Colds?

[Scarlett]

Does anyone have a cold that’s not covid at the mo? Or have you stopped testing now? I feel like I’m coming down with something in a stuffy nose and headache kind of way, but would love to think that it’s a normal cold and not Covid!

[barry1010]

Could this be relevant? I am waking up in the middle of the night gasping for breath with blocked passages, sore eyes and a tight chest https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-11220685/Third-week-September-worst-week-year-asthma-allergy-sufferers.html

[barry1010]

Ignore my link, it is relevant to the US.

[tiggerblue10]

Son has had a blocked and runny nose last 2 days and I started getting a sore throat earlier. Neither of us have done covid tests as I've run out of them.

[Scarlett]

Barry, there might be something in it – I wonder if it is due to the sudden weather change; the temperature and the whole feel of everything.

I’m just paranoid

[Barsel]

These past few days I've had a runny nose and today have woken up with a sore throat.
I have to do a Covid test on Friday as I'm going for a procedure at the hospital so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it will be negative.

[New Judge]

//...but would love to think that it’s a normal cold and not Covid!//

What difference does it make? If you feel ill enough that you want to stay in, then do so. If not, behave as usual.

[rowanwitch]

Could be omicron, but as NO said, it depends how you feel with it. But if you are going to be with at risk people in an indoor setting a test is still the right way to go. Vulnerable people can still become extremely ill with covid.

[Scarlett]

Judge, it makes a lot of difference to me. I am extremely vulnerable and have not had Covid yet. If it was Covid, I would probably have to get antivirals, and take far more precautions than if it was a cold. I know that I can survive a cold.

[youngmafbog]

Never tested, wont test.

As NJ says, if you are grotty stay away from people whatever you have.

[smurfchops]

Headache, sore throat, racking cough for a week. Not Covid.

[New Judge]

//Judge, it makes a lot of difference to me. I am extremely vulnerable and have not had Covid yet. If it was Covid, I would probably have to get antivirals, and take far more precautions than if it was a cold. I know that I can survive a cold.//

If that's the case and you feel grotty enough to seek medical treatment, the doc will decide whether or not you need a Covid test. There are a multitude of respiratory ailments that are just as dangerous (and some more so) than Covid. The decision for you is "do I feel ill enough to see a quack?" If you do, see a quack and let him or her decide what tests and treatment you should undergo.

With your vulnerability you would be most unwise to self-diagnose, especially with the relative unreliability of "amateur" Covid tests. I don't really understand why you "major" on Covid when there are so many other debilitating conditions about.

[Scarlett]

If you need antivirals, they should be taken early on, not wait until you feel dreadful enough to ask the doctor for a covid test and then wait several days for the results. I fear Covid mostly because of long Covid. I have several friends who are really debilitated now, and a sister who still struggles to breathe four months after having Covid. There are lots of people having mild symptoms, but since I haven’t had it yet, I have no idea what to expect.

[New Judge]

//If you need antivirals, they should be taken early on..//

Presumably these are prescription treatments?