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A few facts about the situation:
I’m vaccinated and had a breakthrough case the past 8 days. My symptoms lasted 4-5 days starting last Monday and were mostly mild, with my sore throat and sneezing lasting until about Friday and then have been feeling better each day since. Sunday, Monday and today I’ve woken up with noticeably few symptoms that also continue to clear up. Those symptoms have been feeling like I got punched in the nose and having a weird sweet burnt smell, almost constantly. Other than that I haven’t felt ‘sick’ since Friday. I attribute this to being vaccinated, taking good care of myself and getting good sleep throughout, avoiding anything that might make the recovery take longer than need be.
The CDC guidelines (and my doctors orders) state that you shouldn’t get a follow up test to prove you’re negative. Instead, you should count 10 days from the onset of symptoms, as long as your symptoms have improved and have cleared up for at least 72 hours, and that you can assume you’re no longer infectious at the end of that 10 days. Given that my symptoms started last Monday and haven’t been a thing for 3 days now, this Thursday is the day I’m able to assume I’m in the clear.
Now, I had about cancelled my trip to an outdoor camping festival which should have maybe 500-1000 people attending. I reached out to the organizers (who I do know personally) to ask if they’d still be ok with me attending at the 10 day mark and they said that I should still come as long as I’m feeling good- which I am.
Am I being an idiot or selfish for thinking that these guidelines and my recovery are together enough for me to say I’m safe to go without spreading covid to others? I don’t plan on sharing drinks, spoons or vapes with anyone at the festival and I won’t be in the crowd very much as I plan on keeping distanced. I mostly want to make sure that I AM indeed being responsible as I believe myself to be.
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After doing some research, I found this [link](https://medical.mit.edu/covid-19-updates/2020/11/recovery-covid-19-how-long-someone-contagious) from MIT and this quote, which I feel back up my case:
**“The phenomenon of individuals continuing to test positive for some time after they appear to have recovered is one we’ve known about for a while,” says Dr. Shawn Ferullo, MIT Medical’s chief of student health. “I’ve heard of people testing positive up to 37 days after their symptoms had completely disappeared. The test is extremely sensitive, so these are ‘true positives’ in the sense that the test truly is detecting genetic material from the virus, but the question is whether or not it is infectious viral material. Most of us now believe these individuals are not infectious, even though they continue to test positive and are being held out of work.”**
**The CDC appears close to reaching the same conclusion, noting that “detecting viral RNA via PCR** [**does not necessarily mean that infectious virus is present**](https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/hcp/return-to-work.html)**.” While** [**CDC research**](https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/if-you-are-sick/end-home-isolation.html) **on this topic is ongoing and as yet unpublished, they note that they have been unable to culture viral specimens obtained from individuals more than nine days following the onset of symptoms. This means that these viral specimens were not capable of replicating — or, in other words, they were not infectious. In fact, the CDC’s preliminary conclusion is that “the statistically estimated likelihood of recovering replication-competent virus approaches zero by 10 days or more than three days after recovery.”**
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3 Responses
We get tested 3 times a week at work (film industry). We have had a few positive cases throughout a 5+ month season. Those people stay home for 2 weeks and come back to work and don’t continue to test due to false positives.
We have a strict mask mandate and zoning protocols, so a little different than a festival but I feel after 2 weeks or 10 days after testing positive a person poses little to no risk to others as I haven’t seen any transmission related to them returning to work.
I am in no way a medical professional but statistically if you wear a mask I’d say ur chances of having and spreading covid are pretty slim.
I would still go to the festival. I’ve read countless articles stating you are no longer contagious after 10 days from the onset of symptoms, 24 hours have passed since fever, and symptoms have improved. Some healthcare workers get back to work after 7 days. As far as I know, have read and been told by healthcare providers cdc does not recommend re testing but rather to go based off of your symptoms.
My cosmetology school won’t let me return to finish my six days left of school until I test negative so I’ve gathered as much information as I can about when you can consider yourself no longer contagious.