I have just received a letter from the hospital dated the 30th April.
It says to shield for twelve weeks from today! What? Another 12 weeks. To be honest it is not at all unexpected. The reality is that there are about 66 million people in this country and if you look at Dr John's estimate that 2.5 million people have been infected so far, there is still an awful long way to go for this virus to run it's course.
I have had the same letter from my Consultant in Birmingham also saying to shield for 12 weeks from date of letter / or from day received. I suppose it makes sense if you have crap lungs like mine. Another 12 weeks from today would take us up to 27th July.
Thanks for the confirmation. I did wonder if it was a mistake at first, given that the first twelve weeks has not expired yet.
I wondered if it was a mix up with dates then realised it could be because my next appointment is on 3rd July, it did also say that all appointments have been cancelled for foreseeable future.
I'm relieved if that's the case for us in Wales also. I was getting anxious about them making plans to lift the lockdown. There's so many reasons I would love the lockdown to be lifted for so many people that want it lifted but for me personally it feels like a safety blanket xxx
Thank you for posting this 😘👍 xxx
Perhaps many more of us will be getting this letter and, as you say, it really is no surprise. I could quite envisage it being extended again beyond July.
I was part way through an extensive course of dental treatment when the shielding began. My dental practice rang me last week to say that they don't exlect to be seeing any patients before September.
Yes I was a third way through chemotherapy after cancer operation removing half my pancreas when they had to stop.
Worrying as won’t be able to restart.
I was on the initial lot of letters saying 12 weeks but 2 weeks ago received another saying 12 weeks from date of that one. ???
My NHS letter was just dated April 2greys, I got it about 2 weeks ago I think. The council letter was dated 14 April saying I will have been advised over past 2 weeks to avoid all face to face contact.
I've been doing it for 6 weeks already and I am going try for the next 6 weeks to make up the twelve then I can imagine I am gonna be tempted to go into town. Actually I think this is week 7 so past half way mark yay. 
Hi there, just to say that I received a letter end of March form my gp saying to stay home for 12 wks, and a goverment health dept letter too.
But today very strangely I recieved a letter from Guys and St Thomas (I am under chest consultant there) . It looked totally generic and basically almost a copy of the original shielding letter I got along with their policy on appointments etc. They advised me to stay home for 12weeks. I did note however, despite receiving it today 4th May this letter was dated 2nd April!
I think that the government, health department and our doctors can only advise us, the government in particular can only give a generic blanket advice. It is up to us to consider this advice in the light of our own specific situations and make our own informed decisions about how best to live our lives in these difficult times.
Im expecting it but feel I am getting a bit stir crazy as it is being inside all the time.I suppose I cant complain they are only looking after our health. However not keen on much more of what life there is left staying away from family and grandchildren.
From what I understand from rumours floating around the net the original shielding group is to be slightly expanded and as part of the easing of restrictions we are to placed on further lockdown for a further 12 weeks. Your letters add some credence to this story. Which in truth would not come as a suprise.
I haven't had a letter yet but I'm sure I'll get one. It doesn't surprise me.
Ahh, when I got my letter last week I assumed I was halfway through my 12 weeks and that they were just very slow sending it to me! The letter was dated 27th April, oh well , what's another 12 weeks when it comes to being safe & shielded.
I made a presumption, that for the very high risk group, they would want us to shield until there is a vaccine. Either that, or until our local hospital could cope with is needing urgent Covid-19 care. I think each individual has to work out how to build family visits into this, in reasonable safety, to avoid going nuts (or in my case even more nuts).
I think most know what the "R" number is. R 1 being one infected person infecting one other.
An R number of 0,01 would mean if you came into contact with 100 people then one of them would infect you. It really is not that hard to come into contact with 100 people in a week.
One night out in a busy pub alone could easily achieve that, when they are allowed to re-open. Can you imagine just how busy the pubs, the ones that survive, will be when they do open up again. It will be like letting cattle out into a field for the first time, after being locked up in the stalls all winter.
Just food for thought. The extremely vulnerable are going to be faced with some very hard decisions much later in the year, how low will that R figure need to be before it will be safe to go out once again. Nobody has actually worked that out yet. My thoughts are, not until there is an effective vaccine or have antibodies from a previous infection and tested as such.
God, what a prospect. What if we never get a vaccine ?
Me too ...also recently received the same letter. However we’ve had to venture out now and again to the shops for supplies. I go masked and gloved and hope for the best. We also get online deliveries from Sainsbury’s but need to top up the fresh food. The thought of another 12 weeks is tough but if we have to do it ..... hardest bit is not seeing my daughter and grandchildren who live 45 miles away. I miss them.
Truth!
As with everyone else, the hardest part for us is not seeing our children and grandchildren. I am resigned to staying home probably for a long time. At the beginning, I told myself that if John McCarthy and Brian Keenan could do 5 years in Beirut, some of it blindfolded and chained to a radiator, then we could do several months.
My main worry is that both my children are at severe risk of losing their livelihoods. My concerns are for them. As far as we are concerned, we are saving quite a lot of money!! Without modern technology it would be a very different story I think.
Hang in there everyone. We have come this far, just take it one day at a time, don’t think about how far we may still have to go.
I have 3 letters the first one is from the NHS dated March 21st saying to shield for 12 weeks. The second is from my local government dated April saying same thing and the third is from my GP dated 15th April saying same thing. so are we shielding until July?
That is how I see it, shielded until AT LEAST until the end of July. I fully expect that to be extend a few times after that as well. It is after all just advisory, you can do as you wish after the "lockdown" ends, but it will be a big risk if you "carry on as normal" until we get a vaccine.
It's best just to do our 12 weeks and see how the land lies when we get there. I've had hospital appointments cancelled some aren't yet ? One I didn't even know I had, and was turned into a telephone appointment out of the blue. You could say the world's gone bonkers😅.
I've not had anymore letters yet but won't rule it out. At least we're all safe.❤👍.
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I've had a text on 23rd March telling me to stay in for 12 weeks, five days later I received a letter telling me to stay in for 12 weeks from the date of the letter, I had another one from my GP surgery with the same advice and a strongly worded one from my consultant a couple of weeks ago telling me to stay in for 12 weeks from the date of that letter.
I also had a letter last week telling me that my outpatient appointment with my consultant would now be a telephone appointment. I was never given the appointment in the first place. However, I am more than happy to speak on the phone with the consultant tomorrow, although I am wondering how useful it will be given that I won't be weighed, have ecg, lung function test and he won't be able to listen to my chest. I will wait and see! xx Moy
I too have a telephone appointment, with my Oncologist, hard to see how that will go either. My lung cancer has never had any feeling or pain, my breathing is further compromised by what was suspected Covid, my loss of weight caused by suspected Covid as well. Without a scan to actually see what is going on inside my lungs I do not know what use it will be other than to check that I am alive and kicking still. Even a video call would not be of any benefit. We are living in crazy times.
I have a phone appointment for my final check after having had skin cancer. Should have been in February, but it was postponed as they were extremely busy. I postponed the one they gave me in March as the COVID was climbing. I was was then sent an appointment for 21 May. This has now become a phone appointment. Seeing as the melanoma was on my back, I can't get to look it myself properly, so I hoping to persuade the nurse to give me another face-to-face appointment before discharging me.
Yes, I would want to do that too! I hope you get it sorted out to your satisfaction. Keep well. xx Moy
Suggestion: You might get to see it by using two mirrors stand/sit with your back towards a fixed mirror and use a hand mirror to see the reflection in the fixed mirror. Or instead of a hand mirror use a mobile phone to take a "selfie" of the reflection, you could then zoom in for a bigger view.
Tried all that, not great. It is not the same as being checked by someone else who has optimum light, a special magnifying glass, a great camera and specialised knowledge. A GP missed diagnosing the malignant melanoma for over a year, despite several visits by me. I finally paid for a specialist consultant who took one look at it and knew exactly what it was. It was removed under the NHS a few days later.
If a GP is unable to diagnose a malignant melanoma with the correct equipment and able to look at it properly without mirrors, I shouldn't be expected to check my back myself.
UPDATE on my phone consultation today. I found it very helpful. I had prepared all my questions and was given time for them. I got a few answers and will be booked in for an update CT scan in September or whenever they can do it. I felt it was so much more worthwhile than I was expecting. Three cheers to my consultant! xx Moy
amazing hospital staff
DATE FOR SHEFFIELD HOSPITAL
BC Which Hospital Update _ and eyesl
