LZ Sunday Paper Newsletter: The "Testing: 1,2,3" Edition
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Be you positive or negative in any regard, dear Readers and Subscribers, this week's edition is for you.
We've all been reading about the various Covid-19 tests which screen for the live virus in people who are infected, whether they are symptomatic or not. I am not going to talk about those tests.
I'm going to bring you up to speed on the saga of the virus *antibody* tests. These are the tests which should show whether or not your body has created antibodies in response to you having had the virus.
I don't normally share my, or anyone else's, health status publicly. But in the interest of trying to make sense of the information and resources out there, of helping to build a data base, and--if we tested positive-- the possibility of donating plasma to those who are suffering from the virus itself, and out of sheer curiosity, my family and I all took the antibody tests. We got surprising results.
To bring you up to speed:
We are a family of 5.
Our daughter had symptoms of Covid19 in mid/early march, right *before* lockdown. She had direct exposure at work (inadvertently) to a co-worker who later tested positive for coronavirus. Our daughter's symptoms were on the mild side, relatively. She had a slightly elevated temperature, headache, sore throat, felt crappy. She's young and otherwise healthy, the hospitals were already recognized as deadly, and the tests were in short supply. So our doctors advised her not to go out to get a Covid-19 virus test, which was the right advice at the time. The fever went away, the symptoms subsided a bit. A couple of days later she lost her taste and smell --completely-- for a week. So while she didn't get the test, it sure seems like she had the virus.
Our younger son, who also lives with us, had much milder symptoms. Very slightly elevated temperature, short duration of just not feeling great for a couple of days.
I also had mild symptoms, but they manifested differently and arrived later. A raging, massive headache, different from anything I've had in my life. A sore throat. But no fever. Yes, felt real crappy. It was kind of intense for about five days.
My husband was generally asymptomatic.
Our other daughter, who lives around the corner but was in our "bubble," meaning she did come over to our apartment during that time, was also asymptomatic.
We wiped down surfaces and washed hands frequently. On the other hand, we shared meals and doorknobs and tv remotes and petted the same cat. As another data point, the two kids who had the symptoms, though remember one seriously and one hardly at all, share a bathroom.
SOOOOO….the tests…Round 1:
We all took the Covid-19 Antibody test at a walk-in medical clinic. We all got the results back:
Our daughter-- who we sure think had Covid19-- tested NEGATIVE.
Our son-- with the few-to-very-mild symptoms-- tested POSITIVE
Me-- more symptoms than him, for longer-- NEGATIVE
My asymptomatic husband-- NEGATIVE
Our other, also completely asymptomatic daughter who, btw, is the only one to go out of the house several times a day because she has a dog-- NEGATIVE.
Because of the relative incidence of false positives and some slim-to-possible chance of, but unlikely scenario of false negatives, some of us got tested again. A different lab, a different test. Our Covid-y daughter is waiting to get tested again because it takes different people different amounts of time to create antibodies so, still under quarantine/lockdown, she is waiting…Stay Tuned
Our few-to-very-mild symptoms son tested POSITIVE--AGAIN
Me-- NEGATIVE AGAIN
My husband-- NEGATIVE AGAIN
Our other, completely asymptomatic daughter -- not going to test again for a while-- it seems very unlikely that she had Covid-19 in the first place.
Quite confounding all around. For me it really brings to light that statistics, especially at the beginning of the data collection period, are far from reliable, to say the least. In our case, imagine that our daughter actually didn't have Covid19. Maybe she had some other disease with all the symptoms of Covid. So extrapolating all the data where we now say "likely Covid" deaths or infections-- maybe that number is far lower? Or is it that the data surrounding the creation of antibodies is wrong? That seems unlikely, since so many viruses have been studied and the anti-body theories are well tested.
The bottom line seems to be that known economic devastation of tens of millions, as well as the desire for people to get their hair cut and go to the beach, trumps a few scores of thousands of deaths and some much greater number of people affected by illness. I think much of this has to do with the unreliability of the data itself and the distinctly confusing and polarizing way it has been both reported and received. But that's maybe just me being all…negative.
Positively, do send me articles, photos, or videos you think I need to see right here.
So that, every week, I have the best and most interesting articles about women and how they're affected by the coronavirus pandemic, and how we are continuing to fare in politics, business, the arts, and pop culture.
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Happy pre-Memorial Day week, the unofficial start to unlocking lockdown!
Oh, and if it's the end of May, it means that the NYState Primary is coming up soon. New Yorkers, request your absentee ballot here-- June, THANK YOU for reminding me to spread the word, not the virus, by voting absentee. (Yes, the primary is in June and the person who sent me the link is named June). Anyway, for the first time, the definition of "temporary illness," which is a condition to cast an absentee vote, has been expanded to include the effects of Covid-19! So check that box and get your ballot!
LZ
THE PIC(K) OF THE WEEK:
51 Faces Of American Healthcare Right Now via Allure
COVID-19:
A Double Pandemic: Domestic Violence In The Age Of Covid-19 via The Council On Foreign Relations
We're All Typhoid Mary Now via Newsweek (paywall)
POLITICS:
"Believe Women" Was A Slogan. "Believe All Women" Is A Straw Man. via The Washington Post
Who Can Say 'No' To Cuomo? His Top Aide, Melissa DeRosa via The New York Times
Podcast: The Most Powerful Woman In America via The Gist via Slate
How Representative Katie Porter--Congress' Only Single Mom--Is Making It Work In Quarantine via Glamour
Tara Reade, Megyn Kelly, and The Politics Of Believability via The New Yorker
BUSINESS:
Anita Hill: Why A Safe Working Environment Also Includes Protections Agains Abuses via Variety
History Professor Examines Unemployment Among Women During Pandemic via Auburn University
CAMPUS CLIMATE:
F*ck The Bread. The Bread Is Over. via The Paris Review
ARTS & POP CULTURE:
My Life Was Turned Into A Movie. Here's What Hollywood Left Out. via Slate
Corona-Canceled Weddings Are Changing Women's Pregnancy Plans via Glamour
The Board Game That Turns Feminism Into A Joke: I Played Monopoly So You Don't Have To via The Atlantic
A Woman's Wit: Jane Austen's Life and Legacy via The Morgan Library
AND WHAT'S NOT TO LOVE ABOUT…?
You Can Now Watch A 1949 Documentary About Dior Online (For Free) via AnOther
The LZ Sunday Paperâ„¢ launched at the dawn of 2014. We expose and recirculate interesting content that is about, and frequently by, women in business, with a dose of ultra-relevant culture. We think that culture comes high and low, not much in between. Our audience is vast and not gender-driven. Every week we expect to deliver at least one good laugh. Send suggestions, clips, or names of people you think might enjoy this to LZSundayPaper@gmail.com.
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