6 years since COVID… lest we forget.

[BrianL]

I've never had Covid.

Me neither, as far as I know. Every time I've had like symptoms, tests have come back negative, so it was a cold or flu. I suppose I could've had light symptoms as I know it varies, but I've generally been lucky.

 

[GAN]

I actually was in agreement with NannyBeBe - except for the not dying part. People did die, that's tragic, but, wait a minute, name one person who has not gotten sick - we all have. Closing schools did not change that and did far more harm than good. Even the experts, the ones who made the decision, agree to this in hindsight. It's too bad they chose to vilify and ignore those of us who were begging for the schools to be open instead of listening to us and doing the right thing.

I’m not debating you because I don’t necessarily disagree in theory, but I also believe that sending school-aged children into classrooms during a novel virus would have been a devastatingly bad decision. Who doesn’t believe that schools make terrific incubators? Just ask any parent what they can bring into a home…. I think the regret in hindsight comes from the realization that the distance learning had psychological effects on students. It was a no-win situation for everyone involved…. I don’t want to armchair quarterback people who’ve dedicated their lives to public health and know a hell of a lot more than me!

 

[elgerber]

I've never had Covid.

My dd never has either. The rest of us have, but not her.

 

[AppleDumpling]

that's also how science/medicine works. We get more information and we adjust. Early on we didn't know anything, but as we gathered data we updated guidelines, treatments, etc.

Exactly. In the beginning, so much was unknown. The mortality rate dropped significantly once the vaccine was developed and made available to the most vulnerable, and eventually to all. And of course, new medications and treatments also helped to gradually move beyond pandemic status. Unfortunately, the virus’ variants and vaccine hesitancy have slowed progress towards full herd immunity, yet it is much more manageable now.

While I did not have school age children at the time, I empathized with all the students, parents and teachers going through a difficult time, and I’m sure many still feel the impact of the disruption of their education. It’s easy to look at the big picture in hindsight, but it was a major public health crisis and safety became the top concern. I also have much respect and appreciation for the doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers, who cared for all the patients in hospitals, while risking their own health; they are true heroes.

I’m in the NYC suburbs, in a densely populated area that was hard hit. Like everyone else, we spent lots of time at home, working and keeping ourselves entertained. DH and I would go outside for a walk or bike ride when we needed to refresh. Through it all, I felt a strong sense of community, like we were in it together as a society. It actually reminded me of the post 9/11 period, and to this day, most here know and remember at least one person who died on 9/11 and same for the pandemic.

Many people suffered hardships, some had it worse than others, but I saw many acts of kindness and neighbors helping neighbors. One thing I’ll remember is people setting up tables in front of homes or other locations, with donated food and other supplies (things with shortages, like toilet paper, paper towels, cleaning products, etc.) for anyone in need. It gave me hope for the resilience of the human spirit.

 

[barkley]

It's easy to look back now and say that almost everyone in the world has gotten it and the vast majority didn't die from it. At the time, it was a novel virus: no one knew exactly how it spread or how to treat it. The mortality rates (percentage of those who had it and died from it) was very high. Yes, perhaps there was a bit of overhype on the media's part, but that is actually how a lot of healthcare professionals, including epidemiologists and infectious disease specialists felt.

Edited to add: that's also how science/medicine works. We get more information and we adjust. Early on we didn't know anything, but as we gathered data we updated guidelines, treatments, etc.

I think we will continue to learn about it's impact. there may be long term implications that won't be apparent for decades. there are studies on going monitoring non hospitalized children who had very minor symptomology with COVID that demonstrate widespread functional lung alterations are present. I have to wonder if decades down the road we will see something akin to what my late brother and his peers experience(d) in later life due to the polio epidemics. kids that were infected but did not suffer the horrific effects, experiencing a group of potentially disabling signs and symptoms that appear decades after the initial polio illness. These signs and symptoms usually appear between 30 to 40 years after having polio.

 

[bcla]

It's easy to look back now and say that almost everyone in the world has gotten it and the vast majority didn't die from it. At the time, it was a novel virus: no one knew exactly how it spread or how to treat it. The mortality rates (percentage of those who had it and died from it) was very high. Yes, perhaps there was a bit of overhype on the media's part, but that is actually how a lot of healthcare professionals, including epidemiologists and infectious disease specialists felt.

Edited to add: that's also how science/medicine works. We get more information and we adjust. Early on we didn't know anything, but as we gathered data we updated guidelines, treatments, etc.

Early mortality rates were anywhere from 2-5%. It was very different as a novel virus.

 

[Kae]

I've never had Covid.

Same and my DH, DD and DS did not either. And DS, DH and Myself went in to the office everyday. DD was in College so she was home. And when she went back in the fall she worked in a hospital and didn't get it.

I was very thankful I didn't work in a Lab anymore I can't imagine the pressure those people worked with.

 

[texaslover]

I’m not debating you because I don’t necessarily disagree in theory, but I also believe that sending school-aged children into classrooms during a novel virus would have been a devastatingly bad decision. Who doesn’t believe that schools make terrific incubators? Just ask any parent what they can bring into a home…. I think the regret in hindsight comes from the realization that the distance learning had psychological effects on students. It was a no-win situation for everyone involved…. I don’t want to armchair quarterback people who’ve dedicated their lives to public health and know a hell of a lot more than me!

I agree with this. As an educator it breaks my heart that public education was so villainized over decisions made to try to save the lives of students and teachers. That's what people still talk about, what stains my memories, and what I always have to hear when it's brought up. Nevermind that I worked 12-14 hour days, delivered needed materials/food/supplies to students' houses, sat in 100 degree weather in a mask passing out materials/technology/materials to families weekly, bought books with my own money and left them at locations for students to pick up, etc.

 

[barkley]

I agree with this. As an educator it breaks my heart that public education was so villainized over decisions made to try to save the lives of students and teachers. That's what people still talk about, what stains my memories, and what I always have to hear when it's brought up. Nevermind that I worked 12-14 hour days, delivered needed materials/food/supplies to students' houses, sat in 100 degree weather in a mask passing out materials/technology/materials to families weekly, bought books with my own money and left them at locations for students to pick up, etc.

I appreciate all of the extrordinary efforts put forth by educators, their associates and support staff during those terrible times as well as currently dealing with some of the unfortunate after effects.

thank you-to infinity and beyond

 

[hardcorestitch]

I agree with this. As an educator it breaks my heart that public education was so villainized over decisions made to try to save the lives of students and teachers. That's what people still talk about, what stains my memories, and what I always have to hear when it's brought up. Nevermind that I worked 12-14 hour days, delivered needed materials/food/supplies to students' houses, sat in 100 degree weather in a mask passing out materials/technology/materials to families weekly, bought books with my own money and left them at locations for students to pick up, etc.

You are quite the hero helping those kids out… even if you had to break sweats and pants…

 

[anrew]

My first and only baby girl was born during the first months of the coronavirus, and honestly, that time was just crazy. I was only allowed to be in the hospital for no more than one hour a day to visit my wife and our newborn. We also had difficulties getting baby clothes at the beginning because everything was closed. Crazy times.

 

[Genie+]

DH and I still haven’t gotten covid. Up until about 2025 we tested anytime we had sore throat or any other potential symptom. Nothing. Early this winter DH got a cold and that was the first time we didn’t test.

Every once in a while DH will make an offhand comment about covid measures having been too drastic and I politely remind how vulnerable his 84 year old father was. He’s had multiple heart operations in his older years. Fortunately he did not get covid until vaccinated twice, and he still got very sick. He survived and has thrived. We even went to Italy together last May!

We will never know what difference holding off the virus from reaching everybody until vaccines came made in our situation. Hopefully we learned alot. I wish more people would’ve learned our personal actions can go a long way in keeping this kind of stuff from spreading. If more people were willing to take it seriously for those at higher risk, maybe it would’ve been possible not to use such drastic measures for as long.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

People certainly did die from the initial Covid 19 virus.

I think it’s lost some of its virulence as it’s mutated, and at the same time, people have developed immunity to it via having the virus themselves and getting the vaccine. Today it doesn’t seem to be as prevalent as the common coronavirus, though I do wonder if some of the Covid tests we have now capture all of the various mutations, as one of the symptoms of Covid is a very thick, pervasive mucus that can take weeks to go away. People get that thick mucus today yet test negative for Covid in some cases, but that’s just an observation on my part.

Currently, Omicron subvariants like XFG, NB.1.8.1, and XFV are the dominant COVID-19 strains circulating in early 2026, though data collection shifts towards longer reporting periods, making precise tracking challenging, but they are all descendants of the original Omicron variant. Alongside COVID, seasonal coronaviruses (common cold) and influenza (flu) are also prevalent, often causing respiratory symptoms.

 

[Diznygrl]

Yeah I think it's pretty disingenuous to say "Well, we've all had Covid by now so we see that it isn't really the big deal that they said it was." This virus has mutated so much since its initial appearance that what we see today is not what it was in 2020.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

I was pretty run down when the wave of Covid 19 first hit. I’d just lost my mother after caring for her for at home through a prolonged illness and hospice, etc. Plus my son had had a very serious illness and hospitalization in which he had pneumonia and kidney failure, almost requiring dialysis, which, at the time, was a mystery, but we now think it could’ve been early Covid, as he was in college at the time where Covid cases had first come to light in our area.

Son was a senior college athlete at that time (and very healthy). We’d gone down to FL that March of 2020 for a sports tournament when all games were suddenly cancelled. We were at WDW when they announced it was closing down, and we closed it out. (Agree w a pp it was eerie being there with no one in the resort lobby and such.) Daughter was also a senior in college and doing a great clinical one on one with a nurse at MGH when all of it shut down and she had to finish out her nurse’s training online with videos.

I got thrown right into working in the Covid ICUs in our hospital. It’s hard to describe what that was like, but after it was over I said it’s something I never want to have to do again, it was so extreme and chaotic. Sweating profusely under all the PPE. People incredibly sick and dying left and right. Those who survived were left with numerous health concerns. I often still think about it: about the frail, elderly lady coming into this scary unit at 2am and gowning up to go say goodbye to her husband one last time; six of us turning a large man onto his stomach with a breathing tube down his throat as a last hope; a patient waking up unexpectedly from sedation afraid and trying to pull his breathing tube out with my holding his arms so he wouldn’t hurt himself and unable to summon help as I was unable to communicate with people outside the room in that moment; several of us giving a bath to and doing the hair of a special needs patient who’d survived but couldn’t move, etc. The good thing was the support we got from the public, which was nice to see. Meals were brought in for us, small gifts to keep our spirits up, including a bracelet I still keep that says, “This too shall pass”.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

With good reason. I'm not sure how old you are, but I grew up when AIDS was starting to take hold. There were print ads encouraging people to wear masks to protect themselves. Why? Because we hardly knew anything about it, how it was actually spread, etc. until much later. Same thing with Covid. We had no idea except very healthy people were dying very quickly. My son lost four friends, all athletic and no underlying conditions in a matter of three weeks due to it. For you to claim people weren't going to die due to it is a huge slap in the face for those of us who lost people and so disrespectful...I can't even.

Although a mask could be part of universal precautions if infectious droplets were present, AIDS was more of a “blood and body fluids” set of precautions, rather than respiratory (as Covid was). I was a new nurse then caring for AIDS patients (mid to late 80s through early to mid 90s) and primarily we used universal precautions, which were new at that time. However if we did have someone who was spraying infected blood, such as the patient I had who was coughing up blood through her tracheostomy - so hard it hit the window - I wore a long shield in that room for 12 hrs, but a mask was not required.

 

[Lumpy1106]

I’m not debating you because I don’t necessarily disagree in theory, but I also believe that sending school-aged children into classrooms during a novel virus would have been a devastatingly bad decision. Who doesn’t believe that schools make terrific incubators? Just ask any parent what they can bring into a home…. I think the regret in hindsight comes from the realization that the distance learning had psychological effects on students. It was a no-win situation for everyone involved…. I don’t want to armchair quarterback people who’ve dedicated their lives to public health and know a hell of a lot more than me!

There was no statistical difference between the outcome in FL opposed to the outcome in CA. FL had schools open Fall 2020, CA had schools closed through the 20-21 school year. Yes, schools are great incubators, but all my kids got it at one point or another, and they were not in school. Heck, the worst case we got was in 12/19 before they knew what it was, and we highly suspect we got it from my kids who got it from school. We kept getting fed the "you're going to kill Grandma" line, but the one time I got it was from my Uncle who is in his 80's. We are both fine to this day.

The COVID times were full of these, doing something to be doing something decisions that did more harm than good. The problem is the things we were doing were theater - closing schools, closing businesses, masking, hand santizing, distancing. We by-and-large all got sick anyway. We should have been focusing on the co-morbidities, the largest of which continues to be obesity. People ran out and bought Pelotons but almost nobody used them. Why not? Because that's hard. putting on a mask, well fitting or not, easy. Shame on those who don't. Fact is those in good shape had good outcomes regardless of anything else.

More food for thought; the pandemic ended because the disease mutated and we'd all been exposed and had some immunity (vaccine or not). It stands to reason that lives would have been saved if the disease had mutated sooner - perhaps by exposing those who were not having the worst ill effects early on? Could be, but we'll never know, because we didn't do that, and nobody seems all that interested in finding out.

 

[PolymerSkywalker]

Me neither, as far as I know. Every time I've had like symptoms, tests have come back negative, so it was a cold or flu. I suppose I could've had light symptoms as I know it varies, but I've generally been lucky.

I guarantee you had it as some point. Me and two of my kids tested positive with exactly zero symptoms whatsoever. It was a very weird virus that killed some and then literally wasn’t even a runny nose for others.

One thing I will say for certain is we went overboard with the school closures and did an immeasurably large amount of educational damage during that time.

 

[PolymerSkywalker]

I've never had Covid.

Not a chance. You had it and were asymptomatic, just like millions of others were.