I mostly have a Q - a vaccinated staff member in the class at daycare got a positive test this AM.
BB will have to quarantine for 14 days unless we get a negative test later this week (Wed - Friday).
Do MH and I also now have to quarantine? We are both fully vaccinated. I don't think we do?
If I remember correctly, if you're vaccinated, your viral load is lower, so there is less of a chance to spread, but of course BB isn't vaccinated so here I am worrying.
Post by Scout'sHonor on Jul 13, 2021 10:39:38 GMT -5
We just dealt with the daycare exposure quarantine. No, you and your H aren't the exposed parties and at least here, if you're vaxxed, you don't have to quarantine if exposed. That said, H and I did minimize being out, and went back to delivery and car pickup. He also worked from home that week instead of the office like he's been doing.
Post by Velar Fricative on Jul 13, 2021 10:48:27 GMT -5
No. Even before vaccinations, you wouldn't have been required to quarantine (maybe advised, but not required) because neither you nor your H were directly exposed. Even so, you are fully vaccinated and the CDC does not advise quarantining even if directly exposed (unless you also have symptoms). I hope you're all okay!
Thanks both. We really haven't changed much - we both still WFH and limit our outings. I was mostly curious as I am taking swim lessons and I really don't want to miss like 3 classes. That is pretty much the only indoor thing I do so I am glad to see that I am ok to KOKO.
Now to decide whether to get BB tested. If we don't, she is home until the 23rd. Two weeks ago she had a cold and had to get a strep and covid test and that was traumatizing to her. Poor kid.
Post by Velar Fricative on Jul 13, 2021 10:53:54 GMT -5
Ugh, DD2 screams bloody murder from the covid tests. But personally, there is no way I'd keep her home that long if I didn't have to so I'd explain that in order to go back to having fun with friends, the test needs to happen. Are they strict on what kind of test can be used? Maybe you can scout out different types of tests? I was reading about saliva tests being more available but I have no idea if that's feasible for you.
Velar Fricative I know of a lab that does the saliva testing. The center actually brought them in in January after multiple classes has cases. I am thinking of contacting them to see if we can use them. And I also hope neither of your DDs have to quarantine.
I was finally sort of feeling comfortable about things and then ... yeah. It's just bad luck.
I'm keeping my fingers crossed neither kid will have to quarantine this summer. But my area is the #1 covid hotspot area in NYC right now...
Fingers crossed for you, hopefully people will keep masking up to keep your children safe.
My 16 year old daughter is a counselor at a local day camp. They have already had one covid positive camper. Unfortunately due to the rain they had to eat inside and the kids have to quarantine.
Post by suburbanzookeeper on Jul 13, 2021 14:51:47 GMT -5
I didn't see a current regular COVID post but DH's station mate and his 14 year old daughter (both Pfizer fully vaccinated) tested positive for COVID yesterday. Everyone in his house except his 10 year old are fully vaccinated but she hasn't tested positive yet either. Since DH was up close and personal with him over the weekend his city sent him home to wait until he comes back with a clean COVID test, even though he's fully vaccinated. They're seeing Delta breakthrough with first responders. So now we wait.
I’m starting to think about what we’re going to do for masks in school in August. Masks were made optional last May and kids dropped them quickly. In my son’s band lessons, I think he’s the only one (of 10) wearing one. I’m starting to weigh whether the potential benefit of protecting from Covid (even though we always said we wear masks to protect others not ourselves) outweighs the social/emotional cost of wearing one.
I worried less when I thought they’d be eligible for vax in September, but yesterday on NPR, I heard someone speculate that they think it could be late 2021/early 2022.
dcn, I think in NJ schools will not be requiring masks either. We kept BB in a private K for the year - I hope they keep mask requirements. But I doubt it.
I’m starting to think about what we’re going to do for masks in school in August. Masks were made optional last May and kids dropped them quickly. In my son’s band lessons, I think he’s the only one (of 10) wearing one. I’m starting to weigh whether the potential benefit of protecting from Covid (even though we always said we wear masks to protect others not ourselves) outweighs the social/emotional cost of wearing one.
I worried less when I thought they’d be eligible for vax in September, but yesterday on NPR, I heard someone speculate that they think it could be late 2021/early 2022.
I added a poll on MMM about masks in schools.
Interesting. Your Local Epidemiologist made a comment yesterday that they (Pfizer, Moderna, FDA) are waiting for full approval before vaccinating kids under 12. I have been looking for more on that but haven’t found anything. If that’s true though that is a big blow. I’ve been thinking September isn’t happening for a long time now and that comment furthered it.
I’m starting to think about what we’re going to do for masks in school in August. Masks were made optional last May and kids dropped them quickly. In my son’s band lessons, I think he’s the only one (of 10) wearing one. I’m starting to weigh whether the potential benefit of protecting from Covid (even though we always said we wear masks to protect others not ourselves) outweighs the social/emotional cost of wearing one.
I worried less when I thought they’d be eligible for vax in September, but yesterday on NPR, I heard someone speculate that they think it could be late 2021/early 2022.
I added a poll on MMM about masks in schools.
Interesting. Your Local Epidemiologist made a comment yesterday that they (Pfizer, Moderna, FDA) are waiting for full approval before vaccinating kids under 12. I have been looking for more on that but haven’t found anything. If that’s true though that is a big blow. I’ve been thinking September isn’t happening for a long time now and that comment furthered it.
The interviewee said that because they’re looking at different dosages, it’ll take longer. It’s no longer a yes/no thing. There was more to the conversation, though, so it’s possible that the person I was listening to is just speculating. I’m trying not to get too down about it at this point. But that on top of realizing just how few kids are actually wearing them anywhere and thinking about my son’s social concerns with returning to school and general anxiety…Ugh.
Post by Patsy Baloney on Jul 13, 2021 15:11:12 GMT -5
We kept our elementary kiddo out of school last year, due to uncertainty/high risk family member concerns. I'm excited to send her back this year. I think our district is getting ready to go "masks optional" and I'm not really sure what to do. I imagine she'll be bullied for wearing one. I have yet to see anyone vehemently against masks that didn't spew venom everywhere, and that seems like something easy for children to pick up on and weaponize. But, isn't it best to wear one? Especially with the Delta variant?
Interesting. Your Local Epidemiologist made a comment yesterday that they (Pfizer, Moderna, FDA) are waiting for full approval before vaccinating kids under 12. I have been looking for more on that but haven’t found anything. If that’s true though that is a big blow. I’ve been thinking September isn’t happening for a long time now and that comment furthered it.
The interviewee said that because they’re looking at different dosages, it’ll take longer. It’s no longer a yes/no thing. There was more to the conversation, though, so it’s possible that the person I was listening to is just speculating. I’m trying not to get too down about it at this point. But that on top of realizing just how few kids are actually wearing them anywhere and thinking about my son’s social concerns with returning to school and general anxiety…Ugh.
That’s basically what YLE said, too. It’s not just yes/no. I totally get the anxiety. Just when things start to look better they don’t.
Our school district announced they won’t require masks for anyone in the fall (school starts in 5 weeks). I knew it was coming but ugh.
Ours just announced the same, thanks to our newly elected conservative school board members. Ugh, I'm so disappointed. I had hoped they would at least keep masking in place for the kids too young to be vaccinated.
I thought this article was very interesting. I think it has been the most comprehensive article I have read to date about kids, risk and schools. Tons of studies are linked in the article and it is quite long so save it for when you have time to digest. Also ignore the title, it is set up to get your attention. The article is not as dismissive as the title would suggest.
I have talked about before how I am really working on adjusting my expectations as we approach a new school year. I have become more comfortable with some risk in exchange for my kids to be able to return to normalcy. Obviously this article fits into the narrative I am on as we open our world back up. So there might be some bias in why I really appreciated the read.
We kept our elementary kiddo out of school last year, due to uncertainty/high risk family member concerns. I'm excited to send her back this year. I think our district is getting ready to go "masks optional" and I'm not really sure what to do. I imagine she'll be bullied for wearing one. I have yet to see anyone vehemently against masks that didn't spew venom everywhere, and that seems like something easy for children to pick up on and weaponize. But, isn't it best to wear one? Especially with the Delta variant?
Or should I just stop caring so much?
It is definitely better for all unvaccinated people to mask. I wish schools would hold to this.
"Hello babies. Welcome to Earth. It's hot in the summer and cold in the winter. It's round and wet and crowded. On the outside, babies, you've got a hundred years here. There's only one rule that I know of, babies-"God damn it, you've got to be kind.”
Tennessee Department of Health halts all vaccine outreach to kids – not just for COVID-19, but all diseases – amid pressure from GOP. Staff ordered to remove the agency logo from any documents providing vaccine info to the public, per internal dox.
I thought this article was very interesting. I think it has been the most comprehensive article I have read to date about kids, risk and schools. Tons of studies are linked in the article and it is quite long so save it for when you have time to digest. Also ignore the title, it is set up to get your attention. The article is not as dismissive as the title would suggest.
I have talked about before how I am really working on adjusting my expectations as we approach a new school year. I have become more comfortable with some risk in exchange for my kids to be able to return to normalcy. Obviously this article fits into the narrative I am on as we open our world back up. So there might be some bias in why I really appreciated the read.
Thanks for sharing this. I’m hoping more experts will start to chime in on the Covid risks alongside the Psychosocial “risks.” I don’t see anyone talking about new data…just sticking with “no vaccines = masks are a must.”
If I’m really honest, at this point, I think I’m just as concerned (or maybe even more) about having to quarantine than I am about my kids getting Covid. If one of them is exposed & has to quarantine, then tests positive 7 days into it, then starts their quarantine…then the other one can’t start their quarantine until their last exposure date was 14 days ago, right? So basically, we could be out again for an entire month? (Please correct me if I’m wrong. We did virtual and have not yet been exposed, so I haven’t kept up on the latest recommendations.) They missed so much last year…missing another full month of something as we’re just getting back into things would be pretty devastating.
lilac05, I hate to tell you this but yes. My coworker had to be out almost the entire month of December because her son was presumptive positive for Covid. I guess it depends on whether the CDC is altering the recommendations to be 10 days post exposure or 14.
That’s what I thought. On top of CDC, I’m guessing states will have different requirements, too. Last I heard, I *think* that Iowa was saying that kids who were exposed but weren’t symptomatic didn’t have to quarantine from school. I’m not sure if that became an actual policy for our district, though. And if it did, I’m not sure how that changes how I feel about things. On one hand, that takes away one of my biggest concerns. On the other hand, that means there could be a lot more spread. I’m so exhausted.
I thought this article was very interesting. I think it has been the most comprehensive article I have read to date about kids, risk and schools. Tons of studies are linked in the article and it is quite long so save it for when you have time to digest. Also ignore the title, it is set up to get your attention. The article is not as dismissive as the title would suggest.
I have talked about before how I am really working on adjusting my expectations as we approach a new school year. I have become more comfortable with some risk in exchange for my kids to be able to return to normalcy. Obviously this article fits into the narrative I am on as we open our world back up. So there might be some bias in why I really appreciated the read.
My issue - how do we say we cannot draw direct comparisons between covid and historical years of influenza / RSV because of extreme covid precautions over the past year+… but then directly draw those comparisons and make public health suggestions based on such a shaky foundation? Why can’t we all just agree we actually have no idea how covid actually impacts children because we’ve gone to such extreme lengths to cocoon them over the past year+? (And even if individual families didn’t take precautions, population based measures should absolutely impact transmission chains)
The fact that this disease does appear to spare children compared to adults, when other respiratory viruses have disproportionately impacted them. That should absolutely be celebrated - and I recall articles in the very early days pointing this out. But there’s already a relatively sizable disease burden, and none of us know how this virus behaves when left to run unchecked through an unvaccinated population of young children when mitigation strategies are lifted—especially during periods of peak transmission, since there does appear to be a strong seasonal component. Reasonable people can disagree on what approach to take with their own children when looking at the same data (responding more to the author, who seems confused? Bothered? by parents choosing to mask their young children at baseball games).
Article from today - same numbers but arguing in favor of childhood vaccination
I remember in the early days of the pandemic, many of us noted that if all the mitigation strategies worked to slow the spread and reduce covid mortality, it would look like we had done it all for nothing. I guess I wonder why that’s different for children?
I can appreciate that grandparents are much higher risk for morbidity and mortality than children, but it doesn’t mean that kids aren’t at risk and pulling safety measures now because the kids have “always been safe” seems a little like rolling dice.
I live in an area with high vaccination coverage and our pediatric case numbers are increasing (not just as a portion of the whole, gross numbers). So I’ll be watching to see what happens over the coming months. Hopefully my apprehension is all for nothing. That would be a very happy finding.
tacom, I see where you’re coming from on all of that, too…and I don’t disagree at all. This is why I’m just exhausted. I don’t know what to think or who to trust. Everyone seems to have an agenda…and even when people try to be fair, they’re still biased and reporting from their level of risk tolerance.
It’s true that there’s so much we just don’t know. When anyone talks in absolutes, I automatically dismiss them because none of this is clear/easy. But it’s also true that taking large measures to protect kids from Covid brings other risk like the kids who basically lost a year of education because virtual was such a disaster and they had no support at home, or abuse that was missed because no one saw a child, or social delays for kids who have never been able to play with peers in their toddler life. Those are very real risks, too. There’s just no way right now to know which decisions are the right ones. It’s probably different for every child/family. And are we doing the right thing to take measures for ALL kids to protect what all research thus far suggests is a few kids? (We don’t do that for other illnesses/risks.) I would imagine there are lots of dissertations in progress right now looking at the effects of masks & Covid precautions on kids under 5 in regards to language development and social skills. Knowing what we know about the importance of that early exposure, I’m curious to see what we will find about the kids who were 1-2 years old when this all started.
I just don’t think there are any right answers right now. I know you carry extra, very valid, concerns for your family, and I hope this doesn’t come off as diminishing those. It just all feels impossibly hard right now.
I remember in the early days of the pandemic, many of us noted that if all the mitigation strategies worked to slow the spread and reduce covid mortality, it would look like we had done it all for nothing. I guess I wonder why that’s different for children?
I can appreciate that grandparents are much higher risk for morbidity and mortality than children, but it doesn’t mean that kids aren’t at risk and pulling safety measures now because the kids have “always been safe” seems a little like rolling dice.
I live in an area with high vaccination coverage and our pediatric case numbers are increasing (not just as a portion of the whole, gross numbers). So I’ll be watching to see what happens over the coming months. Hopefully my apprehension is all for nothing. That would be a very happy finding.
It's definitely a little like rolling the dice. There is a large part of the country where kids were never isolated though. The arguments that we kept them socially distant and masked don't really work because well, in many places that isn't true. Here kids wore masks to school last year and that is it. I'm not saying that is right or wrong. At this point I really don't know. I think both arguments have ton of merit. Kids are at risk from Covid. Kids are also at risk from a ton of other things that we accept on a daily basis. The risk equation is also more complicated for some than others. It makes it all really hard.
Post by somersault72 on Jul 14, 2021 12:13:05 GMT -5
I'm seeing post after post on FB basically stating that if masks are required at schools around here there's going to be a damn mutiny. People are losing their damn minds. Not anyone I know personally, but in community groups, etc. I'm just glad my oldest was old enough to be vaccinated and my little one is not old enough for school, because even with the school doing what I considered a decent job they spent a fair amount of time having to go virtual due to outbreaks (moreso of the faculty and staff than the students, although there were definitely students who got sick). Our county's vaccination rate is only around 44% (sadly that's a lot higher than other surrounding counties).
I got about half way through that NYMag article and my take away was - it is all relative to what your personal risk appetite is. Always has been and always will be. Nothing anyone will say or do may/will change someone else's mind.
We all have our reasons for wanting our kids to be masked (or not), for opting for virtual vs. in-person instruction. Just like we all had our reasons to rear face our children in their car seats for longer (or not). There is always going to be judgement/thoughts on what is better or isn't.