Brought Home a Disney Souvenir- COVID

[shh]

Well, the only vaccine that I've heard about is new booster due to roll out in mid-September. I'm not sure if it covers the newest highly mutated strain that is just getting started, but it covers the one that kicked off summer covid. Both strains are descendants of the Omicron variant and so the updated booster will supposedly be effective against both.

I'm on the fence whether to get it now, or a month out from our trip to Panama in mid-January.

oh that's great news. The article I read is below - about 3-4 weeks ago, so maybe they were able to accelerate the schedule after all.

While the new vaccines are expected to be ready by late September, it could be October before they're widely available for everyone who wants them. Two steps will still be needed before the new vaccines can make their debut in the U.S. commercial market: a green light from the FDA and new recommendations from the CDC.Aug 9, 2023

New COVID vaccine and booster shots for this fall ... - CBS News​

CBS News
https://www.cbsnews.com › HealthWatch

 

[Christine]

I was just reading up on how the US open is afflicted now with “mysterious illnesses“ John McEnroe admitted that he now has Covid.

This just proves that humanity is messed up. I mean come on people admit the fact that there is Covid going around the U.S. Open. It’s sickening and sad how players are still playing when they’re sick. One would think that they would have enough professional staff doctors, trainers that would say hey guys don’t play especially if you have Covid. I guess the heart muscle is not relevant as much their swing. I’m just so shocked that a professional athlete would put their body at risk for a game.

There's so much conflicting info out there. My friend is a physician and subscribes to all the journals and what not and he forwarded me something about how each successive COVID infection damages "things" within us and it continues to wreak havoc long after the acute phase is gone. I read that and just wanted to bury my head under a pillow. No one knows how things will play out with this virus long-term so I'm just trying to avoid it as much as I can without ruining my life. I won't hibernate but I do make choices based on how much the experience is worth it to me. Dining out in the stupid restaurants around me? High risk, not worth it. But I will fly (masked) and try to enjoy myself. It was nice visiting the West Coast because all the dining experiences were outdoors to some degree. It was wonderful!

 

[dvcgirl67]

OP get well soon.

not directEd at you OP but why don’t people just say they got Covid ”on vacation”? Unless they wear PPE every single second and remove it when they enter WDW and put it back on when they step foot outside WDW- the can’t say they got it at WDW.

PPE is always going limit exposure-especially for those that can’t or won’t get the boosters.

I am getting my Covid booster and Influenza vax this week. I am also going to take someone’s suggestion on the N95 AURA.

Good point. I think it's kind of common sense at this point. If you arrive on WDW property and begin to feel lousy the next day, you likely caught it at home and brought it to WDW. If, like my neighbors, you spend a week at WDW then board a cruise ship and feel lousy the next day....you got it at WDW.

 

[focusondisney]

I think it's a "your mileage may vary thing." My coworker came down with it last week (not her first time). Came on fast, thought she was fine, but the next day she was SOOOOO sick. Not hospital sick, but it has definitely been kicking her butt.

Similar for us, but it was our first time getting it. I got symptoms first, tired, very mild irritated throat & congestion for 4-5 days, I thought, “this is ok, I can deal with this”. Then on day 5, I suddenly got very sick, with the exhaustion, fever of 101 & severe nausea that lasted about 8 days. The exhaustion took another week -10 days to resolve. Longest I have ever been sick in my life. My husband got a scratchy throat & mild congestion 2 days after I did. Within 10 hours of first symptoms, he had a fever of almost 103, shaking chills, nausea & weakness. He was that sick for 24 hours, then felt almost back to normal. Never had another fever & was tired, not exhausted.

She didn't say if they continued on with activities once they got sick (her husband two little boys)....and I didn't ask. But I suspect they powered through. This is how it goes I suppose....the younger people who can power through do....older people may end up losing some or most of their time on vacation to bedrest.

And that’s why things will never get better. People are back to being out & about when sick, “powering thru”. To heck with people they’re exposing & those who might lose more than just a few days of vacation.

not directEd at you OP but why don’t people just say they got Covid ”on vacation”? Unless they wear PPE every single second and remove it when they enter WDW and put it back on when they step foot outside WDW- the can’t say they got it at WDW.

I say we caught it “going to Disney”. In our case, we flew to Orlando, took a private car service to (& from) the airport & never left WDW property until we went back to the airport. Based on when my symptoms started & what our activities were, I am reasonably sure we were exposed either in the line for Frozen during DAH or flying home the next day. Those are the only places we weren’t distanced & were in crowds in the likely exposure time frame. I think the airlines have done a good job convincing people the air quality is good on planes. They were proactive in explaining the measures they were taking to make flying safer. Disney has not ever talked about anything they’ve done to improve air quality in places like the lines for Frozen & Soarin’ for example, when you’re in contained rooms for 20, 30 minutes or longer. Extra cleaning (sometimes even routine cleaning) is gone. As far as I can tell, they made no permanent changes to ensure guests stay healthy while there. That leads people to just assume they caught it “at Disney”. And many of them did.

 

[dvcgirl67]

Similar for us, but it was our first time getting it. I got symptoms first, tired, very mild irritated throat & congestion for 4-5 days, I thought, “this is ok, I can deal with this”. Then on day 5, I suddenly got very sick, with the exhaustion, fever of 101 & severe nausea that lasted about 8 days. The exhaustion took another week -10 days to resolve. Longest I have ever been sick in my life. My husband got a scratchy throat & mild congestion 2 days after I did. Within 10 hours of first symptoms, he had a fever of almost 103, shaking chills, nausea & weakness. He was that sick for 24 hours, then felt almost back to normal. Never had another fever & was tired, not exhausted.

And that’s why things will never get better. People are back to being out & about when sick, “powering thru”. To heck with people they’re exposing & those who might lose more than just a few days of vacation.

I say we caught it “going to Disney”. In our case, we flew to Orlando, took a private car service to (& from) the airport & never left WDW property until we went back to the airport. Based on when my symptoms started & what our activities were, I am reasonably sure we were exposed either in the line for Frozen during DAH or flying home the next day. Those are the only places we weren’t distanced & were in crowds in the likely exposure time frame. I think the airlines have done a good job convincing people the air quality is good on planes. They were proactive in explaining the measures they were taking to make flying safer. Disney has not ever talked about anything they’ve done to improve air quality in places like the lines for Frozen & Soarin’ for example. When you’re in contained rooms for 20, 30 minutes or longer. Extra cleaning (sometimes even routine cleaning) is gone. As far as I can tell, they made no permanent changes to ensure guests stay healthy while there. That leads people to just assume they caught it “at Disney”. And many of them did.

You're right that most of the covid cleaning protocols have fallen by the wayside. I don't believe there is any "deep cleaning" between flights anymore. Same for places like Disney....it's back to the way it was before. It's expensive to keep those practices in place.

My husband sent me an article from CNN about a cruise that is embarking in early November....for *three years*!! It's an around the world cruise...and it really is going to go everywhere. Prices start at 38K per year (per passenger based on double occupancy)...for an inside cabin, up to 100K per year, per person for a cabin with a balcony.

On their website, they say that a cruise ship is actually one of the safest places to be in a pandemic, as they can reroute the ship to go to a place where the virus isn't circulating. This made me chuckle because....I have a functioning brain...lol. Do the operators believe that we all have amnesia? One of the enduring visions of early covid was of cruise ships off shore with passengers infected with covid. So, of course people on that ship are going to get covid and spread it. Any time that anyone walks on that ship at any given port...they could be carrying covid on with them and be in an environment that is one of the best possible incubators for a virus to circulate. I would imagine that the passengers are going to skew from older....to very old, and so I hope the medical center on that ship is equipped to handle it.

 

[sam_gordon]

And that’s why things will never get better. People are back to being out & about when sick, “powering thru”. To heck with people they’re exposing & those who might lose more than just a few days of vacation.

Define "sick". If you cough a couple of times in the morning, is that "sick", should you cancel all your plans that day?
Wake up with nasal congestion? It clears up in an hour or two? A slight sore throat?

I never had allergies until living in Kentucky for 20 years, then in the spring and fall (before Covid), I would have allergy symptoms (congestion, sore throat, cough). I spent a week in the NE last month which had cool, dry temperatures. I returned to Kentucky and had congestion, sore throat, and slight cough. No fever. No tiredness. Was I "sick" or was it my allergies coming back in a vengeance? Lasted about 2-3 days then all symptoms were gone.

 

[TinkAgainU]

I read an article that makes sense to me. The upshot is that Covid is now like a nasty flu. It poses a real danger for the at-risk population, but is not likely to kill healthy people.

I have a friend who is the Physicians Assistant in the ER (honestly, sees more than the doctors) and she is Very worried people think of Covid like the Flu - she says the long term damage people are experiencing (long covid) is truly ruining lives! Sadly, the young people don't tend to think of how "accumulated" health issues make life so much tougher as you age. She masks and washes her hands non stop - but still goes out in the world. I learned "balance" from her - and use precautions when in crowded places, or around people where wearing a mask mostly is a non issue (ie the airport, stores, theatres). Reduced risk vs no risk. And WDW/Disneyland are examples of VERY VERY high risk with all the kids and close quarters. Nobody cares if you wear a mask (or you don't know them and they are political spaz cases lol). Keeping your hands clean has Always been a smart move.

 

[ShirikiUtundu]

I was just reading up on how the US open is afflicted now with “mysterious illnesses“ John McEnroe admitted that he now has Covid.

This just proves that humanity is messed up. I mean come on people admit the fact that there is Covid going around the U.S. Open. It’s sickening and sad how players are still playing when they’re sick. One would think that they would have enough professional staff doctors, trainers that would say hey guys don’t play especially if you have Covid. I guess the heart muscle is not relevant as much their swing. I’m just so shocked that a professional athlete would put their body at risk for a game.

And in 6 months if any of these athletes "drop dead" guess what people will blame?

I read an article that makes sense to me. The upshot is that Covid is now like a nasty flu. It poses a real danger for the at-risk population, but is not likely to kill healthy people. The lesson we need to take away from the pandemic is to take all viruses more seriously and tamp down our paranoia regarding Covid (for most people). The misery, loss of productivity, and possibility of medical complications exist with many illnesses so we should try to avoid the spread of more than just Covid.

I do remember that when I wore a mask in crowded spaces, I didn’t get sick at all. It was a nice benefit. DH and I plan to continue to mask up in crowded situations like public transport, lines at WDW, etc. It’s a small price to pay for being able to go everywhere and do anything but avoid the guilt of passing on a virus that could kill someone.

It's not a nasty flu and this is a narrative that needs to stop being pushed. It's a multisystem dysfunction infection masquerading as a respiratory illness.

OP get well soon.

not directEd at you OP but why don’t people just say they got Covid ”on vacation”? Unless they wear PPE every single second and remove it when they enter WDW and put it back on when they step foot outside WDW- the can’t say they got it at WDW.

PPE is always going limit exposure-especially for those that can’t or won’t get the boosters.

I am getting my Covid booster and Influenza vax this week. I am also going to take someone’s suggestion on the N95 AURA.

Unlike early in the pandemic, one good thing is that the exposure-to-symptoms window has been significantly narrowed with the later variants and so that makes it fairly easy to figure out when one was exposed (1-3 days prior to onset of symptoms).

There's so much conflicting info out there. My friend is a physician and subscribes to all the journals and what not and he forwarded me something about how each successive COVID infection damages "things" within us and it continues to wreak havoc long after the acute phase is gone. I read that and just wanted to bury my head under a pillow. No one knows how things will play out with this virus long-term so I'm just trying to avoid it as much as I can without ruining my life. I won't hibernate but I do make choices based on how much the experience is worth it to me. Dining out in the stupid restaurants around me? High risk, not worth it. But I will fly (masked) and try to enjoy myself. It was nice visiting the West Coast because all the dining experiences were outdoors to some degree. It was wonderful!

I don't think there is conflicting info, it's more that the info is being downplayed severely for the sake of economy. Long covid is real and affects a percentage of people that no one should be comfortable with. I am still doing what I can to avoid covid while living life.

Define "sick". If you cough a couple of times in the morning, is that "sick", should you cancel all your plans that day?
Wake up with nasal congestion? It clears up in an hour or two? A slight sore throat?

I never had allergies until living in Kentucky for 20 years, then in the spring and fall (before Covid), I would have allergy symptoms (congestion, sore throat, cough). I spent a week in the NE last month which had cool, dry temperatures. I returned to Kentucky and had congestion, sore throat, and slight cough. No fever. No tiredness. Was I "sick" or was it my allergies coming back in a vengeance? Lasted about 2-3 days then all symptoms were gone.

You use common sense. If you know you have allergies and what times of year they are worse, that's one thing. It's another thing to claim allergies when you've never experienced them before, which many people have done this pandemic to avoid testing. If you feel unwell, you put on a mask to go do what you need to do, avoid people as much as possible, then get home to rest. It's not that difficult or confounding.

 

[dvcgirl67]

There's so much conflicting info out there. My friend is a physician and subscribes to all the journals and what not and he forwarded me something about how each successive COVID infection damages "things" within us and it continues to wreak havoc long after the acute phase is gone. I read that and just wanted to bury my head under a pillow. No one knows how things will play out with this virus long-term so I'm just trying to avoid it as much as I can without ruining my life. I won't hibernate but I do make choices based on how much the experience is worth it to me. Dining out in the stupid restaurants around me? High risk, not worth it. But I will fly (masked) and try to enjoy myself. It was nice visiting the West Coast because all the dining experiences were outdoors to some degree. It was wonderful!

There's an article in the NYT today about long covid. 11% of Americans have developed Long Covid after an infection. This particular article is about Long Covid posing special challenges for seniors. But one interesting point is that the 60 and up population has lower rates of long covid than 30-59 year olds. Researchers don't know why, but a couple of theories are that older Americans are the most vaccinated. They're also more likely to perform more protective actions like wearing masks and avoiding crowds when covid is around. There are several studies that show that vaccination reduces the chances of getting long covid, and if you do....the severity and duration of it. And that's why I'll continue to roll up my sleeve for my yearly booster.

 

[shh]

Then on day 5, I suddenly got very sick, with the exhaustion, fever of 101 & severe nausea that lasted about 8 days. The exhaustion took another week -10 days to resolve. Longest I have ever been sick in my life. My husband got a scratchy throat & mild congestion 2 days after I did. Within 10 hours of first symptoms, he had a fever of almost 103, shaking chills, nausea & weakness. He was that sick for 24 hours, then felt almost back to normal.

If you don't mind my asking, since it was 5 days for you, did you just tough it out without RX meds? Or did you still request Paxlovid? And same question about your husband, since he experienced the severe symptoms still in the Paxlovid window - a few days I think?

Just wondering if Paxlovid has still been proven effective at reducing/easing symptoms if you don't or can't fill the RX until the first few days have already passed?

 

[shh]

Nobody cares if you wear a mask (or you don't know them and they are political spaz cases lol).

exactly. While most of us are prone to worrying a bit about what people think - this is one time where we have to 100% disregard strangers' opinions and do what we feel is right for us.

If anyone at WDW or other theme park harasses me for wearing a mask - I'll have security on their A$$ so fast, they won't have time to blink. I refuse to be harassed or intimidated for making a personal choice that doesn't hurt anyone else.

 

[TinkAgainU]

If anyone at WDW or other theme park harasses me for wearing a mask - I'll have security on their A$$ so fast, they won't have time to blink. I refuse to be harassed or intimidated for making a personal choice that doesn't hurt anyone else.

I don't think anyone would ever say a word at the parks - at Disneyland there seem to be more Asians wearing masks even before Covid. At WDW I think I had a couple of rolled eyes in local stores, but not in the park (I assumed that to be a political response and not anything to do with me personally). I was raised in Florida as a child, and found a higher intolerance level there which was often religion-based. Now there is a political intolerance level which I think is the same sad people. Just nod politely and keep walking, as my folks used to say ...

 

[DLgal]

If you don't mind my asking, since it was 5 days for you, did you just tough it out without RX meds? Or did you still request Paxlovid? And same question about your husband, since he experienced the severe symptoms still in the Paxlovid window - a few days I think?

Just wondering if Paxlovid has still been proven effective at reducing/easing symptoms if you don't or can't fill the RX until the first few days have already passed?

My dad and mom started taking Paxlovid on days 6 and 5 after symptom onset. It still worked and by day 10, each was feeling 100%. This was their first bout with covid. 75 and 74 years old.

 

[tvguy]

I don't think anyone would ever say a word at the parks - at Disneyland there seem to be more Asians wearing masks even before Covid.

My University recruited heavily in Japan and those students always wore a mask if they had a cold to protect others. Just a cultural thing. And that was back in 1975-79.

 

[Dan Murphy]

I never understood the concept of making a health issue a political issue. That really makes no sense.

 

[Genie+]

why don’t people just say they got Covid ”on vacation”?

I can only speak for myself. Mostly my life is lower end exposure risk. When I go to a rock show in a small NYC club, that’s a much higher risk than typical daily life. It’s a handful of hours with hundreds of people in close proximity from all over plus heavy respiratory exchange.

We visited WDW 4 times since 2020. 10+ hrs/day all week long with 10,000s of people from all over often in close proximity. Intensity multiplied by duration. Rock show on steroids.

If on our next trip we catch covid I’m likely to say we got it going to WDW, partly due to awareness I accepted that much bigger risk. Of course we can catch covid anywhere. Certain activities/environments have higher/highest risks.

We take beach vacations and go camping. We drive and are spread out from other people for the most part. The highest risk is popping into a couple small shops or possibly an indoor dining. Why lump that in with WDW. It’s a different roll of the dice, just like if we went 10 days to Italy spending large amounts of time visiting crowded tourist sites. If during which we got covid I’d say we’d got it going to Europe. Just the way I think about it.

 

[PolyRob]

Well, the only vaccine that I've heard about is new booster due to roll out in mid-September. I'm not sure if it covers the newest highly mutated strain that is just getting started, but it covers the one that kicked off summer covid. Both strains are descendants of the Omicron variant and so the updated booster will supposedly be effective against both.

I'm on the fence whether to get it now, or a month out from our trip to Panama in mid-January.

This! The new 'Eris' (EG.5) variant popping up now will NOT be in the new fall mRNA vaccines. As you mentioned it is another subvariant of Omicron so it's believed the updated boosters should at least be effective. The shot will include XBB.1.5 which made up the dominant cases in June when the vaccines were updated.

'Pirola' (BA.2.86) is more concerning because of the number or mutations.

https://www.yalemedicine.org/news/new-covid-variant-ba286-pirola

she is Very worried people think of Covid like the Flu - she says the long term damage people are experiencing (long covid) is truly ruining lives!

It's not a nasty flu and this is a narrative that needs to stop being pushed. It's a multisystem dysfunction infection masquerading as a respiratory illness.

Absolutely! Dr. Birx was interviewed just this past week and explained why COVID should never be compared to Flu and why the COVID vaccine timeline should not follow Flu either. She was explaining how the mRNA technology was created so boosters could be updated quickly for new strains and sadly we are already behind. One booster annually doesn't follow the two waves we typically see and vaccines should be updated now for BA.2.86 which will most likely be dominant come Dec/Jan.

https://abcnews.go.com/US/trumps-fo...ves-current-covid-response/story?id=102646852

 

[Minnesota!]

This! The new 'Eris' (EG.5) variant popping up now will NOT be in the new fall mRNA vaccines. As you mentioned it is another subvariant of Omicron so it's believed the updated boosters should at least be effective. The shot will include XBB.1.5 which made up the dominant cases in June when the vaccines were updated.

'Pirola' (BA.2.86) is more concerning because of the number or mutations.

https://www.yalemedicine.org/news/new-covid-variant-ba286-pirola




Absolutely! Dr. Birx was interviewed just this past week and explained why COVID should never be compared to Flu and why the COVID vaccine timeline should not follow Flu either. She was explaining how the mRNA technology was created so boosters could be updated quickly for new strains and sadly we are already behind. One booster annually doesn't follow the two waves we typically see and vaccines should be updated now for BA.2.86 which will most likely be dominant come Dec/Jan.

https://abcnews.go.com/US/trumps-fo...ves-current-covid-response/story?id=102646852

I was told to look at COVID as HIV - infection that can do a ton of damage now, a ton of damage later (how HIV transitions to AIDS), etc. Comparing to the flu, in any capacity, negates what it can cause. I can't remember the exact wording,.and its been a hell of a long week, but that's the jist of it.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

There's an article in the NYT today about long covid. 11% of Americans have developed Long Covid after an infection. This particular article is about Long Covid posing special challenges for seniors. But one interesting point is that the 60 and up population has lower rates of long covid than 30-59 year olds. Researchers don't know why, but a couple of theories are that older Americans are the most vaccinated. They're also more likely to perform more protective actions like wearing masks and avoiding crowds when covid is around. There are several studies that show that vaccination reduces the chances of getting long covid, and if you do....the severity and duration of it. And that's why I'll continue to roll up my sleeve for my yearly booster.

I think it's important to point out that the article does mention that older individuals could also be mistaken and attribute a symptom that would be long covid in someone else just part of aging to them. My mother-in-law experienced brain fog but in all honesty her memory and focus has been declining before covid. Now a long covid symptom she had for sure was breathing and vocal issues. She described it as she couldn't fully breathe like before and it felt like her vocal cords would get tired quickly so she wasn't as chatty. All that stuff is basically gone but what stuck around is she really doesn't like to eat eggs anymore and she was a person who had eggs all the time for breakfast.

I also think the fact that younger people weren't eligible for everything that older people were and this to me is important because different strains affected people differently. Also increased vaccination is largely due to the body's immune system, there is no reason why I need 6 total doses like another poster has said. Also in-laws have had 4 or 5 doses more than any of us younger ones have had and step-father-in-law, a cancer survivor, has had covid twice one year apart (2022 and 2023) and mother-in-law once (2022).

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

I was told to look at COVID as HIV - infection that can do a ton of damage now, a ton of damage later (how HIV transitions to AIDS), etc. Comparing to the flu, in any capacity, negates what it can cause. I can't remember the exact wording,.and its been a hell of a long week, but that's the jist of it.

IDK I think context is important. The symptoms mimic for a lot of people the flu so knowing that can help someone pinpoint more what they could be sick with. I think comparing it to HIV is odd. If you're trying to downplay the impact covid has by saying "it's just a cold or flu" that's the context most bristle against but I still don't think comparing to HIV or AIDS is anywhere near good even if someone is trying to downplay it. To me that also can create confusion like we had in the beginning, if you have enough people who do not experience severe issues or long lasting issues you're going to lose the effect of comparing it to it. Peope die from the flu so I don't know how that negates anything. If anything that sounds like someone trying to downplay the flu's impact. We have a vaccine for the flu for a reason do we not?