Haven't had a cold for over three years. Is it just me??

[dreamshark]

Believe me, I'm not complaining. I'm normally a pretty healthy person, but typically I get 2 or 3 colds per year which are bad enough to make me miserable for a week. I'd be thrilled to never catch another. I just wonder why?

In November, 2019, I caught a mild cold in the airport on the way to Portland, just before COVID made its appearance on the world stage. I may have had another very brief cold in February 2020 on a subsequent Portland trip, but it only lasted 2 days so I wasn't sure. But I haven't  had a cold since, and that was 3-1/2 years ago.

The first year I figured it was because everybody was isolating and wearing masks. As I recall, influenza mostly disappeared for that year too. Okay, that makes sense. In 2021 came the vaccine, which was actually quite effective against infection with the earlier strains of COVID, so life became a little more normal. But I was still avoiding crowds and masking frequently so it didn't seem weird not to get sick. In 2022 things opened up a lot more, and I did finally get COVID in August. But still no colds. Now another year has gone by and I still haven't had a cold (or anything else, for that matter) despite the fact that I'm now socializing indoors and rarely masking.

Is it the COVID vaccine? Although I'm no longer observing the pandemic protocols, I have managed to get vaccinated every 6 months since April 2021. The same grandchildren that brought me COVID in 2022 have continued to expose me to their school-borne sniffles on a regular basis, but to no avail. Richard is similarly well-vaccinated, and I don't think he's had a cold either. Has anybody else noticed this? 

There hasn't been a lot of study on this, because colds just get no respect. But many colds are caused by coronaviruses, after all, so it wouldn't be totally surprising.  I did find one article that cites some evidence to that effect, but it's pretty preliminary. 

Comments

[pameladean]

I haven't had a cold for at least three years either, but I do still observe many pandemic protocols, so the situations aren't really parallel. I've wondered sometimes if it's the handwashing as much as or more than the masking.

I certainly do appreciate the freedom from colds, though. The cavalier attitude many people had towards spreading their colds around has bothered me for decades.

P.

[dreamshark]

In your case it probably is because you are still avoiding all indoor spaces with people in them. It really does seem to be practically impossible to catch respiratory viruses outdoors. Well, except maybe for measles.

[pameladean]

Yeah, I wouldn't trust measles an inch.

David and I do go to visit my mother and brother three or four times a month, and nobody masks, since my mother hates wearing a mask and can't hear anybody else who's wearing one; but everybody does two rapid antigen tests first. My mom doesn't go anywhere, but my brother does occasionally, though he's started masking in the grocery store, etc., again. I also visit Eric, who doesn't have a roommate at the moment. We also do the double rapid antigen test beforehand. It's not perfect, but will do as a piece of Swiss cheese.

I also go to medical appointments and, if I've just had a booster, to the dentist. If we order takeout from my mom's, I sometimes go into the restaurant to collect it. But I certainly avoid as many indoor spaces with people in them as possible. And I don't go in unmasked.

P.

[minnehaha]

I had a cold in March of 2022 and a sinus infection in January of 2023. Nothing about my immediately-before activities suggested any reason or cause for either.

K. [takes notes]

[davidschroth]

This is difficult reading as I start my second week of what appears to be a nasty cold (tests have ruled out Covid). One of the many benefits of living with a twelve year old and a fourteen year old.

[dreamshark]

Sorry. :-( For both the cold and for poking you about it. Colds can be terrible. But since they are supposed to be nothing, our minds reject the memory and we forget how miserable they are. If nothing else, I hope you have had FEWER colds than usual in the last 3 years.

And because this post was prompted more by medical curiosity than a desire to brag about my immune system, can I ask how long it has been since your last COVID vaccine/infection? Although I apparently had my last booster just 3 months ago (according to the little card in my wallet) I gather from the mass media chatter that for "most people" it has been more than 6 months since their last booster, even among people eager to stay current.

I hope you feel better soon.

[davidschroth]

There is no need to feel sorry about poling me, I understood that you attempting to satisfy your curiousity. My last booster has been recent enough that I don't know if I'll be allowed another on my upcoming physical. I don't typically remember when the last one was because Covid vaccinations have been no big deal for me (unlike other people I know). As far as colds go, it has just been ongoing congestion/nasty cough. No fever (unlike the daughter I presumably caught the cold from), no aches, nothing over and above my frequent attempts to cough my lungs out of my body.

I'm pretty sure I have had fewer colds/cases of the flu in the last three years than in previous years. I've been getting lx about masking up, I should probably be better about that. Although I *have* been masking up when I go into work, hoping to spare my co-workers from whatever it is that I've caught.

[minnehaha]

Are we supposed to keep getting boosters?

K.

[davidwilford]

The last notable cold I've had was back in February 2020 and yes, I wonder about that given the timing. Erin had COVID last November, which a dose of Paxlovid stopped cold thankfully, but I didn't get it myself. Hmm.

[dreamshark]

And you guys have been going to conventions and such, right?

[davidwilford]

We have, and even went to Europe last fall, which is where Erin likely caught COVID. So masking is still a good idea when going through airports.

[quadong]

I have almost the opposite experience to you. In perhaps August or September 2021, after the first round of covid vaccines, I got one of the worst colds I have ever had, which included bronchitis, which isn't something I used to get with colds. My guess at the time was that my immunity to cold viruses had waned to the point where getting one had become a big deal instead of a minor annoyance. Since then, things have been pretty much like pre-pandemic as far as colds go.