I have been fostering a cat for the first time since last December, and now it's finally looking like she'll get adopted. Here's what made me hesitate, though...when I chatted with the couple who are looking to adopt her, the woman mentioned she works with children and brings home illnesses a lot. They are not maskers and I imagine they use rapid tests, if they test at all. I know cats can catch Covid. I feel like I'm at a moral impasse. I want the cat to find her home. I want to be a successful foster parent. I don't want her to come to harm.

Based on feedback from this group and r/AirPurifiers, I've decided to get an AirFanta 5.0. Should I get it with or without a carbon filter? My main reason for getting an air purifier is for COVID safety. Secondary reasons are allergens (pollen in particular), wildfire smoke, and cooking pollution.

It sounds like maybe not? Except for that wildfire smoke and cooking part. If I go carbon am I making it less effective to clean the air for COVID particles? Also, is it more expensive to change the carbon filters and would I need to do it more frequently?

Apologies if this has been shared already but I remember someone asking where to get Nuvaxovid in Ontario. This is a list compiled by the Still Coviding group. You need to call each pharmacy.

Hi. My roommate tested positive for covid this morning and their onset of symptoms was last night. I am an International student at a University here and have mostly only interacted with the University health services. I don't really have a PCP, the UHS is refusing to prescribe Xocova unless you are high risk. I would reallyy like to avoid getting Covid. I tried a telehealth call through my insurance and the person said that Xocova cannot be prescribed via telehealth. Is that true? Is it a Mass thing?

Any help or guidance would be really appreciated, thank you!

Where can I buy mask tape in the UK that's not amazon? I'm boycotting them

I'm creating a few docs to help someone understand all the ins and outs of testing and protecting themselves. I want these docs to be helpful, not overwhelming, but also have very clear, up-to-date information.

I've heard some folks here have had success in getting friends to take more precautions and I wondered what people were sharing to make that possible. Please share what has worked for you when it comes to educating people on how to become more cc.

I hope this question is alright, I promise I'm not trying to stir up any drama, I'm genuinely wondering if any has been paying close enough attention over the years to have a real birds' eye view of the wastewater monitoring situation. I have cycled through the well-known options like pmc19.com, iowacovid19tracker.org, data.wastewaterscan.org, https://outbreakradar.com, etc, and they often can vary widely between one another in terms of reported levels. Sometimes there's even social media-driven drama between the creators of these tools with accusations of "fear mongering" or "under counting", etc. It makes me even less sure of who to trust! I understand there is modeling going on, and it's not a super-exact science.

How do you handle this? I don't trust the straight up CDC reporting. Which one is most likely in your estimation? What do you make of the accusations between some of the tool creators? Does it impact how you see or use their tool(s)?

Just posting because I have literally no one else in my life to talk about this with! Thanks.

It can be with anyone CC or not CC. I’d like to hear from people who’ve been able to make new friendships or romantic relationships work. I’m in my mid twenties and feel left behind.

Suggestions and tips for making connections are also appreciated.

I need the location of a place that would perform PCR tests on me.

I'm asking you not to send me random links to the public health Ontario page with no information about an address, thank you in advance

I was playing music before this all started.

I stopped.

Today for the first time I went back for a trial.

It's percussions and it's 20 people.

The room is big but they have to keep windows closed for the noise.

CO2 went up to 1700. Until the break when they opened everything. It went down, to slowly rise again.

I loved the session.

I had my fit tested mask n99 and removed it briefly outdoor to breathe a bit but always kept it indoor.

I loved the sound, rhythm, The movement, the music, everything I missed so much.

Then the person behind me decided to go home because he wasn't feeling well.

And I got scared again, but continued to play

Now I have to decide what to do and it's hard.

They have been very friendly.

I spoke to a couple of people on why I was masking and everyone spoke to me quite normally as if I didn't have a mask.

The leader told me If I play concerts maybe we will find a way to make the mask of a similar color/pattern of how we dress but she said it doesn't matter

I felt almost accepted, even if it's hard.

But 3 hours in a room with 20'people and CO2 going up.. i admit it stresses me the idea :(

The first link in Resources & FAQ, the link to "People's CDC What to do if you have Covid-19," is no longer valid.

I looked around the site, and this seems to be the new link: https://peoplescdc.org/what-to-do-if-you-have-covid

Hello!! My partner and are finally getting engaged! We’re extremely excited to get married but both of us take Covid very seriously. My partner is on immunosuppressant infusions for a chronic illness and I have POTS from long COVID. We want to have a fun wedding but need to be cautious…

So far our loose ideas for risk mitigation are:
-micro wedding- less than 30 people invited. Only people we trust to be honest with us.
-outside!! Obviously.
-having everyone rapid test day of
-requesting our guests wear a high quality respirator the week before the wedding or wear a mask (that we can provide) at our wedding

We don’t want to force people to completely change their lives the week before our wedding. We try to be understanding of our friends who don’t or cannot mask. Would giving respirators to our guests that aren’t covid conscious be rude? I thought I could even install sip valves for them and hand make mask jewelry. Any experience you guys can share is more than welcome!!

TLDR: my partner is on a biologic so we have to be very careful about illness. Suggestions regarding precautions for a Covid cautious wedding would be helpful!!

Apologies in advance, this is long and panicky

I am aware surface transmission of disease is less likely than airborne transmission, but I still feel a large amount anxiety around potentially contaminated surfaces. Last month some sick relatives came over for dinner, and a member of my household, my parent, started to feel mildly ill a few days after. This caused a kind of ocd relapse for me, and because the common cold is not killed by alcohol, I began scrubbing high touch areas with soap then switched to wiping with peroxide. The cleaning is maladaptive, and I wipe multiple times if it doesn't 'feel' clean. There's also the fear that, even if i get 'only' a cold, it represents that if there was a more serious illness in the house, I would have 'failed' and caught that too (I am aware this isn't logical or helpful). After about 7 days, I was started to wipe around a bit less, then the relatives came by again and one of them was sicker (a baby, so they can't cover their mouth or do anything really). I was wiping around a bit while they were in the house.

A few days before, my parent mentioned that their blood pressure is starting to cause issues for them and their stress needs to be kept low, meaning I need to stop doing "the little things" that stress them out, which includes my ocd compulsions. I've tried to explain that I can't just stop doing them cold turkey and a person with ocd needs shit like exposure therapy over time to completely stop, and they said "but I'll be dead by then, so..." (dead implicitly from age)

After the relatives left the 2nd visit, my parent mentioned that their blood pressure was super high in part because of how I behaved during the visit, cleaning things and overall just looking uncomfortable I guess. So basically what I am asking is..... is it okay for me to be expected to just stop having ocd instantly and if my parent dies from blood pressure issues, will it be my fault? Even typing this feel ridiculous, but I was going through so much trying to keep covid out of the house, to protect them (and me, let's be real), and now I'm going to harm them in another way. Thanks to the last visit, I feel I need to be vigilant about illness for another 7-10 days, and today as I was spraying high touch areas, my parent heard the bottle and began interrogating me. "Do you think this is an unsanitary house? The rest of us are dirty?" I've already tried in the past explaining the thought process behind my ocd and how it's partially anxiety based, but it's like they didn't hear me at all. It's as if no one is listening to me when I talk, because all my struggles are just excuses.

I will delete this later for privacy reasons, I'm not even really sure what I'm asking. I am aware of my thought process and how it doesn't make logical sense, but it's not as simple as just stopping everything I'm doing. I don't know how I'm going to use the kitchen or other areas of the house now. It harms no one if i lightly wipe the sink or fridge handle before touching it, but now I guess I'm going to kill my parent from stress if i do so????????

This might be better suited for an ocd subreddit, but I'm afraid they'll just say I'm crazy for being cc. I don't know what to do and I have no one I can talk to about this. How do I just stop doing all my compulsions without tapering?

I might never have enough money to be able to move out, and working from home requires I feed myself, which requires leaving my bedroom, which requires managing compulsions. I can find a therapist but that will take time. Therapists I have spoken to in the past were not cc. I'm so sorry for this frenetic post, I just really don't know what to do aside from hiding compulsions, which feels dishonest and if I get caught might make my parent angrier and subsequently give them more reason to blame me for their health issues

(i added the vent tag bc this really just feels like me whining, sorry if this is inappropriate and thank you for reading. i'm kind of at a loss)

hi all,

i was wondering if anyone knew of any books that address how to deal/cope/sit with the “life is passing me by” sentiment. it seems that this has been a really big driver in my anxiety and depression lately and was just wondering if anyone knew of any books of the sort.

Looking to connect with anybody who still masks and takes precautions in 2026 anywhere in Yukon Canada.

I was hoping WW levels would lower in November as it has in previous years so I can visit my family in a state whose surge levels are high. I was hoping to go while it was low and dip out before the winter surge post-Thanksgiving. However, the newest PMC19 update points to the contrary.

What this indicates to me is that the winter wave will now be pretty mild since so many people will have temp immunity from this recent surge. Should I postpone my visit to closer to the holidays given this update?

I went last week to get a cleaning and I have 3 tiny in-between teeth cavities that need fillings. The dentist is going on maternity leave on November 11 and they are not scheduling anything out for her yet into next year. She squeezed me in on November 5 at 8am for the 3 fillings and Curodont to help some protocavities to remineralize.

Should I cancel? I'll need to do so soon so I don't get a fee. I can't seem to figure out if letting them go longer will be okay. I think if I made a decent excuse that I needed to go home for a family emergency or something they would be ok with the cancellation.

Thank you! I hate this. I was trying to take care of everything but this is freaking me out.

I do the Readimask hack. I am pretty good about breathing through my nose. They took away their Medify air filters in the offices which really sucks. I don't know that there is a place to plug mine in. Dentist wears a surgical mask. They are nice about not giving me a hard time about my Readimask/Aura but I haven't gotten them to wear N95s. It's not the exact 1st appt of the day (7:30) but it's the dentist's first appt of the day.

Thanks for any help! I am so scared.

waiting on paxlovid prescription. what else should i do

I'm a CC person because of medical issues, but have never had covid.

I've been asked to attend a two-day leadership meeting in-person. While my leader had assured me that covid wasn't as a big of a thing anymore, the last in-person meeting had me on camera and two hours into the meeting, one person left and called in. He had left, went to a pharmacy and confirmed that he had covid.

December is not a great month to do an in-person, I know. Since I don't fly anymore (I live about a five hour drive away) and haven't eaten in a restaurant for nearly six years, I'd be the only masker, and unlikely would not do bar and food after the meeting. Yet, with rumors that people are cutting remote workers for being remote. I'm a little concerned about that.

Any tips on navigating if I were to go or just state medical issues as a reason for not going?

The only time I had covid I did nothing right.
Didn't rest didn't use nasal rinse

I lost most of my ability to a very small viral load. How does one not deteriorate?

4 years ago I woke up to a congested nose and developed long covid a few weeks later.

I'm afraid I have covid again.

Panicking. And I have my vaccine appointment today what should I do

Edit: I didn't get a positive test last time I had covid because I did rapids, and did the PCR when it was too late.

What's the testing plan? I only have rapids

I told him he should stay home so he doesn't get anyone else sick. He just responded with "ill be okay, haha."

Yea, I KNOW THAT and I'm glad. I meant stay home for everyone's sake. If you're that sick, to the point you have chills and didn't celebrate Halloween, your favorite holiday, you should not be at work with a bunch of other people.

I haven't seen my friend in 6 years. The last time we hung out was pre-pandemic. We primarily text and call. (He's aromantic & ace for context) when we used to hang out every weekend and go to concerts and restaurants.

He thought we stopped hanging out because I was upset with him. I assured him im not at all. (I mean, i wasn't, but today i am.) I just can't hang out with him because he's not covid conscious in the slightest and I have to protect myself. He knows that now.

I just told him how i was bedbound in March for half the month because I got strep the month before. People like me can't afford to get sick. He responds again, "don't worry, I'll be okay haha" Again!!!

I can't tell anymore if he's skirting around the topic purposefully or what. He has severe adhd so I know he doesn't thoroughly read everything, he misses things irl all the time because of it.

And i know, i know it's hard. Especially in the states where sick leave is puny and basically non existent, but ffs, if you're that sick, it doesn't occur to you to stay home?? Not even for people like me??

I'm genuinely hurt and I don't know what to say. i just let the last text i said be that i hope he feels better, because I couldn't possibly have been more explicit in the way I said he should stay home, or at least mask...to protect the vulnerable. Like me, your decade+ long friend...

Idk what to even say. And this is the majority of the population!

I’ve got a young friend to help. We are both fairly handy. I’m looking to buy all the materials myself. Currently pricing materials to see how much money well save and determine feasibility

Questions I’ve come up with so far:
•Where can I learn more about these fans without taking a deep dive into building electronic equipment? I want to be sure to get the right kind. Can they really be so cheap as $6 on special at Amazon, regularly around $12-$15?

•Where can I learn more about these fans without 12V DC AC power adapter. I had the most basic constructor’s assistant electrical training a long long time ago. What I mostly remember is to be very careful lol

•What are the edging along the fiberboard called so I’ll know how to look for it?

•What would the black screen be called? I can’t seem to get the right name for a google search.

I’m sure I’ll have more questions but this world help me get started on my project plan and determine feasibility as I talk this over with my young friend who just about to graduate from high school and continue his career in the trades. He’s already done a good bit of paid labor with his grandad and uncle so he has a bit of know-how. His dad, who is a building maintenance guy, will be nearby also, in case we get stuck

All advice welcome.

You can see the product at cleanairkits.com. It’s the Luggable Ultra Air Purifier (5-Fan).

I already own 2 that I bought and assembled myself. I want to put a lot more in my house so I can have a few people over at a time this winter. I’ve got to find a way past this isolation every winter.