I have a group of friends who have gone back to normal for the most part. Restaurants, concerts, clubs, bars, etc… One of them tested positive today and that sparked the standard slew of get well messages from the rest of them. All well and good, I’m not gonna sit here and act like we should point and laugh at the sick. However the conversation that followed didn’t sit well with me.

I asked the group if they normally quarantine from the rest of their household when only one gets sick, or if they just wing it. Someone said they stop kissing and sharing food, but stay unmasked and still sleep in the same bed. They were adamant about not sleeping on their couch. (must be a huge inconvenience to sacrifice a little comfort for their health). Anyway, same person proceeds to say that it wouldn’t matter that much due to incubation time. I responded anecdotally that in the past quarantining from my household while sick has worked for for us and kept the healthy people healthy. No response after that.

The conversation continues with someone else who was saying they did the same thing I did, quarantined in their office and slept on the sleeper sofa to keep their partner healthy, AND IT WORKED!!! This person then proceeds to question how they got it in the first place because they are fully remote for work… They would understand if their partner got it because of their on-site job, but couldn’t reason with how they themselves the remote worker would get it. Mind you, all these people indulge in dining indoors at restaurants and bars, going to concerts without masks, running errands without masks… So, I said just that. “Probably restaurants? Honestly anywhere public.”. The conversation ended right there, no one responded to me after that.

The bright side of the whole convo was that someone did eventually chime in and say that “It’s best to assume COVID when you are feeling sick, because even a cold isn’t worth spreading.” Only to be countered by the sick person saying, “if I would have tested positive sooner I would have been wearing a mask or cancelling appointments” Felt sick and didn’t care until the 2 lines showed up on the test.

So yeah, at the end of the day vibes and treats rule the world. No one wants to be told that their incessant need for good vibes and tasty treats is what may have gotten them sick with a highly communicable disease.

It’s really exhausting…

    • FishLake
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      15
      ·
      5 months ago

      I made a pretty unhinged comment about a year ago about COVID also being a mind virus that makes you want to ignore it / actively spread it. I know it doesn’t do that. It’s part of my copium to believe the general populous is infected with an unknown psychogenic aspect of COVID.

      • JoeByeThen [he/him, they/them]@hexbear.net
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        18
        ·
        5 months ago

        One of the tests they used for a post-Covid study in Germany (i think) to test cognitive slowing was a go/no go test. It’s meant to test response times, but also your ability to stop yourself when you realize you’re wrong. Even like a 1/3 of people without long Covid symptoms were showing cognitive slowing.

      • nothx [he/him]@hexbear.net
        cake
        OP
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        13
        ·
        5 months ago

        Surviving it in the face of all the warnings about its severity makes people feel like its not a big deal… Almost everyone I know who has moved on had a mild case once and that proved to them it wasn’t a problem.

    • nothx [he/him]@hexbear.net
      cake
      OP
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      13
      ·
      edit-2
      5 months ago

      What is this virus actually doing to people?

      From a physical standpoint we still don’t know 100%, but its not good.

      From a social standpoint everyone who gets it and survives seems to brush it off immediately and stop giving a shit, Xi included.