No vaccine, no visits

Hi everyone, my husband has ET an unfortunately several close family members of his have not been vaccinated. We’ve also told them that they can’t come and visit us. I feel particularly angry towards my step son as he is strongly antivax. It means that my husband has not seen his grandchildren for 2 years. Kirsteen

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That’s really tough @Kirsteen and must make a difficult time for you both even harder :disappointed:

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Hi @Norwich, yes, we have Sainsburys deliveries and they know someone is isolating/shielding and they wear masks, stand back from the doorway for my husband to unload and I am hidden in the kitchen.
@Rolande, @Nichola75, @Fullofbeans, @summer123, @Mandi713, @Ismo, @Kirsteen we have had the boiler serviced and the plumber sorting something out, but they have worn masks and gloves and I am shut away in another room and my husband has dealt with them.
But the relatives thing is certainly a dilemma that I do not fancy dealing with.

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Ha ha, @summer123 (or should I say, Nurse Ratchett?) - I like your husband’s sense of humour! A great film, that. I must watch it again - and I think there is a Netflix series about nursey herself (but I daren’t watch it, as the original film was so good.)
Interesting that your family in Sweden have such a different outlook - I suppose it matches the Swedish govt’s outlook: Let the virus run its course. I wonder how blood cancer patients in Sweden feel?!? And yes - phew indeed, to them deciding not to visit!
The two people I know who are very anti-vaxx and other covid measures, are British people who’ve been living (separately) in Australia. Australia has put in some very hefty covid measures. Perhaps British people take a ‘foreign’ govt less seriously, and see it as more authoritarian? However, one has now returned to Britain and is still very aggressively against state intervention, so perhaps it’s just personalities. Or they are seekers of great amounts of ‘freedom’, which perhaps the Australian lifestyle seemed to offer, until covid? Or merely that they don’t suffer from immunosuppression or a serious underlying health condition, and are utterly selfish? I don’t know. I’d hoped it wasn’t the latter, but I suspect it is.

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Oh that’s really sad, @Kirsteen. I’m sorry you’ve both been deprived of grandchildren, and other close family members. You’d think they’d get the vaccine for your husband’s sake. That does say a lot about how entrenched people’s views are - I haven’t heard of many people changing their minds about vaccines either way.

Unfortunately though, a lot of anti-vaxx sentiment is based upon fake news. And we had this problem recently with another big issue. What we need is for the world to address the proliferation of lies on social media - but that’s not going to happen in the immediate future, sadly.

I hope you have other close family who are vaccinated, who bring plenty of love into your life.

All the best.

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Thanks for your kind words @Fullofbeans and @Nichola75. Fortunately we have an adult son who lives with us and is very supportive. Like many of you I think that people who don’t have the vaccine especially when they have close family members who are immunosuppressed are selfish.

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I’d keep away from such people!Apart from anti vax they are likely to believe nonsense like that we never went to the Moon,5G and the Earth is flat!

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yes to some extent antivaxers can often entertain other odd beliefs but what amazes me is a couple of academic colleagues who preach sound research principles to students but themselves begin with a premise and search only for evidence which supports that premise never considering evidence objectively. It is clearly an emotional response not a rational one. Occasionally it is also a political response which is the risk in Germany where the unvaccinated are to be excluded from most public spaces except pharmacies and food shops. This will cause an AFD inspired right wing reaction which will hopefully be limited, however fear is a great motivator, even my nephew who claimed to be too young to be worried about Covid took himself off to the vaccination centre in Leipzig yesterday to the great relief of my sister.

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I had the very problem only the other week. My step granddaughter coming over from Ireland for a visit wanted to catch up with everyone, she is anti vaccine and can’t be pursuaded otherwise. It also left her step father with a dilemma as his second wife has grandchildren who are immune compromised, whom they help out with.
In the end a she and her stepfather stayed a few days on their own. He bought her up to us where we met her in an cafe/restaurant which had covered outside seating, we had all taken lateral flow tests before meeting. Her stepfather then took her to stay with her sister while he went home and isolated for a few days before taking another lateral flow test, his wife who had been staying in a hotel then came home! As it happens all went well but we made sure she knew to what lengths we all went through to accommodate her!
I have also my husbands brother and wife who are unvaccinated, he has Chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL)! My sister in law also told me that she hadn’t been wearing a mask!!
Also a niece and her husband, whom fortunately I don’t see, in Scotland, unvaccinated.
The thing is we are going to come across people who aren’t vaccinated without knowing it. I don’t want to hide myself away…for how long?
I don’t agree with them, think they are being selfish but respect their right to make the decision.
I’m just being careful and doing what I feel comfortable with and still meeting people but in airy places. I won’t do anything where I can’t control the space between me and others.

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Hi @AnnDwhat dilemmas for you both and all, I don’t envy you.
I so agree with your last two paragraphs.
Keep on with what you feel comfortable with and stay safe

That must be so difficult for you all but you have to do what you need to to keep safe X

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I’m ok thank you. Just had chemo increased again today.
Not seen my family over Christmas…but spring is around the corner!

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@Rolande I haven’t been able to see my son over Christmas either.
I hope the increased chemo helps.
Yes, spring is just round the corner, I look forward to the lighter evenings.
Look after yourself and please keep posting.

I can’t wait for the lighter nights and warmer sunshine. Must have been very hard not seeing your family. I hope that changes soon!

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Just read through all this thread and found it very interesting. I haven’t come across any anti vaxers but my daughters boyfriend is needle phobic and so has not yet been vaccinated. He is also shy and keeps away from most people but we haven’t met him yet as he is concerned about me. He is hoping for a nasal spray/tablet form which is being researched but is still a long way off.

I have kept away from most people and my friends have been great at understanding me. My father is 93 but doesn’t understand i am more vulnerable than he is and does take more risks than I do. I try to keep my distance when we go to him but it is difficult.

All the best to you all.

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