Have you contracted Covid-19?

[Deej 76,759]

On 9/6/2022 at 7:18 PM, Kennythetiger said:

My dad was very stoic in raising us. However, if one of us was sick he would make a special trip to town for  Vicks

A 275 pound chola made you feel better?

[HouTex 1,866]

6 minutes ago, Deej said:

Enjoy that shingles shot. That motherfucker is a bitch.

Yep.  But having had shingles a year before Shingrix was available, the Shingrix shots were well worth it.  I don’t want shingles again.  I’ve had Covid and it’s nothing compared to shingles.  YMMV.

[Deej 76,759]

I agree, but the COVID shot ain't got nothing on the shingles one. Damn, I've never felt so bad after a vax. 

[dcbc 14,471]

20 minutes ago, mchookem said:

oh...pretty sure it was the NIN at Red Rocks Saturday night.

Industrial rock COVID is the worst.

[South Austin 52,463]

11 hours ago, Deej said:

I agree, but the COVID shot ain't got nothing on the shingles one. Damn, I've never felt so bad after a vax. 

So educate me - as a guy in my late 40s, should I get the shingles vaccine? Nobody in my family has ever gotten the shingles. I’ve heard the shingles sucks major ass, but are there underlying health reasons to get the vaccine, or should everybody just get it as a preventative measure?

[Deej 76,759]

After 50 is the recommendation 

Did you have chicken pox as a kid?

Edited September 9, 2022 by Deej

[dcbc 14,471]

3 hours ago, South Austin said:

So educate me - as a guy in my late 40s, should I get the shingles vaccine? Nobody in my family has ever gotten the shingles. I’ve heard the shingles sucks major ass, but are there underlying health reasons to get the vaccine, or should everybody just get it as a preventative measure?

A guy I work with had it in his thirties.  His advice, when you're 50, get the shot.

[HouTex 1,866]

4 hours ago, South Austin said:

So educate me - as a guy in my late 40s, should I get the shingles vaccine? Nobody in my family has ever gotten the shingles. I’ve heard the shingles sucks major ass, but are there underlying health reasons to get the vaccine, or should everybody just get it as a preventative measure?

If you had chicken pox as a kid there's a 1/3 chance of developing shingles later in life.  I don't think it's related to any underlying health condition.  Until the chicken pox vaccine was developed in the 90's, something like 90% of Americans had chicken pox as kids. The virus that causes (or develops into?) shingles lays dormant in your body until it somehow emerges as shingles.  You can't predict where shingles will appear.  If it's in or near your eyes you can permanently lose your vision.  I have a friend who still can't see well out of one eye after shingles appeared on his face.  For me, the Shingrex shots were well worth it.  A day of slight fever and chills after each shot is nothing compared to possibly losing your vision.

[jimmyjazz 45,899]

I had a classic case of shingles -- the stripe on one side of my torso -- and it was terribly not fun.  I eventually got an Rx for oxy-something, but I'm terrified of narcotics (since my family is prone to addictive behavior), so I stared at that damn bottle of pills for 3 days without taking any.  Eventually the pain faded. 

Then I gave the oxy-something to my bandmate who enjoys opioids every now and then.  (Maybe I shouldn't have done that.)

[South Austin 52,463]

Well shingles vaccine it is. @Deej, mind telling us how old you are?

[Deej 76,759]

53

4 hours ago, jimmyjazz said:

I had a classic case of shingles -- the stripe on one side of my torso -- and it was terribly not fun.  I eventually got an Rx for oxy-something, but I'm terrified of narcotics (since my family is prone to addictive behavior), so I stared at that damn bottle of pills for 3 days without taking any.  Eventually the pain faded. 

Then I gave the oxy-something to my bandmate who enjoys opioids every now and then.  (Maybe I shouldn't have done that.)

Can I be your bandmate? 😆 

[Deej 76,759]

5 hours ago, HouTex said:

If you had chicken pox as a kid there's a 1/3 chance of developing shingles later in life.  I don't think it's related to any underlying health condition. 

Stress can trigger it. So if you're over 50 and a UT football fan, get the shots.

Edited September 9, 2022 by Deej

[HouTex 1,866]

3 hours ago, Deej said:

Stress can trigger it. So if you're over 50 and a UT football fan, get the shots.

Yes, I forgot about the stress angle.  Who isn’t under stress?

[Mrs Whiggins 13,050]

I recommend getting the shingles vaccine even though the side effects are unpleasant.

Regarding the Omicron variant of COVID, the piper came round our house this weekend when a kiddo came home with a fever. We were so close to getting the booster too, as our clinic had finally announced the availability. Dagnabit. One by one we paid the piper and you've never seen a sadder sorrier lot as we moped around with high fevers, sore throats, racking coughs, and really bad headaches. I would say we were saved by excessive time spent watching this weekend's college football, but that went rather like the fevers--very high and then breaking out in a sweat. We're in isolation for the next few days, but if you've not gotten the booster yet, I'd say get it as the real deal, while milder than Delta is still pretty sucky.

[mchookem 16,327]

On 9/8/2022 at 6:39 PM, mchookem said:

dunno how to change my vote...but the 'rona finally got me 😝

fully vaxed and boosted, symptoms more mild than a bad cold...dry tickling cough, occasional sneeze, and just sleepy sleepy sleepy 😴 can handle this easy... biggest worry is losing taste or smell as that always sounded like it would suck.

anyway... i'm on the board finally 😜

ETA oh...pretty sure it was the NIN at Red Rocks Saturday night...2/5 of our party started symptoms/tested positive Sunday evening (they had gone to Friday show too), two more of us started feeling shitty Tuesday night. so yeah, probably.

well that sucked... finally tested negative yesterday, it lasted a while. I actually started feeling really good around Thursday but was still testing positive.

a friend said his doctor recommended a high dose of famotidine... which is Pepcid! so I googled and what do you know...lots of studies showing it works on most common covid symptoms (cough, sneezing,etc). did not know that, started taking it last Wednesday morning and by Thursday was honestly feeling pretty good.

never lost taste or smell, again, I've had way worse head colds. my sinuses are still congested though... feels like that's gonna linger a bit longer...

[jimmyjazz 45,899]

It occurs to me that I did lose a bit of my sense of taste/smell when I had "it" mid-late August.  It's odd how bad I was at correlating symptoms to disease.  By the time I thought to test, which was positive (for about a week) I was already asymptomatic, and none of those symptoms ever registered above "allergy attack".

[Kennythetiger 9,377]

On 9/8/2022 at 6:48 PM, Deej said:

A 275 pound chola made you feel better?

Don’t they always?  

[Red Five 40,852]

Had a massive hangover Sunday. Then I woke up Monday morning and still had the massive hangover. "Hmmm". Yep, tested positive. Slightly better this morning but still flu-ish. 

[TwiceHorn 31,450]

On 9/19/2022 at 10:59 AM, jimmyjazz said:

It occurs to me that I did lose a bit of my sense of taste/smell when I had "it" mid-late August.  It's odd how bad I was at correlating symptoms to disease.  By the time I thought to test, which was positive (for about a week) I was already asymptomatic, and none of those symptoms ever registered above "allergy attack".

Shit.  I had a tight throat Sunday, then a head full of snot on Monday,  then it moved down to my chest and to coughing it out.    This is typical for me for a seasonal allergy cold, and the right time of year for it.  It's been pretty mild as these go, and my snot has remained clear.  The only unusual symptom has been a bit of soreness in hips/lower back, but that could be due to mountain biking and/or sleeping funny.

Curiously, during Covid, I haven't had these.  I have thought, well I'm a "superdodger" and it's about time I caught a little cold.  I guess now I should look into testing.

[DFWTexEx 276]

I had one dose of the shingles vaccine. I expected the worst, but I barely noticed it and had no side effects. Going in for my second dose tomorrow.  Is that the one that sucks?

[Radical Larry 28,584]

Tested positive last Wednesday, one day before I was scheduled to get the updated booster. Fever, sore throat, congestion, etc. for a few days. Felt better by Saturday and tested negative on Tuesday.

[South Austin 52,463]

1 minute ago, Radical Larry said:

Tested positive last Wednesday, one day before I was scheduled to get the updated booster.

That's like 10,000 spoons when all you need is a booster shot.

[Lou 264]

4 hours ago, DFWTexEx said:

I had one dose of the shingles vaccine. I expected the worst, but I barely noticed it and had no side effects. Going in for my second dose tomorrow.  Is that the one that sucks?

First one was bad for me, nothing on the second.

[Trey3216 15,346]

On 9/21/2022 at 8:44 AM, Red Five said:

Had a massive hangover Sunday. Then I woke up Monday morning and still had the massive hangover. "Hmmm". Yep, tested positive. Slightly better this morning but still flu-ish. 

That’s how I figured it out as well when I had it in Oct ‘20.   

[Radical Larry 28,584]

That's like 10,000 spoons when all you need is a booster shot.

[TwiceHorn 31,450]

On 9/22/2022 at 11:30 AM, TwiceHorn said:

Shit.  I had a tight throat Sunday, then a head full of snot on Monday,  then it moved down to my chest and to coughing it out.    This is typical for me for a seasonal allergy cold, and the right time of year for it.  It's been pretty mild as these go, and my snot has remained clear.  The only unusual symptom has been a bit of soreness in hips/lower back, but that could be due to mountain biking and/or sleeping funny.

Curiously, during Covid, I haven't had these.  I have thought, well I'm a "superdodger" and it's about time I caught a little cold.  I guess now I should look into testing.

Bah.  So I tried to order some at-home tests from Walgreens and CVS and the orders wouldn't go through, but CVS claimed they couldn't find my insurance, at least.

So, I go digging around on the insurer's site, sure enough, they'll reimburse, but not pay outright for tests.  Now I have to buy my own.  Any recos? 

Also, I'm fairly sure its the 'vid now.  Although it is coursing like my usual seasonal/allergy type cold thing, the chest congestion was so heavy yesterday that I was experiencing some shortness of breath/difficulty breathing.  That seems to have passed as I am taking mucinex and horking stuff up whenever I can.

It's funny though, a raucous coughing fit can cause shortness of breath, and sometimes I'll breathe shallow on purpose not to get a wheeze that can trigger the coughing fit.  But I think yesterday's events were of a different character.  Last time I had one of these, pre-covid, the stuff in my lungs was quite loose feeling and coughing actually hurt quite a bit, so at least that's not an issue.  I seem to recall my snot being yellow and green, too, so it reached a bacterial level.

[RDCanecutter 26,411]

I got Covid Official on the 13th of September. Fairly mild case, couple of days thrashing around with fever-sweats, other than that, just lying around resting and not going places. Wife got it at the same time right after we'd stocked up on food, so it was like two mildly-ill people floating on a boat.

Last couple of days I've had a metallic taste in my mouth and ability to taste things has gone down. A "low-batteries" feeling but not too bad.

[jimmyjazz 45,899]

  

7 minutes ago, TwiceHorn said:

Bah.  So I tried to order some at-home tests from Walgreens and CVS and the orders wouldn't go through, but CVS claimed they couldn't find my insurance, at least.So, I go digging around on the insurer's site, sure enough, they'll reimburse, but not pay outright for tests.  Now I have to buy my own.  Any recos?

 

I can't remember where you live.  HEB will deliver "free" out of the pharmacy, although maybe only true Rx.  Worth a call.  They may have added a fee if the order value isn't high enough.

Edited September 24, 2022 by jimmyjazz

[TwiceHorn 31,450]

9 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

  

 

I can't remember where you live.  HEB will deliver "free" out of the pharmacy, although maybe only true Rx.  Worth a call.  They may have added a fee if the order value isn't high enough.

Dallas.  Thanks though.  Reminded me to check Tom Thumb and the other groceries, though that might have free or cheap options.

I'm not even sure what the point is now.  My isolation period is judged by onset of symptoms, I guess.

Edited September 24, 2022 by TwiceHorn

[jimmyjazz 45,899]

22 minutes ago, TwiceHorn said:

I'm not even sure what the point is now.  My isolation period is judged by onset of symptoms, I guess.

Still a lot of mixed messaging out there.  I'm not sure CDC has caught up to that perspective.

[TwiceHorn 31,450]

3 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

Still a lot of mixed messaging out there.  I'm not sure CDC has caught up to that perspective.

I think, if I read it correctly, if you are symptomatic go by days since onset, 10 for moderate. and testing becomes irrelevant, except I guess to establish that it is the vid.

[dcbc 14,471]

I think it's 5 days since onset of symptoms if asymptomatic or symptoms are resolving at the 5 day mark.  Then mask around others for an additional five days.  But if your symptoms aren't resolving or you have fever, you wait until you're fever free without the assistance of fever reducing meds.

[TwiceHorn 31,450]

13 hours ago, dcbc said:

I think it's 5 days since onset of symptoms if asymptomatic or symptoms are resolving at the 5 day mark.  Then mask around others for an additional five days.  But if your symptoms aren't resolving or you have fever, you wait until you're fever free without the assistance of fever reducing meds.

I never had fever anytime I checked.

I have allergies and am familiar with snot. Copious quantities of snot.  This, however, has been the most prodigious snot-fest, both in my head and in my chest, that I have ever experienced.  I've been taking Mucinex in hopes of getting rid of it as fast as possible, but on Saturday afternoon it felt really heavy and thick and I can blow my nose pretty good and fill a kleenex pretty much on demand non-stop since Friday.  And it's clear/white.  I've never had this much before that didn't turn yellow or bright green.  It's clearing and loosening and I feel pretty decent now since Sunday, but godalmighty the snot.

And that lead to some shortness of breath, particularly after extended coughing spells.  Not quite like pedaling uphill for a mile, but not comfortable.

I haven't seen Covid described as this kind of megasnotfestpalooza.  Is this Covid?

[jimmyjazz 45,899]

I probably already posted this, but I'll repeat:  I periodically get massive congestion at night, maybe every 6-8 weeks.  It comes on suddenly and tends to retreat quickly, too.  When I got covid, I had the exact same symptoms, but with a bit of cough.  I didn't put 2 and 2 together.  The next day, I had a headache, but the congestion had started to fade.  I still didn't put it all together.  By the time all symptoms had faded, my wife got sick, eventually tested positive, and THEN I took a test.  Positive.  

Weird.

[TwiceHorn 31,450]

7 hours ago, jimmyjazz said:

I probably already posted this, but I'll repeat:  I periodically get massive congestion at night, maybe every 6-8 weeks.  It comes on suddenly and tends to retreat quickly, too.  When I got covid, I had the exact same symptoms, but with a bit of cough.  I didn't put 2 and 2 together.  The next day, I had a headache, but the congestion had started to fade.  I still didn't put it all together.  By the time all symptoms had faded, my wife got sick, eventually tested positive, and THEN I took a test.  Positive.  

Weird.

Yikes.  Yeah, I get that kind of thing usually about twice a year, fall/spring, when seasons and pollens change.  Severity varies.  Tight throat>head full>chest full>coughing until it all goes away, 3-5 days.  I hadn't had that typical cycle while Covid went on, so maybe there's more of a "contagion" aspect to it than I had previously thought.

In some senses, this was totes normal, in others not so much.  And, like you, my first thought was, "oh, the usual, about time" instead of "I got the 'vid."

[dcbc 14,471]

8 hours ago, TwiceHorn said:

I never had fever anytime I checked.

I never had a fever or much of a cough.  Almost no congestion.  Just full body aches at night for two nights and was easily fatigued for about six days.

[jimmyjazz 45,899]

20 minutes ago, dcbc said:

I never had a fever or much of a cough.  Almost no congestion.  Just full body aches at night for two nights and was easily fatigued for about six days.

No fever for me, essentially no fatigue.  My wife was considerably worse off, but still no fever.  She was fatigued, though, and said it was about as bad as a winter cold, and not as bad as the flu.

[KaiserSoze 998]

As of today I have Covid for the first time. I woke up with chills, fever, and congestion. A few hours later I did a home test and it was positive. I called my GP's office to see if there was anything to do beyond just ride it out and they gave me a Paxlovid prescription- just took the first dose. 

I'm current on vaccinations so hopefully it stays mild. The only symptoms so far have been chills, congestion, and fever (topped out at 102 this morning but has gone down a little since then).

Not sure how I avoided it for so long. I've been out and about most days since Spring 2021- many festivals, travel, etc. and somehow had avoided it until now. 

[Dnaguy 11,944]

6 minutes ago, KaiserSoze said:

As of today I have Covid for the first time. I woke up with chills, fever, and congestion. A few hours later I did a home test and it was positive. I called my GP's office to see if there was anything to do beyond just ride it out and they gave me a Paxlovid prescription- just took the first dose. 

I'm current on vaccinations so hopefully it stays mild. The only symptoms so far have been chills, congestion, and fever (topped out at 102 this morning but has gone down a little since then).

Not sure how I avoided it for so long. I've been out and about most days since Spring 2021- many festivals, travel, etc. and somehow had avoided it until now. 

[bolverk 29,665]

7 minutes ago, KaiserSoze said:

As of today I have Covid for the first time. I woke up with chills, fever, and congestion. A few hours later I did a home test and it was positive. I called my GP's office to see if there was anything to do beyond just ride it out and they gave me a Paxlovid prescription- just took the first dose. 

I'm current on vaccinations so hopefully it stays mild. The only symptoms so far have been chills, congestion, and fever (topped out at 102 this morning but has gone down a little since then).

Not sure how I avoided it for so long. I've been out and about most days since Spring 2021- many festivals, travel, etc. and somehow had avoided it until now. 

Latest variant is better about getting around the vaccine. Sounds like you'll be fine though. Best to you.

XBB.1.5 is slightly different from its relatives, because it not only evades protective antibodies, it also is better at binding to cells. That means healthy adults are more likely to be infected with it even after vaccination or an infection with a different variant.

But other parts of the immune system can still come to our defense, said Dr. Otto Yang, an infectious disease physician and immunology researcher at David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles.

Even if mutations in some parts of the virus prevent antibodies from blocking an infection, T cells should be able to recognize the main part of the virus spike protein, Dr. Yang said. And because T cells remember how to respond to the coronavirus based on what they’ve learned from previous encounters or vaccines, they can mount an attack quickly if you do become infected. “They are what prevent severe illness,” Dr. Yang said. “People who are up to date on their vaccines and who get treatment early with Paxlovid or with remdesivir are going to do fine, for the most part.” (Paxlovid is an oral antiviral medication, and remdesivir is an injectable one.)

 

[huge 3,793]

I still have never tested positive.  Once I was sure I had it due to the usual symptoms but alas, I seem to be above the rest of you on the evolutionary scale.

[texasdago 7,572]

I had it from January 2nd to about the 10th. Mostly a non-event and went skiing on the 13th.  Double jab, double boost.  No one else in the family got it from me.  They did however get a break from me while I isolated for 6-7 days.  

[South Austin 52,463]

Still no COVID, but have been wrestling with bronchitis the past week.  It's not terrible, but some nights the coughing is particularly rough and I wake up exhausted feeling like I just ran a half marathon. 

[Armybrat 40,832]

My fat cells have fought off any Covid invasions so far.

[Samson's Wig 3,191]

Had some bloodwork done last week for non-Covid reason, but they tested for antibodies anyway (maybe CPL is doing this for everyone who comes in?).  Anyway, still have a decently high antibody count from the vaccine (1925 - last booster was in September) and absolutely no natural antibodies.  I don't know how I've dodged the fucker for this long, but the clock has to be ticking down.

[KaiserSoze 998]

Monday evening I took my first dose of Paxlovid and when I woke up Tuesday morning the fever, chills, and headache were gone and have not returned- all that remains is some lingering congestion. Fingers crossed things hold (and of course finishing out the Paxlovid in hopes of preventing the rebound experience some have reported).

[atomheartbevo 89,649]

It's going around my kids' school, and given that it's voluntary if you notify the school, and the anecdotal evidence from talking to other parents versus what's been officially said, it's going to be a doozy for a week or two.  We suspect my oldest has it, but he's tested negative, but I'm still isolating him and making him wear a mask around us, because I don't want whatever he's got.

[Judge Roybeanbag 11,819]

1 hour ago, Samson's Wig said:

Had some bloodwork done last week for non-Covid reason, but they tested for antibodies anyway (maybe CPL is doing this for everyone who comes in?).  Anyway, still have a decently high antibody count from the vaccine (1925 - last booster was in September) and absolutely no natural antibodies.  I don't know how I've dodged the fucker for this long, but the clock has to be ticking down.

Same here.  Been into the office a couple times a week the last year and a half, including a dozen or so meetings of 75 to a 100 people in a large room, lots of meetings with travelers/foreign travelers in conference rooms, been on a couple of trips requiring air travel.  Just been lucky I guess.

[Samson's Wig 3,191]

7 minutes ago, atomheartbevo said:

It's going around my kids' school, and given that it's voluntary if you notify the school, and the anecdotal evidence from talking to other parents versus what's been officially said, it's going to be a doozy for a week or two.  We suspect my oldest has it, but he's tested negative, but I'm still isolating him and making him wear a mask around us, because I don't want whatever he's got.

FWIW, extended family passed it around at Christmas, and every single one of them tested negative on home tests but positive with a PCR test at the doc.  None of them, other than the one-year-old, had a mild experience with it either.

[TexArcher 37,774]

Had it last June and I'm fairly sure I have it again now.  Spent last weekend with the girl I'm seeing and she popped positive yesterday, and I've had symptoms since this morning and they're getting worse.

Both of our employers can fuck off for forcing everyone back to the office.  Pretty sure I've now contracted it once from my office and once from hers.

Edited January 25, 2023 by TexArcher