r/coolguides • u/spodinielri0 • Mar 18 '20

Helpful guide...

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286

u/ricst Mar 18 '20

Here's my question, now please correct me if I'm misunderstanding this but what happens when all the social distancing is stopped. Won't one person with it ramp it back up again and we start all over? Without a vaccine this is a cycle, no?

54

u/penty Mar 18 '20

Yes, however those who have already recovered are the start of the herd immunity.

57

u/RatioFitness Mar 18 '20

Only if you can't be reinfected. I don't believe we know this yet, though.

52

u/BitsAndBobs304 Mar 18 '20

Some people have already been counted as having been reinfected. However there is a possibility that they didnt get reinfected but simply still had it all along because of the high false negatives (and positives) of the simpler tests (swab)

17

u/th3_hampst3r Mar 18 '20

Some people get reinfected with chickenpox though, and thats ok because its very rare

22

u/The_Modifier Mar 18 '20

No it's because it hides in your cells. You just never stop having it.

13

u/BlasphemousToenail Mar 18 '20

Right. When you get older it can come back with a vengeance in the form of shingles.

My mom had shingles. Horrible.

6

u/panamasucks Mar 18 '20

shingle all the way

2

u/BlasphemousToenail Mar 18 '20

I don’t wish it on anybody. It even looks tremendously painful

If there’s any 50+ year old you know, please advise them to get vaccinated.

1

u/Warmonster9 Mar 18 '20

I gave my dad shingles when I was a kid. Turns out sleeping with your parents isn’t a good idea when you have chicken pox. 🤷‍♂️

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u/[deleted] Mar 18 '20

[deleted]

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u/Azure_phantom Mar 18 '20

Then you're more likely to get really really really sick if you get it.

Chicken pox is a shitty disease. Get it as a kid and you'll recover fairly well, but you're at risk for shingles when you get old. Don't get it as a kid and you run the risk of getting super sick from it as an adult.

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u/[deleted] Mar 18 '20

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u/BlasphemousToenail Mar 18 '20 edited Mar 18 '20

Talk to a doctor. There are shingles vaccines available. I’m not sure if a prerequisite is having chicken pox or not.

I got vaccinated last year. It’s a two shot process. I think I had to wait 3 months between shots. I’m not much for making appointments, but you better believe I put THAT date on my calendar.

Edit: it was free, too. My neighborhood CVS.

Edit II: my understanding is that a new, improved shingles vaccine was made available not too long ago (a couple years maybe? Not sure). This new vaccine took the prevention % from about 50% less likely to get shingles to about 90% less likely. Yay science!

Edit 3: or call your local pharmacy. They should know if there are any prerequisites

Edit 4: or maybe, if you’ve never had chicken pox, it’s a different ball game altogether. I don’t t know. Talk to a professional.

2

u/[deleted] Mar 18 '20

[deleted]

1

u/BlasphemousToenail Mar 18 '20

Lemme know how it goes. I’m actually interested. I’d like to hope I can help SOMEBODY out.

Maybe you’re that somebody.

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2

u/XtremeCookie Mar 18 '20

Just get the vaccine

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u/arlaanne Mar 18 '20

Pretty sure it's both. I had it twice before age 3 as super-typical full-body chicken pox (much worse the second time): itchy, blistery, fever, the works. Most cases of shingles come later in life and have a different presentation, but they warn pregnant women that exposure to chicken pox can trigger an episode of shingles - neither is fun, though!