UPDATED: Got the dreaded call from the county health department yesterday afternoon.

[MontanaMama]

Last edited Fri Aug 27, 2021, 11:35 AM - Edit history (2)

My 16 year old son was listed as a close contact to a person diagnosed with Covid. He was apparently exposed last Thursday. He worked all day at Ace Hardware that day and went out for ice cream with some fellow employees afterwards. He’s fully vaxxed and has no symptoms. The health department guy told me we would need to provide proof of vaccination (which I did) and have no symptoms through day 7 (that’s today) and he would be permitted to go to work if he tested negative. We’re waiting for the health department to call today to tell us where and when he can be tested…they are reportedly really backed up.

So last night my son told me that his posse of friends was getting together to watch movies and one of their homes. He said “I know I can’t go…I’m just disappointed and I’m really sick of this BS.” Then, I heard him call his best pal to tell him what was going on. He said “No, I’m not feeling sick but I don’t want to be the guy that gets one of my friends sick.” It made me proud that he gets it and wants to do the right thing. It also pisses me off because we didn’t have to be here. Antivaxxers continue their reign of terror on the good people around them.

I know we are all suffering but as a mama, my kiddo is my primary focus. I am weary of hearing that kids are resilient, they’ll get through this just fine. This is hard on young people…they don’t yet have the ability to see these months and years of Covid in the context of a long lifetime. They’re present in this moment and this moment sucks for them.

UPDATE: Day 8 after my son’s Covid exposure and he’s doing just fine. I think we’re on the upswing from this event. We still haven’t been contacted by the health department as far as getting him tested and released to work. That may happen yet today…who knows. I’ve talked with them 3 times and keep getting conflicting information regarding protocols for this.

We did get some very good news…the little Ace Hardware store where my kiddo works is paying him (and the others who were exposed) while they stay home and wait for the health department to give him the green light to go back to work. Isn’t that great?

He starts school on Tuesday so fingers crossed he will be able to do that. 🤞

[hlthe2b]

1. The reassurance on kids pre-Delta and even pre-Alpha variants was totally cringe-inducing

While true then, I KNEW it was going to come back to bite us hard as a cardinal rule in risk communication is to NEVER be adamant about a finding that likely would not persist.

Sigh...

I hope your son remains well.

[3catwoman3]

2. You have obviously raised a fine young man.

Kudos to you and to him.

[SheltieLover]

4. +1

[hamsterjill]

5. Another +1

You should be most proud!!!! Please keep us posted on him, and sending love and light to you both.

[Harker]

9. +33 more!

The understanding of long term effects vs. short term gratification is a good sign of maturity and empathy.

[momta]

11. Agreed.

He sounds like a real winner. I'm sure you're very proud of him, as you should be.

[smirkymonkey]

27. Yes, I was going to say the same thing.

What a mature and thoughtful young man. Someone to be proud of.

[calimary]

45. Totally! Very wise young man!

Job well done!

[Hassin Bin Sober]

48. Agreed!

[Bluethroughu]

3. Great job conveying the pandemic responsibility,

And he following through on his own!


I hope he is unscathed by this virus.

Stay safe.

[Leith]

6. Best wishes to you and your family

I hope that your son tests negative. He sounds like a truly good and thoughtful young man, due in no small part to your upbringing.

[SWBTATTReg]

7. Your 16 year old son is a heck of a kid, and far more responsible than the ...

500,000 people that went to Sturgis (the motorcycle event in South Dakota) still, despite the risk of spreading COVID even more to their fellow Americans, friends, neighbors, and family.

We're all wanting the ability to meet and greet, etc., without any restrictions, but now is not a good time. Obviously a lot of people in this Country are nothing but greedy, selfish, self-centered, and ignorant.

[louslobbs]

8. It is hard on young people. You have done a great

job raising your son. He has the natural upset and frustrations, but you have raised him to use his critical thinking skills to reason and tamp down emotions. It has not been easy for any of us, but I can’t imagine what it’s been like for the young people. What must they be thinking, watching the adults ignore science and using politics to stay in power, while prolonging a deadly pandemic. A pandemic that your son has probably already figured out, could have been slowed down substantially had it not been politicized. What were the simple, scientifically proven things that could have been implemented to slow this virus down and prevent deadly variations? When we didn’t have a vaccine yet, it should have been simple. Wear a mask, social distance, wash hands, contact tracing, and if you think you had been exposed, quarantine. How hard would this have been? Your son knows all of this and has a right to be angry and frustrated. Thank you MontanaMama, for raising a kid who is part of the solution, rather than being part of the problem. I hope everything works out.

[LymphocyteLover]

10. Good job!

[Jon King]

12. We also have a 16 year old, I hate what the anti-vax jerks have done to kid's lives.

And it pisses us off that the utterly stupid acts of the MAGATs have caused this to linger for another year.

All these idiots had to do was take the freakin shot that their god former President magically invented all by himself. Had they just all gotten the shot, our kids would be leading pretty normal lives right now.

[MontanaMama]

14. I agree wholeheartedly.

Had they just gotten the shot and worn a friggin’ mask. Such a small price to pay to make sure our kids had a chance to go to school and lead as normal a life as possible. I wouldn’t doubt we are again headed back to remote learning…my son is a good student but he really struggled with the loneliness of being home with no in-person contact with friends. He’s an only child so that contributes to the isolation. We had lots of tears of anger and frustration during lock down…both his and mine.

Best wishes to your kiddo.

[Jon King]

22. Thanks, best wishes back to you.

Yes, it is very, very tough to go through ages 15-16 with the isolation. The anger now is that we all did everything right, yet our kids continue to struggle thanks to the actions of these right wingers.

[totodeinhere]

13. Thank God your son has not had any symptoms. And thankfully your family is

responsible and fully vaccinated.

[MontanaMama]

16. Yes. Thank you.

I scheduled his shot for the day after his 16th birthday. His group of close friends is fully vaccinated as well. His best friend has a tRumper for a mother and she wouldn’t allow her child to be vaxxed…the kid’s dad got him the shot on the sly. My son said to me “Mama, Oscar’s dad got him vaccinated so if you run into his mom, don’t say anything.” Some parents…

[secondwind]

15. You've obviously done a good job raising your boy.

Well said, mama.

[yardwork]

17. This has been incredibly hard on young people.

Psychiatrists and pediatricians I know confirm that mental health issues among children and youth - especially anxiety and depression - have skyrocketed during COVID. You're a good mom to be looking out for your son, and it sounds like he's doing the best he can.

Yes, young people are resilient. And yes, this is extremely difficult for them. Both are true and anyone downplaying the impact just isn't informed.

I'm convinced that most of the COVID deniers, anti-vaxxers, anti-maskers are actually scared to death. They're terrified and don't have the resiliency to handle this, so they've dived into denial and anger.

Your son sounds like a great young man with a bright future.

[Marthe48]

18. My older daughter

has been an adult many years, but I still worry. She lives in a blue state. Her employer had them work from home until July of this year, and now most employees have to spend 50% of their work time in the office, nonvaxxed had to mask and there is a thermometer in the entry of her dept. Two weeks ago, the company mandated that employees have to mask if away from their desks regardless of vax status. This week, she was working and one of the other employees came in coughing, sneezing, snorting and maybe no mask. My daughter asked permission to leave, go home and work the rest of the day from home, and said why and who. She got to go home and work from there. As she was leaving, she had to pass by the symptomatic guy and someone he was talking to, no masks, and not at their desks. One of her coworkers was in front of her, and one of the a**es made a comment about the mask. The coworker said, "That's the rule now."

My daughter works well on her own and proved the last year that her physical presence in the office isn't necessary. I hope this incident sways management to let people opt out of coming in to work.

[MLAA]

19. Now that is a smart, compassionate young man. He is a leader. 💖💗

You have every right to be proud!

[sdfernando]

20. All I'm going to say is: Momma, you done good! /NT

[SunSeeker]

21. Same thing happened to my vaxxed 17 year old.

Thankfully, we are all vaxxed, but a few of his friends aren't.

[Moebym]

23. "Kids are resilient, they'll get through this just fine"

Is such a cop-out...

[MontanaMama]

30. Right?

I think that some people say that about kids to make themselves feel better. Kids may be resilient…but I’ve witnessed a lot of fear and loneliness in my own child throughout this pandemic…I know he’s not the only kiddo with those feelings.

[Niagara]

24. Please let your son know that we're thinking about him.

And wishing him excellent health as always. To be honest, we're all sick of this BS, it's been difficult for many people.



Hang in there!

[JCMach1]

25. There is no quarantine in TX schools... I have had 3 direct Covid

Contact notifications over the last week for my 11yo. Over that time, he developed a throat infection. Negative for Covid on 2 tests thank goodness.

Fortunately, he had a mild case last Fall and religiously wears his kn95.

But yeah, the fatigue is real. It is literally at least one direct contact case every day.

[MontanaMama]

31. Oh my gosh.

I can’t imagine!! You and your kiddo are in my thoughts…I wish you both continued good health through this nightmare.

[JCMach1]

34. Thanks, it is a nightmare here in TX right now...

[Wounded Bear]

26. Doing the right thing is hard sometimes...

well, most times.

But: for you and yours.

[Deep State Witch]

28. Monoclonal Antibodies

He needs to get that monoclonal antibody treatment that Rachel talks about ASAP! It saves lives (unlike, say, ivermectin or whatever other bullshit FOX News is pushing.)

[MontanaMama]

35. He's not sick.

We were just notified that he was in close contact of someone who was sick.

[Deep State Witch]

40. That's good to hear!

n/t

[2Gingersnaps]

29. I had a sweet little retirement job, hard work, but no responsibility, no pressure.......

it was in a trendy little brunch bistro, campus area of my city. We finally had to shut down because we could not keep staff, people refused to comply with restrictions, the last straw was when the whole front of the house contracted Covid at once, including the owner. I was only one not adversely effected. I can live on my retirement, owner lost a business, not a great employment market for the rest of the staff, most of which were students from the campus making ends meet.

I still do what I need to do to be a responsible citizen. It is a year and a half in, but if this had been handled responsibly the first year it would be over. If it had been nipped in the bud early on, it could not have evolved. We will live for years with this because of stupidity.

[MontanaMama]

37. Yes.

We will indeed live for years with this virus…if not forever. All anyone had to do was do right by their neighbor and millions couldn’t handle even that. As usual, kids always pay the price for the stupidly and willful ignorance of adults.

[Demovictory9]

32. K&r

[Jarqui]

33. My kids were being really good about Covid

After a lot of time passed, I eventually probed ...
"We're just trying to protect our parents ..."

[MontanaMama]

36. Isn't that lovely that they want to protect you?

I wish we could bottle that empathy and give it the masses.

[Jarqui]

41. I've seen great people have brats for kids

and excellent kids that have terrible parents.

One dear friend had identical twins. Both got the same upbringing, schooling, support, etc. One twin became a fine person like his parents. The other twin was a complete jerk.

We've done our best to help but there's no doubt we've been blessed with some good fortune.

We're about to be grandparents. Hopefully, they pass it on.

[trof]

38. Wow, your state is actually doing contact tracing.

Alabama never even tried.
We suck now, even more than ever.

[MontanaMama]

42. At least our county does contact tracing.

I live in a blue county in a red state. I think they’ve done a fabulous job. I want to support them and do the right thing…not to mention the modeling for my kiddo.

[bdamomma]

39. Your

son gets it. It's a sacrifice for all of us, but it does not help those who want to die than to vaccinate. Crap. you can't fix stupid.

[MontanaMama]

43. No. There's no fixing stupid.

And, I’m so goddamn mad at antivaxxers who put us in this place.

[riversedge]

44. You have a fine son. And I would be proud of him if he were in my family. It sucks for so

many of us. I care for my elderly mother. I thought I would have some fun time this summer but am surrounded by a bunch of selfish fools. My neighbor runs around on weekends with a trump flag on his truck. Many good people in this small town were I had to move to care for her but the selfish ones ruin it for the rest of us.

[MontanaMama]

47. Caring for an elderly parent can be brutal.

And you had to move too? That’s doubly hard. I did it for both my folks before they died. I swear you’re right…it’s the selfish few that keep us from having nice things.

[GB_RN]

46. Good On Your Kid!

Hate it for him, but good on him!