Surely now is the time.......

Agree. And no exemptions. No one needs to be in a shop for very long.

Exactly, if you are that vulnerable that you cannot go in the shop for 20 minutes then you should not be out at all ....

Vulnerable people deserve as much freedom as non-vulnerable people.

Some of the old, vulnerable, but previously very community involved people I know wonder what they are "shielding" themselves for when they haven't got much life left anyway.

Life is more than just avoiding death <<< that's quote from some philosopher; sorry can't remember who.

I should add they don't want to be ill, obviously, but they don't want to be cooped up at home hardly seeing a soul and not getting the socialising 'fix' that they, like everyone else, need.

My take is look after yourself and mind your own business with regard to everyone else. This pandemic has really shown up the intolerant.

The people not wearing face coverings in shops where I live amout to a tiny, tiny, tiny minority.

I am so used to seeing everyone masked in shops that I thought it was a legal requirement. It is the done thing where I live. Occasionally,I will see one person with no mask and assume that there is a good reason for it.

To be blunt, my consultant said to me that it's not the dying I should be worried about, it's the actual process of dying from Covid which is unimaginably awful.
I shall forego my social life for that very reason.

It is a legal requirement in Scotland with exemptions.

I get that, mdoll. I'm not afraid of being dead but of the dying process too.

But we have to accept that some people have been so lonely this year that the damage to their health is equivalent (not the same but equivalent) to being physically very ill. Doctors are saying stiff like this, not just me.

*stuff

Yes, required in Scotland but no-one has to say why they are exempt if they are, and they shouldn't have to. Nobody has to share their medical status with anyone but their doctors.

As a shielder Baggs I know exactly what the effect is on both mental and physical health. Unless someone has been told they will probably die if they contract Covid, will not be suitable for ventilation or resuscitation, had medical treatment put on hold and most of all cut off from family and friends, no- one can possiblyknow what it is like. I don't say how I feel for fear of upsetting my family, Your post has caught me at a very low point in my day.
However, I have a lot of living to do, so I shall do what I have to do to keep safe.

Do we really know what it's like to die of Covid? I've heard different views - those, as above, where it is described as awful. But also others who were on their death beds yet somehow recovered. The two examples I've heard describe an overwhelming feeling of wanting to just give up. I've also heard that people who die when sedated don't feel a thing because of the sedation. Perhaps it's just down to the individual....

I think I shall defer to my consultant's expertise, the first hand knowledge of my son's future MIL, a charge nurse in Covid ICU and his SIL a nurse in the Covid ward, where most of her patients have died. They are the ones, for whom ventilation wasn't an option.
They are both on their knees, physically and mentally.

Good post Marydoll.
Personally I think masks should be in worn on the streets too, as in Spain.
There are some very precious people around whingeing on about feeling hot or issues with their glasses and in the next breath they’ll be on about British spirit etc.

Baggs, surely the point of wearing a mask is to protect other people? However lonely and isolated we feel (and I do) I won’t put other people at risk.

Baggs, you make some very good points here. Thanks.

Great posts Baggs

May I add that no-one is forced to shield. The Scottish shielding letter advises that the final decision lies with the patient. The Govt. has also acknowledged that shielding is indeed cruel and seriously affecting mental health, but can anyone suggest a better alternative?
For that reason, each individual has to make the decision that they consider is best for them.
At the invitation of the Scottish Govt, I have been contributing on a regular basis to research into the effects of shielding on mental and physical health and rest assured I have made it very clear of the effects on me.
However, I will continue to shield, because that is the decision I have made, which is best for me.

I so agree with Marydoll's consultant. I think the old and the vulnerable hope to slip away peacefully in their own beds when their time comes. Not struggling horribly for breath in a hospital bed surrounded by strangers. Albeit kind, brave, and well meaning strangers.

And we should certainly care about other people as well as ourselves.

Marydoll I can't begin to say how I feel over your predicament as it stands. Life is extremely restrictive for you unlike for the majority of us whose mental health won't be as affected.
Keep on being the brave woman that you are and no harm will come to you.x I feel for you girl.

Thank you EV, as you know I am a fighter and certainly do not want to be seen as a victim, far from it.
By shielding, I will not tie up vital services for a younger, fitter person, who may need ventilation and a bed in ICU.
My RA consultant has been seconded to Covid ICU, that's how serious things have become. As a result I have had numerous appointments cancelled and treatment put on hold. I have accepted that is what has to happen to fight this virus.
I feel there are some very naive posters on GN, who are totally unaware of what many are going through.
No matter how we feel, we all need to support each other.

I use a plastic insert inside my masks which holds the material away from my nose and mouth. Do not think ANYONE should be exempted from wearing these in shops/on public transport.

If EVERYONE had to wear a mask in these places, it would be far easier to 'police' rather than now when people just claim they are exempted.

I feel as you do Marydoll. I have had numerous letters, emails and texts from Matt Hancock telling me not to go out even if I can.
I too am feeling very low today. I see no end to this even with the vaccine and my family do not seem to understand how lonely this is.

Baggs, surely the point of wearing a mask is to protect other people? However lonely and isolated we feel (and I do) I won’t put other people at risk.

On the strength of this, granny somerset, I wear a mask when shopping but I avoid shopping as much as possible and get MrB to do it. But it's really issues aside from this that I was addressing.

And tolerance.