Same here.
I wouldn't have know I had it, except for someone else in our house tested positive.
So, I took the test and was positive. Otherwise, I would have chalked it up to a cold.
Poll: Have you had Covid?
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Same here.
I wouldn't have know I had it, except for someone else in our house tested positive.
So, I took the test and was positive. Otherwise, I would have chalked it up to a cold.
This is what I was going to mention. How can anyone say they haven't had it when very many cases are asymptomatic?
And then many other cases that are so mild someone thinks it's just a cold.I don't believe I have ever had it because I haven't even really had a cold since the pandemic began back in early 2020. So, I'll vote "no", but I can't be certain.
That said, I have had several vaccinations to date including just over a week ago.
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The young wife and I caught Covid right before Christmas 2021. We knew we had been exposed, started developing symptoms and, on our second day of testing, got the faint pink line. It was about 5-6 days of having a bad cold. I'm thankful it wasn't worse, and I attribute that to the fact that we were vaccinated and boosted in 2021, so our immune system was on high alert to respond promptly and forcefully.
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This is what I was going to mention. How can anyone say they haven't had it when very many cases are asymptomatic?
What always surprises me, especially because free tests are so easy to get, is that folks don't immediately self-test on day 1 of a cold, and then continue to test even if they are negative.
If I have anything that could remotely be covid, I'm testing. Even if it's just the sniffles, so I can take precautions for those around me.
COcheesehead
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
From the we’ll never know department…I wonder how many of the no’s were really yes.
Have not had it. But then again I hadn't had so much as a sniffle in over 5 years. Until last week... achoo !!
I was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma just a few months before Covid hit. Lymphoma makes you extremely susceptible to Covid and the symptoms are much worse than for most people. Towards the start of the pandemic, when they reported a 2-3% Covid fatality rate, 60s-age men with lymphoma had a 50% fatality rate. Even when the vaccines came out, I was in 3 different cohorts (lymphoma and 2 treatment drugs) that weakened / blunted my response to the vaccine.
Given those stats, I decided to be paranoid. From about 4/2020 to 6/2022 I lived in a bubble. I stayed by myself in my house. Very seldom went out among people, unless somebody had to stick a needle in me. I'm pretty social and outgoing and I was going bonkers, so I would occasionally meet people for a drink or a meal on an outdoor patio or similar. For the last year+ the case numbers are much lower, the infections seem less virulent, the treatments are better, lymphoma-patient fatalities are very low, etc so I've gotten a lot braver. I haven't worn a mask in over a year.
I was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma just a few months before Covid hit. Lymphoma makes you extremely susceptible to Covid and the symptoms are much worse than for most people. Towards the start of the pandemic, when they reported a 2-3% Covid fatality rate, 60s-age men with lymphoma had a 50% fatality rate. Even when the vaccines came out, I was in 3 different cohorts (lymphoma and 2 treatment drugs) that weakened / blunted my response to the vaccine.
Given those stats, I decided to be paranoid. From about 4/2020 to 6/2022 I lived in a bubble. I stayed by myself in my house. Very seldom went out among people, unless somebody had to stick a needle in me. I'm pretty social and outgoing and I was going bonkers, so I would occasionally meet people for a drink or a meal on an outdoor patio or similar. For the last year+ the case numbers are much lower, the infections seem less virulent, the treatments are better, lymphoma-patient fatalities are very low, etc so I've gotten a lot braver. I haven't worn a mask in over a year.
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iloveyoga
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I have not had Covid that I know of, neither has DH. Most everyone else in our family has except one DIL. I have tested many times when I had symptoms and when I was exposed, all negative. I have also tested a few days after flying and large family gatherings. (I think the free tests are a wonderful idea.). So as far as I know, no Covid. I got every vaccine that was available and so did DH.
Lewis Clark
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My wife and I had our latest vaccine booster shots in mid-April 2023. Were on a cruise in early May. Both of us got sick on the ship but tested negative for covid. A week after getting home we both tested positive for covid.
My symptoms were very mild, nothing more than an intermittent dry cough. My wife was sicker, but she has always been an overachiever when it comes to getting illnesses.
My symptoms were very mild, nothing more than an intermittent dry cough. My wife was sicker, but she has always been an overachiever when it comes to getting illnesses.
folivier
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DW and I both had covid in February of 2020. We were in Arizona for January and February. On the drive back to Louisiana I got sick, mostly very fatigued. When I got home after a couple days of deep coughing I went to my doctor where they were not able to tell me what I had. Wrote it off to strep throat. Note I had no sore throat with all of the coughing. Couple days later DW came down with same symptoms. Once more knowledge about covid came out we compared and had the same symptoms. We both made the decision to let acquired immunity take care of us rather than a vaccine. We've since been exposed multiple times to the later strains and had a mild cold or just stuffiness.
Like most other people our age we aren't as exposed to other seasonal flu's and have had neither nor have we taken flu shots since this began.
BTW I didn't have a fever in either case, but then I never run a fever nor do I throw up. DW did have a fever from the first case.
Like most other people our age we aren't as exposed to other seasonal flu's and have had neither nor have we taken flu shots since this began.
BTW I didn't have a fever in either case, but then I never run a fever nor do I throw up. DW did have a fever from the first case.
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threeonesix
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If DW has "had" COVID (by which I assume you mean "suffered symptoms") you've been a carrier. Fact is by now it is assumed that 100% of Americans have been infected.
REWahoo
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I've not seen any numbers beyond 75-80% and would be interested to know the details of your 100% number. Can you provide a link to your source?
By the way, I hope the 100% rate is factual as that would mean everyone in the US has some level of immunity to future infection.
I agree, that seems dependent on whether "infected" just means "exposed to the virus" or something else.
In 2021, DW had a strong case of it (the test strip turned up vividly in less than a minute). I never made any effort to keep my distance and we both spent most of that week together at home, yet repeated tests on myself were all negative. So I believe there is a strong element of randomness in how it spreads.
Never had it... as far as I know. Other than the first month or two I have lived my life completely normal and not in fear. I am glad I lived like this and glad it has worked out fine. Have gotten all vaccines. I think I am up to 5 shots now. Who knows what that will do to me, in the long run, but not worrying about it.
Ncc1701
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I don't know and don't want to know. I never had symptoms but I guess I may have been asymptomatic. If a doctor ever tests me for antibodies I would make sure they do not tell me the results. I do not want to start imagining symptoms that aren't really there.
No for us, but a bunch of relatives have had it.
pacergal
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
DH and I have had all vaccines, we still mask up in crowded situations. We test frequently, with any URI symptoms, or after exposure from DGS who bring home everything from school.
Our Dr believes DH, DS and myself had covid early, Dec 2019-Jan 2020, before any testing was available All three of us were ill with severe respiratory illness, headache, fever. DS was extremely short of breath, wheezing. Using Albuterol inhaler helped keep him out of the ER. We lost sense of taste.
All of our O2 stats stayed above 90.
He may have been exposed from a student (he teaches) and we live in the area of one of the first covid cases around, that made the news. DS was ill first, was ill for almost 3 weeks, DH was next, and I had the lightest symptoms with cough, congestion, wheezing
DGS 1 had it, DGS 2 has had it twice, DS has tested positive once since that first illness.
Many of my siblings and their families have had it, but it is very random who gets it.
Our Dr believes DH, DS and myself had covid early, Dec 2019-Jan 2020, before any testing was available All three of us were ill with severe respiratory illness, headache, fever. DS was extremely short of breath, wheezing. Using Albuterol inhaler helped keep him out of the ER. We lost sense of taste.
All of our O2 stats stayed above 90.
He may have been exposed from a student (he teaches) and we live in the area of one of the first covid cases around, that made the news. DS was ill first, was ill for almost 3 weeks, DH was next, and I had the lightest symptoms with cough, congestion, wheezing
DGS 1 had it, DGS 2 has had it twice, DS has tested positive once since that first illness.
Many of my siblings and their families have had it, but it is very random who gets it.
USGrant1962
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CDC was tracking Seroprevalence on their Covid data tracker but they stopped in 2022 (link below). The last numbers there were that 77.5% had infection-induced antibodies through December 2022. That was almost a year ago so clearly higher now but probably not 100%. Scroll down to the bar chart with orange and blue bars.
CDC estimates 96.7% had antibodies from infection and/or vax through December 2022. So yea, darn near 100% have some immunity.
https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#nationwide-blood-donor-seroprevalence-2022
DH & I have both had it twice, June 2022 and Oct 2023. Fully vaccinated (except for the latest booster that we had not gotten around to getting before we got this last bout of covid). Ages 77 and 71. Both bouts were no worse than a mild cold for both of us. Doctor said to wait 3 months after last infection to get the latest booster.
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Got it twice, both times on a cruise ship.
First time got it at a crowded tourist restaurant before a cruise and compelled by the cruise line to get tested between the first and second cruise in the back-to-back itinerary. I had fever originally for a few says, but had no symptoms at the time of the positive test,. Then they "sent me to my room" for 5 days.
The second time, I got it from my wife, who got it on a different cruise. The only time I had symptoms was first thing in the morning with my throat. Gone in 1/2 hour. No coughing or sneezing or nasal symptoms, so I didn't sequester.
First time got it at a crowded tourist restaurant before a cruise and compelled by the cruise line to get tested between the first and second cruise in the back-to-back itinerary. I had fever originally for a few says, but had no symptoms at the time of the positive test,. Then they "sent me to my room" for 5 days.
The second time, I got it from my wife, who got it on a different cruise. The only time I had symptoms was first thing in the morning with my throat. Gone in 1/2 hour. No coughing or sneezing or nasal symptoms, so I didn't sequester.
DW and I traveled to China on October, 2019. We went on a river cruise thru Yang-Tze river, passing the epic center city of Wuhan. I caught a bad flu and was sick the rest of the trip including the week after we were back to our home country.
No one had even heard of Covid at that time. Did I catch the first wave of Covid? Maybe. DW has never caught Covid to this day.
I voted Yes.
No one had even heard of Covid at that time. Did I catch the first wave of Covid? Maybe. DW has never caught Covid to this day.
I voted Yes.
foxcreek9
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DW got it from her mother Aug of 22, we cancelled our trip the Germany in early Sept since it was almost certain I would get it soon after, I didn't. I got it 3 months later on the last couple of days in Hawaii, symptoms started about the 3rd day back. She took paxlovid, and after her experience I passed on that. For both, it was just a mild cold, but I did test positive for 2 weeks.
Taco
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I know that many people have had COVID and not known it, but I was still surprised by the high number of "No" responses to the poll. 46%!
I looked around and found this abstract to a study by some researchers at Harvard.
https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.11.19.22282525v3
"By November 9, 2022, 94% ... of the US population were estimated to have been infected by SARS-CoV-2 at least once. Combined with vaccination, 97% ... were estimated to have some prior immunological exposure to SARS-CoV-2."
I don't know how accurate their 94% number is, but I would guess it is way closer to correct than our poll's current total of 54%.
I looked around and found this abstract to a study by some researchers at Harvard.
https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.11.19.22282525v3
"By November 9, 2022, 94% ... of the US population were estimated to have been infected by SARS-CoV-2 at least once. Combined with vaccination, 97% ... were estimated to have some prior immunological exposure to SARS-CoV-2."
I don't know how accurate their 94% number is, but I would guess it is way closer to correct than our poll's current total of 54%.
Same. Perhaps we have bullet-proof immune systems? I last had a cold in 2003. Nothing else- not even a headache. I can't explain it. Every day is 100%.
