Am I being too cautious about covid?

Are you and the relative you live with both fully vaccinated NittWiit?

I think you are - at 74 I do everything I did before and I suppose I have been lucky, I have had my two jabs and booster and have not caught Covid - yet!
(I don’t count 68 as an “older person” either!)
Think of what you are missing, look at the thread about the time we may/may not have left -and do whatever you want.

I’m doing the same , I wear a mask in the supermarket and still do on line Church .
I am back at art class in the mornings , but we wear masks and sit well apart

I've had 2 vax & booster, relative had 2 vax & won't have booster because of feeling very unwell after them.

I wouldn’t say you are an older person at 68
My husband is 64 and I am 63 both him and my daughter are CV but have been living a pretty normal life since last May
We have been on several holidays enjoyed social events ect
We did catch Covid early this year but none were particularly poorly.
As Covid will always be around I can see no point in isolating from life once vaccinated if you do not suffer from any CEV ailments
None of us wear masks anymore apart from required settings

You are well protected, and if you do catch covid have an excellent chance of getting it mildly. Unless a doctor advises against it, however unwell your relative felt after the first two doses they would be well advised to get the booster, and if over 75 the second booster too, because two vaccinations does not provide adequate protection. It’s a tough choice for you if they refuse, because you’re putting your own life on hold to protect them, not to protect yourself.

I live as before Covid, however, you should do whatever you are comfortable with.

If you want to maybe try going somewhere busy or don't wear the mask and see how you feel, there is no rush take it at your own pace.

Yes, it's much more difficult to decide to take a chance that could affect someone else than if it was only me.

We have quite a nice life, living in the country, but of course have no socialising as happened before.
I'm starting to feel quite sad about it all.

I’m living life as usual….I am exempt from wearing a scarf, due to asthma / bronchiectasis. However, a couple who I see regularly, have asked me not to visit because they are vulnerable. I feel really sad, from having lunch together (usually a nice fry-up) at my place, every Saturday to nothing, no contact. They don’t leave the house even for shopping. Their grandchildren do that. I mean, what life is that ?

I've gone back to life as before. I'm vaccinated and boostered and I've had Covid. It's great to he back to life again.

I am CEV, shielded for two years, with no access to health care at all, except in an emergency. Recently I received advice from NHS Scotland, saying the CEV list had been revised and many names removed, because the threat from Covid is much less severe, due to the vaccination programme.

Unfortunately, I am one of those, who will remain on the CEV list.
I have however, received four vaccinations and expect to receive receive a fifth very soon.
Last month I caught Covid from my asymptomatic granddaughter and had to go into hospital to have an infusion of anti virals, which was administered within eighteen hours of testing positive. It was an unpleasant three weeks, as I had a reaction to the infusion, but I survived. In fact I was actually relieved that I had caught it, as my extreme vulnerability was affecting my mental health.

The advice for me now, is to remain cautious, but not to let Covid rule my life.
I have caught up with all my missed hospital appointments and treatments, I shop at quiet times, use Scan and Go, no queuing at checkouts, have been out for meals, and am back at church.
However, as I am immunocompromised I must continue to be cautious. Fortunately, I have continuing access to free testing and anti-virals , but continue to wear a mask.
My family have been wonderful trying to keep me safe, by working from home and not socialising etc.. I told them it was time to get out and try to enjoy life again and stop worrying about me.

Before I was vaccinated, I was told I would probably die if I caught Covid, hospital wouldn't be an option, but here I am, post Covid, trying to get my life back on track.

Despite having pretty severe reactions to the first two vaccinations, I insisted having the next two. On balance, the chances of dying from Covid, were greater than dying from the vaccinations. I researched the science and weighed up the pros and cons.

I am 67 years old, so quite young and acknowledge that the last two years were horrendous for me. I am not reckless, but I have lots of living to do, whilst remaining optimistically cautious, despite my poor prognosis.

I too felt extremely sad, but I have decided that the only one, who can make me feel better, is me. I still have anxious days, but I will not allow Covid to rule my life.
NittWitt , I hope you find a way forward.?

Bravo MD. You're an inspiration.

Kim19

Bravo MD. You're an inspiration.

I'm not, really, Kim. . I have just had enough of it all. My mental health has improved so much, since I came out of hiding.

Despite DH having breathing problems folowing bypass surgery, both of us have returned to life as normal, including travelling to France.

I will always wear a mask if requetsed. DH cannot because of his breathing difficulties.

There's nothing wrong with being cautious. I haven't abandoned my facemask completely and still wear one in crowded places. I feel that I'm still careful about where I go and what I do: I go to local meetings with people I know but I wouldn't be keen on travelling by train, for example.

I suggest that you try to add one or two carefully judged activities and see how you feel. Suddenly going back to 'normal' is probably both scarey and silly, but taking small steps towards a more enjoyable lifestyle might be good for you. How about visiting somewhere like a garden centre, which is mostly outdoors and much safer than indoor spaces?

Going back to normal felt very odd at first but then quite suddenly felt OK. I still carry hand sanitiser and use it lavishly. I don't hug and kiss on meeting people but I'm not avoiding public transport and shopping malls or cinema etc any more.

I ve been back to normal life a long time Vacinated boosted and had CoviD
I had to laugh had two Astra Zeneca, one pfzier one Moderna and CoviD I m 77 and don’t ever think about it now
It is what it is

The only time I see anything to do with covid is on GN.
If your not comfortable living a normal life, carry on doing what your doing.
I will say,though, this is very unhealthy.

I feel sad for those vulnerable people who still need to be careful. It’s no way to live. I’m also sad for those whose mental health has been badly affected. My DH had a retirement party recently but several much younger guests with no underlying conditions refused to attend. We are careful but are now doing the things we enjoyed before. We’ve already been on a cruise and have other trips abroad planned. We’ve also been to restaurants, the cinema and the theatre. Cases are falling and it’s important to take advantage of this. The last 2 summers have seen very low Covid case numbers. It may be a different story in the winter. I’ve made the decision that I won’t be locked in again.

My husband is CEV, so we are doing what we’ve done throughout: trying our best to strike a reasonable balance between risk and fun. I think that’s all those at high risk can do, really.

If I was in your shoes, I would urge your relative to get boosted. If they choose not to protect themselves in that way, they really can’t expect you to protect them at the cost of your own mental health and social life.

The unexpected can happen to any of us.

My DH and I are in our early 70s and have hardly mixed with anyone. Family visiting us on a few occasions took a test before coming and I did all the shopping when needed and wore a mask everywhere.

We have recently both got over covid and are thankful we had all the vaccines. Three rough days when we slept, energy level really low, aches and a cough.

We know exactly how we caught it. We had workmen in for a few hours and my DH was helping them. I didn’t see them. Two days later my DH tested positive and three days after him, I tested positive.

My DS tested positive last week. He works from home and when his daughter visited last Saturday, he took her to the cinema. He’d been no where else for days.

If it hadn’t have been for us going in a short holiday I would have been far less cautious. We’d been looking forward to it for two years. Lockdown resulted in it being postponed twice.

Try to persuade your relative to have the booster. Normality is needed for us all. I’m sorry you are feeling so sad NittWitt but stock up on paracetamol and some cough linctus and enjoy what used to make you happy.

I am CEV, had three jabs, had Covid mildly despite the predictions. I was assessed for anti viral but didn't need them thankfully. Now virtually back to normal, including a lot of close contact with people for work. It feels great but I can understand other people being cautious.

Having 4 jabs I do feel reasonably safer now and am gradually getting back to normal. I started a "strength and balance" class today and none of us wore masks, except the teacher!
It's understandable to be cautious especially to protect someone else, but I do feel we can relax a little now.

I am immunosuppressed and still behave as cautiously as you do, NittWitt. I am a loner anyway, so lack of social interaction suits me just fine!