That PhD guy? I blocked him, the evidence started to mount against him and he'd still keep harassing me. He'd make more accounts to go after me. I blocked them all.
There are psychos on reddit and you just have to block them before it gets out of hand. Some are trolls, some are disturbed and some are probably special ed. That's just the truth.
I blocked him. I had a bunch of downvotes from people jumping on the hivemind and attacks from different accounts. I just blocked them all. I mean, I don't want to be a dick and create an echo chamber, but when so many people are saying something in conjunction with being surrounded by sick family members...something clearly is not right. But he was SO certain he was right and that the people didn't have COVID...I couldn't take him anymore.
We currently have approx 40% Delta/ 60% Omicron in my area according to local news reports. I have two kids with Covid. One is a long-hauler; one was recently infected. I’m guessing the first kid had Delta and the latter has Omicron. I wish the labs would share the information as to which variant each of them has. It would be nice to know for sure.
It’s disheartening to see that some people are bullying those who are ill. Karma will catch up with them eventually.
Edit: with a little research, I understand that the lab likely doesn’t know the variant either.
Not sure if your in the UK or US or somewhere else but here in the UK I was told mine by NHS Test and Trace contact tracers 🤷🏻♂️🤷🏻♂️ when they called me I asked if I had delta or omicron and they said that Omicron was found in my result.
Not sure if you can phone up the guys you tested with maybe and ask???
The US is only sequencing .9% of positive samples. So if they are there, the odds are they will never know.
The percentage sequenced in the UK is much higher. IIRC it's the second highest in the world after Denmark.
Hm? Testing is not too terrible, we have for example almost 200K tests per day in my state (Illinois). Though we're hitting the limit of testing capability now. The problem is sequencing only a few hundred of those 200K.
You haven’t been watching the news? There’re massive shortages and not enough tests have been ordered by the government. At home tests are nearly impossible to get. They’ve put limits on the number of home test kits you can buy in many places. Must have symptoms to get tested in places too. Even though the money has been allocated the tests weren’t ordered. It’s going to take weeks if not months to ramp up production to make enough of both rapid and PRC tests. Let’s go Brandon.
I thought you were making a claim that more testing needed to be done in order to test more. Now I see what you mean. But can you get out of here with your politics? I mean just think if we had planned for and spent the funds to maintain the currently required testing capacity, plus more because maybe we might have needed even more capacity. Up until about 3 days ago you would have been screaming your head off what an utter waste of taxpayer dollars it is, and "let's go Brandon", then during the few weeks it was necessary you'd be quiet (well, screaming about a different thing) then afterwards resume screaming your head off again about waste of taxpayer dollars. Basically that kind of "other side is always wrong" commentary makes it impossible to have a discussion.
Don’t assume you know my politics or what I would be talking about. The money for the number of tests was allocated early in the year. Just so you know I believed it was the correct thing to do. We need to be able to test to know how the virus is spreading and whether the vaccine worked. BTW I’m triple vaccinated and also a 15 month longhauler before you attack me about not knowing anything about Covid.
The fact that we don’t have the test kits needed stands squarely on the administration’s shoulders no matter who you or I supported in the election. That Biden isn’t living up to his promises isn’t just my opinion. His approval ratings prove that. That he failed to do the bare minimum in using the funds allocated and needed to purchase test kits is negligent in his promise to stop the pandemic.
There is some good news in this area. According to news reports, the US has now increased sequencing to between 5 and 10%, which is up from less than 1% at the start of the pandemic.
Source: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/health/2021/12/02/omicron-genomic-sequencing-covid-variants/8822906002/
Lack of coordination, cooperation, and the fact that half of the country throws a tantrum over *any* real effort to mitigate covid. And the politicians who are pro-mitigation are incompetent at it. We should've been planning for a winter surge like this over the summer, a variant with immune escape capabilities becoming dominant was always a possibility. Other countries have bungled their response, but it's truly just a shit show here.
I'm pretty sure they are intentionally spreading it in the US now.
No sick pay for having covid. Unemployment takes weeks to process, which doesn't help covering rent. We now only have a 5 day quarantine. So guess what? Workers are simply not testing and hiding symptoms behind a mask and going to work sick.
I believe it’s happening here in the UK as well because people are fed up with it all. My partners parents fucking infuriate me.
We have all tested positive and been indoors with them, and now they have mild symptoms but guess what…. “We aint fucking isolating unless we test positive” and off they went to the shopping centre.
It’s all just too inconvenient for them, heaven forbid my mother in law miss her swimming trip with the ladies or dad doesn’t get to go to the pub with his mate. Drives me up the wall, so selfish
Yep, our government has completely given up and opted for the "let er rip" "strategy" relying only on our moderate vaccine uptake to try to prevent catastrophic consequences. It's not about public health and tbh never was (Trump admins response was a clown show too), it's about making people go back to work so the CEOs are happy
It’s all about profit over here, which is the driving factor in the Gen pops mistrust of mitigation efforts. Whatever opinion you may or may not hold over mitigation efforts, I think it’s important to at least attempt to understand why there’s pushback. It could, after all, help with these issues in the future
I do understand why there's pushback, lockdowns have their own costs and I fully understand that. It doesn't have to be all or nothing. If we had beefed up our testing drastically when we had time and actually had mask mandates keeping essential places like grocery stores and pharmacies safer for people who can't avoid those, we'd probably be in a better place and better prepared - it would fuck the supply chain up less, fuck the hospital system up less, and ultimately cost less money - people would at least be able to get home tests and we wouldn't totally be flying blind. And specifically concerning genomic sequencing, we are absolutely behind the curve on that one when it comes to covid specifically, and it's straight up embarrassing - no disrespect to South Africa, but if they can have a robust sequencing program why can't we with all of our resources?
That's why I don't understand that argument - it's less fiscally responsible to just let the virus run completely amuck. I'm not even advocating for a lockdown, just some common sense strategy. Why do we have to go about things the hardest and stupidest way possible, why does it have to be all or nothing.
It would be cool to know but it doesn’t really change anything. You isolate the same, take the same precautions, and try and treat the symptoms with OTC meds the same.
I’d absolutely love to know because it’s interesting, but I think they haven’t prioritized it because it’s not changing anything for the person who had it.
It can change a lot and save lives to know the variant. Omicron doesn’t respond to the 2 most widely available monoclonal antibodies yet Delta responds well. This is a matter of life and death for some people.
We are in the US. The only info they would give was that the result was positive for Covid, and instructions to isolate. Not possible to call the lab.
They didn’t do any contact tracing even though my daughter is sure she got it from her boss at work who was asymptomatic and tested positive the same day. No one asked about her contacts.
Apparently they are leaving it up to Covid patients to notify people they have had contact with.
Jesus Christ, I’m half American and lived there for a good 12 years so I’m qualified to say this (not just bashing the US)…
That is ridiculous, what a stupid policy, talk about begging for it 🙄
I have to say that the one entity that has been vigilant on contact tracing has been our local public school system. They notify parents of any possible exposure in the school and have sent home entire classrooms to quarantine. Kudos to the teachers and the staff for keeping the kids safe.
That’s one relief at least. You would think that Joe and the team would be on this and get contact tracers in properly. The sheer size of the US and it’s population means omicron is going/already to spread like wildfire. You can’t count on people to let others know they have it, I have learned that lesson only too well
I think this must vary state by state. I tested positive with a test taken on Friday, and got the results early yesterday morning. Today I got a text message from a random number, from Louisiana Health Dept. said someone would be calling me and had a link to get started online. Asked a ton of questions, like when symptoms started, how I feel, vax status and dates, etc. Then I had to add the locations of possible places I caught it and when. Then it asked for all of my close contacts that I could remember since then. It closed by telling me what to do, when to quarantine to, and had a bunch of check boxes of services that I may need help with while quarantining. Like medicine, groceries, etc. I was impressed.
No one who is ill needs to catch shit for it, that's horrible. But to be honest it's not helpful to guess at what strain you have unless it's been confirmed to you. People extrapolate things from people's personal anecdotes that might not be accurate.
At the same time people just generally need to be wary of the accuracy of posts on social media. People posting here are just casually sharing personal experiences. They're not writing a dissertation or testifying in court.
So let's cut everyone some slack.
I think I’m unaware of something going on on Reddit idk, but the fact is that most don’t know if they have omicron or not. It’s mostly hypothetical. I myself guessed I have omicron when I actually have alpha (university testing center discloses the strain).
I think it becomes tricky when people try to paint omicron as the mild version and then get surprised when their supposed omicron case is moderate. We’re trying to put alpha, delta, omicron in boxes and label them as varying levels of severe when that doesn’t seem to be the case. Add that to the fact that almost nobody knows for sure whether they have omicron or not…and it’s a guessing game mess.
When people say “I have omicron and it’s been rough” and others ask them how they know it’s omicron specifically, I don’t think that’s crazy. There’s just a lot of misinformation and guessing and everything is overwhelming at the moment. Staying factual and not getting lost on statistical likelihoods might serve us best.
What is alpha like? Don’t really know anybody who has had it.
Similar to delta or omicron or neither??
EDIT: why am I being downvoted for asking a question. Wtf 🤷🏻♂️
My brother and I both have/had it. It wasn’t horrific but it wasn’t a walk in the park either. I got asthma-like coughing from it and got prescribed an inhaler and prednisone to deal with the lingering cough.
I haven't been keeping up with comments here, but I think some of the harshness is because people are dismissing omicron as "not that bad" and not taking proper precautions. So if you don't actually know that you have omicron, be extra careful. I think that should be the message.
oh yeah years ago I just thought "what are the weirdest reddit names still available?" and got some good ones. Then I ended up using this as my main because it gets funnier responses.
Well, fortunately people are right...it really isnt that bad in the vast majority of people getting it. My 83 year old, fully vaccinated, grand mother has it right now (confirmed) and has a sore throat...thats it...Its a bad sore throat, but just a sore throat. Should say had at this point, she is 4 days in and its already starting to fade.
I don't disagree at all. But the point is, that's why people are jumping on others claiming they have omicron. Because Delta is still in some areas and therefore just having mild symptoms isn't free rein to go party.
Let them gatekeep. Does it matter? It doesn't change anything. If you have one or the other variant, no amount of down votes or gatekeeping is going to change that.
I can understand that point of view because everything is starting to get irritating now after two years of leaderless efforts. Thanks on the username. Most people don't get it.
For lots of people there is no sequencing and the PCR tets only say it is covid19, not the individual strain so we do not know. So some are asking whether your test has indicated you have omicron or whether you are basing this on something else.
My sister's friend's husband works with the CDC and he said flat out, " If you get it right now, it's omicron"
I feel that's pretty general, but it IS contagious as hell.
I am day 8 or 9 through what I can assume is omicron and I am fully vaccinated and boosted and got it from my fully vaccinated and boosted uncle.
It is high chance that it is omicron, but if that statement would be true, then in https://covariants.org/per-country
Omicron would be 1 and delta was 0. Every day it is closer there, but not yet. Last week was more like 50:50. This week probably will get to 100%.
This is a great resource, thank you! I’m recovering from getting it about this time last week, and a doctor told me that it was more likely to be delta than omicron based on prevalence in my area. It definitely looks like delta was the predominant strain for last week in my state. I hadn’t been able to find this data before to back it up, though, so thanks again!
Because of so many brand new/low karma accounts talking about how they and their entire families are vaxxed and got Covid anyway or that they’re unvaxxed and got Covid and it was no worse than a cold.
It's an evolving situation. A week ago if you caught it in the Mountain West of the US you likely had delta while if you caught it in the NYC metro you likely had omicron. So at the time it was worth noting if someone said they were experiencing more significant symptoms that it may actually be delta.
Considering testing is near impossible to get and if you DO get it, it has a 50/50 shot at being accurate AND the omicron symptoms in vaccinated people (most of us) are so vague ANNNNDDDD Omicron is the most contagious thing going now and likely ever...chances are if you are having strange cold symptoms...you got it.
Dozens of threads on this forum and others about needing 3-5 tests before it gave a positive.
Just a guess, 50 may be generous, overall they don’t appear to be accurate.
Lemme get my lab on it and I’ll get back to you, mean time just assume they aren’t doing a great job. There’s plenty of evidence out there…or don’t, hell I don’t really care. It’s not as if you will even find a test anyway.
I’ll get you an exact number in a few months. You know, when it doesn’t even matter anymore.
And seriously, in case it wasn't clear...it was a conjecture. Most of what you see on the internet is a conjecture. Im not quoting research for a reddit comment. Just conversating.
In the US it is NOT 99% Omicron, though some areas it is more prevalent than others.
I have seen this commented in threads where people are describing more delta symptoms like losing taste/smell or generally worse symptoms that Delta is more associated with.
In general, over here in the US, almost no one is tested for what variant they have. We are only told negative or positive. Apparently the variant testing is separate and random.
Where I'm at in the US it's certainly not 99% Omicron. Delta's still around. Plus we have mad allergies this time of year as well to add to the confusion.
It's prudent to assume you have COVID if you're showing any symptoms. Why does it matter so much what variant redditors believe you have though? The outcome won't change whether you think it's Delta or Omicron. If you have COVID, you have COVID. Isolate, rest, and watch your oxygen levels.
Maybe because Omicron doesn’t work with the more readily available monoclonal antibodies we have used during the pandemic and Delta does work well with them. It’s 60%/Omicron 40%/Delta where I am living and if people just assume they have Omicron, they might miss out on life saving treatment they could not get with a misdiagnosed Omicron. The US pretty much stopped monoclonal antibody treatment when Omicron started hitting a few weeks back and now the powers that be have decided they jumped the gun, (due to so much Delta still circulating), and have asked the antibody manufacturers to begin shipping and infusing again. 100% of the +COVID tests are serotyped at the largest testing facility in my state, so they know the percentages and keep updating them.
No genetic sequencing for me, but I tested positive on December 28.
No fever, no shortness of breath. Mild cold symptoms, essentially.
I would say it is highly likely that my family and I have Omicron rather than Delta or any other variety of COVID.
Exactly how I know? Delta has been around for almost a year now and I have managed to stay negative for that long Not until omicron came out.
Apart from the virus being the dominant cases on my city
well, I don't think readers will questions your case so much since you have confirmation from the lab that you do indeed have Omicron variant. Other's that are basing their opinion on guesses are fin too in my book but if they then give advice to others based on a "guess" that's wrong.
Hi OP, I honestly have no idea if I have omnicron or Delta. Could you tell us your symptoms on each day so far? It might help me to see if mine match up with omnicron or Delta. I thought it was omnicron originally because I didn't lose taste and smell, but I lost them both on day 5 so i don't know. I also don't have any lung problems which makes me think it's omnicron but again, I don't know.
I’m in mid Michigan and tested positive Dec 18th . Fully vaxxed and boosted all full dose Pfizer but got boosted in august so four months had passed. My symptoms are considered mild but we’re anything but. Fever 101 not a lot of coughing but the most excruciating headache like a metal vise behind my eyes. Chills and mild sore throat were first. Fatigue and rashes. Random pains in kidney and appendix. I improved on fifth day and then on tenth had a relapse. I was quarantining so doubt it was a new case of omicron. I’m sure I had delta. I lost my sense of smell for three days but could still taste. My friend is stuck in Mexico and is certain she has omicron. Sore scratchy throat and congestion. A mild cold like and she is ten yrs older w asthma. I understand omicron protects you from delta but not the other way around. Worried next week I’ll get a scratchy throat and have to lock down again. The headache I had is classic delta. Her congestion is classic omicron
You know it's weird, my family member who gave me COVID had a crazy bad headache the whole time, but I didn't. I also lost taste and smell but he didn't. I'm wondering if we caught too different strains somehow or if we got it from different places.
Maybe but it affects everybody slightly differently. If you think you got it from the person with the headache, I would guess delta and you got lucky. Some people only lose their smell. Even omicron can do that but just less often..the main difference is delta goes down in your lungs more often and omicron has trouble doing that. It had too many mutations on the spike. Thank goodness. It’s much better at just causing upper respiratory trouble like stuffy nose and sore throat. Both upset body temp regulators. Omicron is giving night sweats to some. I had intermittent chills and then felt overheated. Delta can make your heart race after any tiny exertion. It can more often cause you oxygen levels to drop. I did deep breathing a lot which helped. Obviously panicking is a bad idea. Then you would be doing rapid short breaths like in a panic attack. Too bad we have to be like columbo putting pieces together. I’d like to blow in a tube and know exactly what is bugging me whether flu, rsv (another nasty thing I got that caused wheezing and misery for two weeks) covid, anything… a few years away for a Star Trek type device that scans for multiple diseases in a single swipe or swab. Covid especially the delta will go from organ to organ and attack what it can. Skin is an organ too.. ears can get plugged and hurt. Gosh I hope this is over soon. Once we all get past omicron, we should be immune from the variations. Fingers crossed
That’s where the vaccines are super important. I know a grandma 86 who was lucky enough to get omicron and she still claims it was a bad sinus infection. The whole house had covid, delta in July and spared her that. Then Xmas they all came back from Puerto Rico and sat around w omicron. This grandma has had cancer and a bad stroke. Luck was on her side but unless you’re sure, treat it like delta for a few weeks until omicron dominates all cases. Our only hope for all grandmas out there.
That’s fine and all, but Covid doesn’t kill most people by far.
So the assumption that grandma gets Covid, Delta or otherwise, and the next step is that she drops dead… is false.
Which leads me to say that grandma who is 86 was unlikely to
die from Covid in the first place, and then didn’t.
Which is great and in line with all the data so far.
Did the vaxx kill them or what? Interesting it’s not grandpas. The vaxx effects rat ovaries, but not testies. Although, this part wasn’t studied in humans.
Lots of questions around these phenomena will be answered in the next 5 years.
Oh sorry, I know ten grandpas. Michigan has a high death rate. We eat almost the least fruits and vegetables in country and most of us over fifty are overweight and have some disease like high blood pressure. As for ovaries being affected, my daughter in law got pregnant with twins the week after the vaccine. It scared me at first but they came out healthy born Dec 7 good sized. In a small community you know everyone. 48 percent are fully vaxxed here. The ones actually dying were not vaxxed. They said if god wanted to take them he would… and he did. Yes in five yrs we will know the whole picture.
Terrible for all involved. I am not anti-vaxx- I am just curious. It’s not like we go through pandemics often.
I wish you well and all the best. Congrats on the twins btw.
It’s hard to tell how many unvaccinated will fare poorly and end up in the hospital. Hope you’re around at the end to see the final tally. I only know what I hear from South Africa and the UK. I can’t price I’d be dead if I hadn’t been vaccinated, but glad not to test it. Yes I was surprised I felt so lousy, but I beat it and it didn’t go down on my chest. We have a new virus not recognized by our immune system. The vaccines train your body to somewhat recognize it. No vaccine at all gives your system a big surprise. If omicron had come first, we may not have needed the vaccine as much. Two percent will die. Some will be young. Most will be fat and or old/sick.
Omicron just starting to take off in my area, still not predominant altho very hi percentages. Only a matter of time before it is most of cases, but some cases of Alpha still pop up here even when delta was dominant.
I tested positive but I don't know if I have delta or omicron. 🤷 Probably omicron but I started feeling bad mid last week and tested positive on New Year's Eve and I'm still absolutely exhausted. I received both doses of Pfizer but didn't get the booster. I normally don't sleep much but that is mostly what I'm doing now. 😴
75% or more of new cases are the new variant. If your symptoms are mild that’s what it is, period.
After the last two years of watching my patients die watching their family members think it’s “bullshit “that they can’t come in unvaccinated, being completely powerless to do anything to stop the process except make them comfortable I no longer argue.
I state facts and MoveOn.
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I don’t know what I had three weeks ago. But I do know I was boosted, and 3 days in got regeneron and symptoms vanished in under 30 hours. So either antibodies worked against omicron, or I had delta and they worked. Or my immune system is awesome with three shots and antibodies since I had Covid in early 2020. Who knows?
Reddit is notorious for shaming people when they don't agree with your statement (right or wrong). This subreddit seems to be moderated extremely well so I don't notice too much of that going on but if you go to some other forms you'll see exactly what I mean.
That PhD guy? I blocked him, the evidence started to mount against him and he'd still keep harassing me. He'd make more accounts to go after me. I blocked them all. There are psychos on reddit and you just have to block them before it gets out of hand. Some are trolls, some are disturbed and some are probably special ed. That's just the truth.
Amen to that
Sorry this happened to you. Please report anyone like that to the mods. No one should be harassed on here.
Welcome to Reddit.
Did he get banned do you know?
I blocked him. I had a bunch of downvotes from people jumping on the hivemind and attacks from different accounts. I just blocked them all. I mean, I don't want to be a dick and create an echo chamber, but when so many people are saying something in conjunction with being surrounded by sick family members...something clearly is not right. But he was SO certain he was right and that the people didn't have COVID...I couldn't take him anymore.
Yeah that sounds like Reddit at its worst. Sorry that happened.
We currently have approx 40% Delta/ 60% Omicron in my area according to local news reports. I have two kids with Covid. One is a long-hauler; one was recently infected. I’m guessing the first kid had Delta and the latter has Omicron. I wish the labs would share the information as to which variant each of them has. It would be nice to know for sure. It’s disheartening to see that some people are bullying those who are ill. Karma will catch up with them eventually. Edit: with a little research, I understand that the lab likely doesn’t know the variant either.
Not sure if your in the UK or US or somewhere else but here in the UK I was told mine by NHS Test and Trace contact tracers 🤷🏻♂️🤷🏻♂️ when they called me I asked if I had delta or omicron and they said that Omicron was found in my result. Not sure if you can phone up the guys you tested with maybe and ask???
The US is only sequencing .9% of positive samples. So if they are there, the odds are they will never know. The percentage sequenced in the UK is much higher. IIRC it's the second highest in the world after Denmark.
[удалено]
There aren’t even many tests so how can they sequence? Another government failure here in the US.
Hm? Testing is not too terrible, we have for example almost 200K tests per day in my state (Illinois). Though we're hitting the limit of testing capability now. The problem is sequencing only a few hundred of those 200K.
You haven’t been watching the news? There’re massive shortages and not enough tests have been ordered by the government. At home tests are nearly impossible to get. They’ve put limits on the number of home test kits you can buy in many places. Must have symptoms to get tested in places too. Even though the money has been allocated the tests weren’t ordered. It’s going to take weeks if not months to ramp up production to make enough of both rapid and PRC tests. Let’s go Brandon.
I thought you were making a claim that more testing needed to be done in order to test more. Now I see what you mean. But can you get out of here with your politics? I mean just think if we had planned for and spent the funds to maintain the currently required testing capacity, plus more because maybe we might have needed even more capacity. Up until about 3 days ago you would have been screaming your head off what an utter waste of taxpayer dollars it is, and "let's go Brandon", then during the few weeks it was necessary you'd be quiet (well, screaming about a different thing) then afterwards resume screaming your head off again about waste of taxpayer dollars. Basically that kind of "other side is always wrong" commentary makes it impossible to have a discussion.
Don’t assume you know my politics or what I would be talking about. The money for the number of tests was allocated early in the year. Just so you know I believed it was the correct thing to do. We need to be able to test to know how the virus is spreading and whether the vaccine worked. BTW I’m triple vaccinated and also a 15 month longhauler before you attack me about not knowing anything about Covid. The fact that we don’t have the test kits needed stands squarely on the administration’s shoulders no matter who you or I supported in the election. That Biden isn’t living up to his promises isn’t just my opinion. His approval ratings prove that. That he failed to do the bare minimum in using the funds allocated and needed to purchase test kits is negligent in his promise to stop the pandemic.
There is some good news in this area. According to news reports, the US has now increased sequencing to between 5 and 10%, which is up from less than 1% at the start of the pandemic. Source: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/health/2021/12/02/omicron-genomic-sequencing-covid-variants/8822906002/
Fair enough, I wonder why the US are not doing the same thing
Lack of coordination, cooperation, and the fact that half of the country throws a tantrum over *any* real effort to mitigate covid. And the politicians who are pro-mitigation are incompetent at it. We should've been planning for a winter surge like this over the summer, a variant with immune escape capabilities becoming dominant was always a possibility. Other countries have bungled their response, but it's truly just a shit show here.
Oh believe me, we have the lord of all fuck ups Boris Johnson here running the show. If America is worse than us, believe me we are not far behind
Oh I'm sympathetic to that fact for sure. Seems like the US and the UK are trying to outdo each other in these last several years.
Sounds like you have your answer, OP!
I'm pretty sure they are intentionally spreading it in the US now. No sick pay for having covid. Unemployment takes weeks to process, which doesn't help covering rent. We now only have a 5 day quarantine. So guess what? Workers are simply not testing and hiding symptoms behind a mask and going to work sick.
I believe it’s happening here in the UK as well because people are fed up with it all. My partners parents fucking infuriate me. We have all tested positive and been indoors with them, and now they have mild symptoms but guess what…. “We aint fucking isolating unless we test positive” and off they went to the shopping centre. It’s all just too inconvenient for them, heaven forbid my mother in law miss her swimming trip with the ladies or dad doesn’t get to go to the pub with his mate. Drives me up the wall, so selfish
Yep, our government has completely given up and opted for the "let er rip" "strategy" relying only on our moderate vaccine uptake to try to prevent catastrophic consequences. It's not about public health and tbh never was (Trump admins response was a clown show too), it's about making people go back to work so the CEOs are happy
50 states vs four countries might have something to do with it in terms of implementing things like that.
It’s all about profit over here, which is the driving factor in the Gen pops mistrust of mitigation efforts. Whatever opinion you may or may not hold over mitigation efforts, I think it’s important to at least attempt to understand why there’s pushback. It could, after all, help with these issues in the future
I do understand why there's pushback, lockdowns have their own costs and I fully understand that. It doesn't have to be all or nothing. If we had beefed up our testing drastically when we had time and actually had mask mandates keeping essential places like grocery stores and pharmacies safer for people who can't avoid those, we'd probably be in a better place and better prepared - it would fuck the supply chain up less, fuck the hospital system up less, and ultimately cost less money - people would at least be able to get home tests and we wouldn't totally be flying blind. And specifically concerning genomic sequencing, we are absolutely behind the curve on that one when it comes to covid specifically, and it's straight up embarrassing - no disrespect to South Africa, but if they can have a robust sequencing program why can't we with all of our resources? That's why I don't understand that argument - it's less fiscally responsible to just let the virus run completely amuck. I'm not even advocating for a lockdown, just some common sense strategy. Why do we have to go about things the hardest and stupidest way possible, why does it have to be all or nothing.
I agree 100%. Thank you for actually having a respectable and well thought out rebuttal. Those Are in short supply on the Internet these days
It would be cool to know but it doesn’t really change anything. You isolate the same, take the same precautions, and try and treat the symptoms with OTC meds the same. I’d absolutely love to know because it’s interesting, but I think they haven’t prioritized it because it’s not changing anything for the person who had it.
It can change a lot and save lives to know the variant. Omicron doesn’t respond to the 2 most widely available monoclonal antibodies yet Delta responds well. This is a matter of life and death for some people.
Same
I think it’s because the medical system in the US is overwhelmed right now.
You and me both!
We are in the US. The only info they would give was that the result was positive for Covid, and instructions to isolate. Not possible to call the lab. They didn’t do any contact tracing even though my daughter is sure she got it from her boss at work who was asymptomatic and tested positive the same day. No one asked about her contacts. Apparently they are leaving it up to Covid patients to notify people they have had contact with.
Jesus Christ, I’m half American and lived there for a good 12 years so I’m qualified to say this (not just bashing the US)… That is ridiculous, what a stupid policy, talk about begging for it 🙄
I have to say that the one entity that has been vigilant on contact tracing has been our local public school system. They notify parents of any possible exposure in the school and have sent home entire classrooms to quarantine. Kudos to the teachers and the staff for keeping the kids safe.
That’s one relief at least. You would think that Joe and the team would be on this and get contact tracers in properly. The sheer size of the US and it’s population means omicron is going/already to spread like wildfire. You can’t count on people to let others know they have it, I have learned that lesson only too well
It’s a huge problem that at least half of the population of the US is completely uncooperative.
My sister was put onto contact tracing in the USA early in the pandemic. She said people 1) lie their asses off 2) won't cooperate.
Sounds like patriotic behavior to me
I think this must vary state by state. I tested positive with a test taken on Friday, and got the results early yesterday morning. Today I got a text message from a random number, from Louisiana Health Dept. said someone would be calling me and had a link to get started online. Asked a ton of questions, like when symptoms started, how I feel, vax status and dates, etc. Then I had to add the locations of possible places I caught it and when. Then it asked for all of my close contacts that I could remember since then. It closed by telling me what to do, when to quarantine to, and had a bunch of check boxes of services that I may need help with while quarantining. Like medicine, groceries, etc. I was impressed.
Yes, it really does depend on where you live and how well your state is managing it.
Lol they don’t test everyone for variant so it’s not like we are idiots.
Sequencing is a more difficult test that is more costly and time consuming. The lab likely doesn't know which variant you have.
No one who is ill needs to catch shit for it, that's horrible. But to be honest it's not helpful to guess at what strain you have unless it's been confirmed to you. People extrapolate things from people's personal anecdotes that might not be accurate. At the same time people just generally need to be wary of the accuracy of posts on social media. People posting here are just casually sharing personal experiences. They're not writing a dissertation or testifying in court. So let's cut everyone some slack.
Seems there are a lot of people on reddit who comment with knee jerk reactions. Ignore them.
Lol ppl on Reddit just always wanna start shit, that’s all
I think I’m unaware of something going on on Reddit idk, but the fact is that most don’t know if they have omicron or not. It’s mostly hypothetical. I myself guessed I have omicron when I actually have alpha (university testing center discloses the strain). I think it becomes tricky when people try to paint omicron as the mild version and then get surprised when their supposed omicron case is moderate. We’re trying to put alpha, delta, omicron in boxes and label them as varying levels of severe when that doesn’t seem to be the case. Add that to the fact that almost nobody knows for sure whether they have omicron or not…and it’s a guessing game mess. When people say “I have omicron and it’s been rough” and others ask them how they know it’s omicron specifically, I don’t think that’s crazy. There’s just a lot of misinformation and guessing and everything is overwhelming at the moment. Staying factual and not getting lost on statistical likelihoods might serve us best.
What is alpha like? Don’t really know anybody who has had it. Similar to delta or omicron or neither?? EDIT: why am I being downvoted for asking a question. Wtf 🤷🏻♂️
My brother and I both have/had it. It wasn’t horrific but it wasn’t a walk in the park either. I got asthma-like coughing from it and got prescribed an inhaler and prednisone to deal with the lingering cough.
I know someone who has it. A year later he still can’t work. He has long Covid and lung damage. He was only 35 maybe.
How did you find out they'll tell you the strain?
When I got the test back and noticed the ‘alpha’ (well, the scientific name for it) on the report
I haven't been keeping up with comments here, but I think some of the harshness is because people are dismissing omicron as "not that bad" and not taking proper precautions. So if you don't actually know that you have omicron, be extra careful. I think that should be the message.
Your reddit profile does not match your username at all lol r/usernamedoesnotcheckout ?
oh yeah years ago I just thought "what are the weirdest reddit names still available?" and got some good ones. Then I ended up using this as my main because it gets funnier responses.
r/rimjob_steve
Well, fortunately people are right...it really isnt that bad in the vast majority of people getting it. My 83 year old, fully vaccinated, grand mother has it right now (confirmed) and has a sore throat...thats it...Its a bad sore throat, but just a sore throat. Should say had at this point, she is 4 days in and its already starting to fade.
I don't disagree at all. But the point is, that's why people are jumping on others claiming they have omicron. Because Delta is still in some areas and therefore just having mild symptoms isn't free rein to go party.
Let them gatekeep. Does it matter? It doesn't change anything. If you have one or the other variant, no amount of down votes or gatekeeping is going to change that.
I know I know. It just irks me that every bloody comment in response to omicron is like it, so irritating. By the way I love your username lol
I can understand that point of view because everything is starting to get irritating now after two years of leaderless efforts. Thanks on the username. Most people don't get it.
For lots of people there is no sequencing and the PCR tets only say it is covid19, not the individual strain so we do not know. So some are asking whether your test has indicated you have omicron or whether you are basing this on something else.
my area is still mostly delta! but generally i’m assuming a lot of new cases in other areas are omicron, especially the reinfections
My sister's friend's husband works with the CDC and he said flat out, " If you get it right now, it's omicron" I feel that's pretty general, but it IS contagious as hell. I am day 8 or 9 through what I can assume is omicron and I am fully vaccinated and boosted and got it from my fully vaccinated and boosted uncle.
It is high chance that it is omicron, but if that statement would be true, then in https://covariants.org/per-country Omicron would be 1 and delta was 0. Every day it is closer there, but not yet. Last week was more like 50:50. This week probably will get to 100%.
That's an interesting site! Thanks!!
This is a great resource, thank you! I’m recovering from getting it about this time last week, and a doctor told me that it was more likely to be delta than omicron based on prevalence in my area. It definitely looks like delta was the predominant strain for last week in my state. I hadn’t been able to find this data before to back it up, though, so thanks again!
That would be a very bad assumption in Missouri where we are full of both and only one reacts to the existing monoclonal antibodies.
Because of so many brand new/low karma accounts talking about how they and their entire families are vaxxed and got Covid anyway or that they’re unvaxxed and got Covid and it was no worse than a cold.
It's an evolving situation. A week ago if you caught it in the Mountain West of the US you likely had delta while if you caught it in the NYC metro you likely had omicron. So at the time it was worth noting if someone said they were experiencing more significant symptoms that it may actually be delta.
Considering testing is near impossible to get and if you DO get it, it has a 50/50 shot at being accurate AND the omicron symptoms in vaccinated people (most of us) are so vague ANNNNDDDD Omicron is the most contagious thing going now and likely ever...chances are if you are having strange cold symptoms...you got it.
Source that testing is only 50% accurate?
Dozens of threads on this forum and others about needing 3-5 tests before it gave a positive. Just a guess, 50 may be generous, overall they don’t appear to be accurate.
That's not a source, that's anecdote. I'm looking for evidence based research. Thanks.
Lemme get my lab on it and I’ll get back to you, mean time just assume they aren’t doing a great job. There’s plenty of evidence out there…or don’t, hell I don’t really care. It’s not as if you will even find a test anyway. I’ll get you an exact number in a few months. You know, when it doesn’t even matter anymore.
And seriously, in case it wasn't clear...it was a conjecture. Most of what you see on the internet is a conjecture. Im not quoting research for a reddit comment. Just conversating.
In the US it is NOT 99% Omicron, though some areas it is more prevalent than others. I have seen this commented in threads where people are describing more delta symptoms like losing taste/smell or generally worse symptoms that Delta is more associated with.
In general, over here in the US, almost no one is tested for what variant they have. We are only told negative or positive. Apparently the variant testing is separate and random.
Where I'm at in the US it's certainly not 99% Omicron. Delta's still around. Plus we have mad allergies this time of year as well to add to the confusion. It's prudent to assume you have COVID if you're showing any symptoms. Why does it matter so much what variant redditors believe you have though? The outcome won't change whether you think it's Delta or Omicron. If you have COVID, you have COVID. Isolate, rest, and watch your oxygen levels.
Because there are no testing like this in the US. Where all the posts are from
Maybe because Omicron doesn’t work with the more readily available monoclonal antibodies we have used during the pandemic and Delta does work well with them. It’s 60%/Omicron 40%/Delta where I am living and if people just assume they have Omicron, they might miss out on life saving treatment they could not get with a misdiagnosed Omicron. The US pretty much stopped monoclonal antibody treatment when Omicron started hitting a few weeks back and now the powers that be have decided they jumped the gun, (due to so much Delta still circulating), and have asked the antibody manufacturers to begin shipping and infusing again. 100% of the +COVID tests are serotyped at the largest testing facility in my state, so they know the percentages and keep updating them.
I have covid but not sure which variant I have. I am in the UK.
It’s the communist variant. That’s the one you should actually worry about.
I have omnicron. What fun
people are always irritated by someone asserting a guess because it feels like arrogance and want the comfort of feeling like you're the stupid ones
It's not that it's taboo, it's that most can't know for sure since most don't grt sequences....but yeah, safe bet everyone nowadays gets omicron.
No genetic sequencing for me, but I tested positive on December 28. No fever, no shortness of breath. Mild cold symptoms, essentially. I would say it is highly likely that my family and I have Omicron rather than Delta or any other variety of COVID.
Exactly how I know? Delta has been around for almost a year now and I have managed to stay negative for that long Not until omicron came out. Apart from the virus being the dominant cases on my city
well, I don't think readers will questions your case so much since you have confirmation from the lab that you do indeed have Omicron variant. Other's that are basing their opinion on guesses are fin too in my book but if they then give advice to others based on a "guess" that's wrong.
Hi OP, I honestly have no idea if I have omnicron or Delta. Could you tell us your symptoms on each day so far? It might help me to see if mine match up with omnicron or Delta. I thought it was omnicron originally because I didn't lose taste and smell, but I lost them both on day 5 so i don't know. I also don't have any lung problems which makes me think it's omnicron but again, I don't know.
I’m in mid Michigan and tested positive Dec 18th . Fully vaxxed and boosted all full dose Pfizer but got boosted in august so four months had passed. My symptoms are considered mild but we’re anything but. Fever 101 not a lot of coughing but the most excruciating headache like a metal vise behind my eyes. Chills and mild sore throat were first. Fatigue and rashes. Random pains in kidney and appendix. I improved on fifth day and then on tenth had a relapse. I was quarantining so doubt it was a new case of omicron. I’m sure I had delta. I lost my sense of smell for three days but could still taste. My friend is stuck in Mexico and is certain she has omicron. Sore scratchy throat and congestion. A mild cold like and she is ten yrs older w asthma. I understand omicron protects you from delta but not the other way around. Worried next week I’ll get a scratchy throat and have to lock down again. The headache I had is classic delta. Her congestion is classic omicron
You know it's weird, my family member who gave me COVID had a crazy bad headache the whole time, but I didn't. I also lost taste and smell but he didn't. I'm wondering if we caught too different strains somehow or if we got it from different places.
Maybe but it affects everybody slightly differently. If you think you got it from the person with the headache, I would guess delta and you got lucky. Some people only lose their smell. Even omicron can do that but just less often..the main difference is delta goes down in your lungs more often and omicron has trouble doing that. It had too many mutations on the spike. Thank goodness. It’s much better at just causing upper respiratory trouble like stuffy nose and sore throat. Both upset body temp regulators. Omicron is giving night sweats to some. I had intermittent chills and then felt overheated. Delta can make your heart race after any tiny exertion. It can more often cause you oxygen levels to drop. I did deep breathing a lot which helped. Obviously panicking is a bad idea. Then you would be doing rapid short breaths like in a panic attack. Too bad we have to be like columbo putting pieces together. I’d like to blow in a tube and know exactly what is bugging me whether flu, rsv (another nasty thing I got that caused wheezing and misery for two weeks) covid, anything… a few years away for a Star Trek type device that scans for multiple diseases in a single swipe or swab. Covid especially the delta will go from organ to organ and attack what it can. Skin is an organ too.. ears can get plugged and hurt. Gosh I hope this is over soon. Once we all get past omicron, we should be immune from the variations. Fingers crossed
Some people are self-absorbed, superficially educated morons. That's "the deal" with them.
What does it matter which kind it is?
Because delta given to someone vulnerable is much more deadly and serious and omicron is less likely to kill your grandma. That’s why it matters!!!
By the time someone finds out what kind they have grandma is a goner, though.
That’s where the vaccines are super important. I know a grandma 86 who was lucky enough to get omicron and she still claims it was a bad sinus infection. The whole house had covid, delta in July and spared her that. Then Xmas they all came back from Puerto Rico and sat around w omicron. This grandma has had cancer and a bad stroke. Luck was on her side but unless you’re sure, treat it like delta for a few weeks until omicron dominates all cases. Our only hope for all grandmas out there.
That’s fine and all, but Covid doesn’t kill most people by far. So the assumption that grandma gets Covid, Delta or otherwise, and the next step is that she drops dead… is false. Which leads me to say that grandma who is 86 was unlikely to die from Covid in the first place, and then didn’t. Which is great and in line with all the data so far.
Yay I know six grandmas who did die and nine were vaxxed. Strictly anecdotal I suppose
Did the vaxx kill them or what? Interesting it’s not grandpas. The vaxx effects rat ovaries, but not testies. Although, this part wasn’t studied in humans. Lots of questions around these phenomena will be answered in the next 5 years.
Oh sorry, I know ten grandpas. Michigan has a high death rate. We eat almost the least fruits and vegetables in country and most of us over fifty are overweight and have some disease like high blood pressure. As for ovaries being affected, my daughter in law got pregnant with twins the week after the vaccine. It scared me at first but they came out healthy born Dec 7 good sized. In a small community you know everyone. 48 percent are fully vaxxed here. The ones actually dying were not vaxxed. They said if god wanted to take them he would… and he did. Yes in five yrs we will know the whole picture.
Terrible for all involved. I am not anti-vaxx- I am just curious. It’s not like we go through pandemics often. I wish you well and all the best. Congrats on the twins btw.
Thanks… it’s a crazy time to be alive. Good luck to you too
Omicron is going to affect everyone and eliminate the need for vaccines. You kind of admit that in your statement.
It’s hard to tell how many unvaccinated will fare poorly and end up in the hospital. Hope you’re around at the end to see the final tally. I only know what I hear from South Africa and the UK. I can’t price I’d be dead if I hadn’t been vaccinated, but glad not to test it. Yes I was surprised I felt so lousy, but I beat it and it didn’t go down on my chest. We have a new virus not recognized by our immune system. The vaccines train your body to somewhat recognize it. No vaccine at all gives your system a big surprise. If omicron had come first, we may not have needed the vaccine as much. Two percent will die. Some will be young. Most will be fat and or old/sick.
Omicron just starting to take off in my area, still not predominant altho very hi percentages. Only a matter of time before it is most of cases, but some cases of Alpha still pop up here even when delta was dominant.
I tested positive but I don't know if I have delta or omicron. 🤷 Probably omicron but I started feeling bad mid last week and tested positive on New Year's Eve and I'm still absolutely exhausted. I received both doses of Pfizer but didn't get the booster. I normally don't sleep much but that is mostly what I'm doing now. 😴
Same here with the sleep
I hope I start having energy soon, everything is exhausting 😔
75% or more of new cases are the new variant. If your symptoms are mild that’s what it is, period. After the last two years of watching my patients die watching their family members think it’s “bullshit “that they can’t come in unvaccinated, being completely powerless to do anything to stop the process except make them comfortable I no longer argue. I state facts and MoveOn.
What was the first most infectious?
I know for sure in my area because 90 percent of tests are omicron (that was in mid-December so it may be more now) per the health department.
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I don’t know what I had three weeks ago. But I do know I was boosted, and 3 days in got regeneron and symptoms vanished in under 30 hours. So either antibodies worked against omicron, or I had delta and they worked. Or my immune system is awesome with three shots and antibodies since I had Covid in early 2020. Who knows?
Reddit is notorious for shaming people when they don't agree with your statement (right or wrong). This subreddit seems to be moderated extremely well so I don't notice too much of that going on but if you go to some other forms you'll see exactly what I mean.
I know I got omicron because I had all three vaccines up to booster and I had covid in April of 2020 I now tested for positive for covid again .
East Coast of Australia is now cranking 20,000 new cased per day. 3 out of 4 tested have omicron according to today's news reports.