemiologists acknowledged long ago.   If you want to stay relatively safe from both flu and COVID, get to love masks.   Vaccinations alone aren't going to be enough.  

 

[47of74]

My arm was a bit sore this morning after getting the booster and I had a bit of a headache but it’s better now. 

[Cartmann99]

13 minutes ago, 47of74 said:

My arm was a bit sore this morning after getting the booster and I had a bit of a headache but it’s better now. 

Did you feel sick with your first two shots? Just wondering if your reaction was any different than before.

[Coconut Flan]

Warnings from Europe about increasing cases.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/covid-europe-cases-surge-deaths-vaccination-vaccine-hesitancy/ 

Quote

 

On Monday, Germany's daily infection rate hit its highest recorded level since the pandemic began.

"Vaccines are a game changer," said Kluge. But alone, they are "not enough."

"We need to keep pressure on the virus, not surrendering on masks, the hand-washing, indoor ventilation — particularly in the schools," he told D'Agata.

In the U.K., the virus' spread in schools — where face masking and most other anti-virus mandates were dropped from the beginning of this academic year — is being blamed for rising case numbers. The rise, while not mirrored in hospitalizations or deaths, is stoking fear that another lockdown could be looming this winter.

 

 

[47of74]

1 hour ago, Cartmann99 said:

Did you feel sick with your first two shots? Just wondering if your reaction was any different than before.

Not really.  First shot my arm was sore for a couple weeks.  Second shot my arm was sore for about 12 hours then I had no other symptoms at all.  Fast forward to now.  Left arm is still a little sore but my headache went away by lunchtime.  I'm tired but I think that has more to do with time change than the vaccine. 

[nvmbr02]

When I had my first shot I was a bit fatigued and had a mild headache. I had a nasty reaction to the second shot, fever, chills, throbbing headache, body aches, stiffness in my arm and neck... pretty much everything for a good 36 hours. Thankfully I didn't have that bad of a reaction to my booster last month. I was a bit tired and had a bit of brain fog (though I hadn't slept well and had a lot going on at work, so hard to blame it on the shot). The biggest issue I had with the booster is that I had a golf ball sized knot under my arm for about 4 days. It wasn't extremely painful, but annoying and uncomfortable. 

[47of74]

19 minutes ago, nvmbr02 said:

When I had my first shot I was a bit fatigued and had a mild headache. I had a nasty reaction to the second shot, fever, chills, throbbing headache, body aches, stiffness in my arm and neck... pretty much everything for a good 36 hours. Thankfully I didn't have that bad of a reaction to my booster last month. I was a bit tired and had a bit of brain fog (though I hadn't slept well and had a lot going on at work, so hard to blame it on the shot). The biggest issue I had with the booster is that I had a golf ball sized knot under my arm for about 4 days. It wasn't extremely painful, but annoying and uncomfortable. 

Some of my friends had nasty reactions to shot #2 so I was worried about that but my reaction to the second shot was far milder than what I was expecting. 

Yesterday when the lady went to inject the vaccine the first place she tried to inject it she couldn't get the needle to go in at all.  Said there must've been a bit of cartilage there.  Wound up having to jab me twice. 

[47of74]

Yeah anti vax fuck sticks ruin everything 

Quote

Thanksgiving is Jonatan Mitchell's favorite holiday, usually spent with his wife co-hosting up to 20 loved ones. He’d been looking forward to the gathering this year after calling it off in 2020 due to the pandemic, but one of the most pressing issues of the times got in the way: Who’s vaccinated and who’s not?

Mitchell, 35, in Coon Rapids, Minnesota, has a rare neurological disorder called Kleine-Levin Syndrome and a smattering of related health issues that leave him at high risk should he contract COVID-19. Two relatives — his father-in-law and a brother-in-law — won't get vaccinated.

Rather than laying down an ultimatum doomed to fail, the Mitchells called off Thanksgiving, choosing instead to host a Friendsgiving the following day. Mitchell's vaccinated wife will catch up with her family on Thursday.

The situation, which Mitchell said is upsetting and frustrating, resonates with many families navigating the vaccination divide for the holidays. Thanksgiving is a bellwether for how the rest of the season will go among those facing family conflict over the shot.

My message is simple. Get the fucking vaccine or find someplace else to spend the holidays.  

[NotQuiteMotY]

Elder is scheduled for his first shot tomorrow!! He's not happy about getting a shot, but is willing to accept that it'll help protect Younger and New Baby when it's born, just like the flu shot. I'm going to offer him junk food or ice cream or something afterward as a "You did a good thing," which I think might ease the sting.

@47of74, basically. We're getting together for Thanksgiving with family this year, which is wonderful. Every adult will have at least two Pfizer/Moderna or one J&J. The only eligible kid, well, see above. I am not messing around with my kids' health.