Will we ever be rid of Covid?

I get tested every time I get back from traveling and before I engage with people. And with a testing site on every corner (almost) the local urgent care is never lined up anymore. This is not likely to change in the near future and I really don't mind.

Covid is here to stay. This is the new normal.

always better safe than sorry. There can't be overkill when we are talking about health.

So…Will we ever be rid of Covid? Fred asks and I have often thought. The research from the pandemic of 1918 shows viruses tend to become more contagious and less dangerous over time. Thus we now have the common cold-which is a corona virus. We see with the Delta and now Omicron variants, there are dramatically fewer hospitalizations and/or deaths (if any) amongst the vaccinated population. So, the vaccines work to protect us from hospitalization or death. Woo hoo! It also seems that we can still contract Covid and spread it even though we are vaccinated. This is much like the common cold or flu. We take specifically tailored vaccination shots every year for the flu (if you get the flu shots as I do, working with students not really an option lol.) So I think we are in the early stages of figuring out how to react to a virus which was very virulent and rocked our worlds and now, over time, is evolving. We were all scared by what we saw on the news every day, by seeing people we loved succumb in the early months of 2020/21. Now as we are learning more, I hope that we will realize that we are already living with viruses and diseases which have killed people in earlier times.

In the past we didn’t mask up for the flu or common cold in the US, although masks were common in other countries. I am grateful for the vaccines, and also for therapeutics which are being developed and are very effective. I am also grateful that these new strains seem to produce milder and milder symptoms, especially among the vaccinated and young healthy people. I am a firm proponent of getting vaccinated and boosted, and I also think we should be testing for antibodies. My dad, at 87, who has had Lyme disease and is immunocompromised, had a very strong reaction to his second Pfizer shot. When his antibodies were tested, they were through the roof and his doctor advised him not to get a booster yet.
I think ultimately, we will be “over Covid,” the way we are “over“ the common cold and flu. Hopefully we will not be asking people to be tested before coming to parties or weddings, etc. we will simply protect ourselves and take care of ourselves the way we have for years by getting necessary vaccines, washing our hands, even wearing masks if that makes us feel more comfortable, etc.
I know I am looking forward to returning to these times soon. Love and health to all.

Testing for Thanksgiving get togethers was a Pain. But what can we do for now.