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Tested positive for COVID and Need to Test in Two Weeks For Our Cruise


Kirsten

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So I need some input.  I started to get a cold last Friday, tested for COVID on Saturday, and it was negative.  Saw a friend on Sunday who just told me he tested positive for COVID, so I just took a test this morning and it's positive.  I need to test in exactly two weeks before we go on our cruise.  It's possible the test might still test positive then, correct?  Should I get a certificate of recovery?  If so, how do I go about doing that?  I'm panicking a bit right now.

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First and foremost, hope you feel better soon.

As for the test, I spoke to Dr. Anthony Harris about this concern a few months ago and he confirmed that a PCR test could still come back as positive, but an antigen test probably wouldn't.

"If you're 10 days after the onset of your symptoms, you are generally no longer infected or infectious. And that's the standard that CDC still has that we use in the clinical community."

If you're past the 10 day period, Dr. Harris said an antigen test is fine, "After that 10 day period, if you can show, and if it's acceptable, a negative rapid test, that's okay."

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Antigen wouldnt blow positive unless you’re still having intense symptoms. And im going to assume you’re vaxxed as you’re going on a cruise so they should be gone in 5-7 days. Dont stress about it. It will make you sicker. Get some of the gov tests and test yourself after your symptoms are gone. Test every day until your testing date. Then you will know what the test will say. 

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33 minutes ago, Kirsten said:

So I need some input.  I started to get a cold last Friday, tested for COVID on Saturday, and it was negative.  Saw a friend on Sunday who just told me he tested positive for COVID, so I just took a test this morning and it's positive.  I need to test in exactly two weeks before we go on our cruise.  It's possible the test might still test positive then, correct?  Should I get a certificate of recovery?  If so, how do I go about doing that?  I'm panicking a bit right now.

I would feel a bit panicked as you do (you definitely don’t have to be an anxious person to feel anxiety in the situation!). I am so sorry the virus caught up with you, but I hope that you will feel 100% before long and enjoy your cruise!

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Getting a Certificate of Recovery may be difficult at this point.  If the cruise is 14 days out and the certificate must show recovery at least 11 days prior to sailing, there is no way to know if you will recover in the tight 72 hour window.  That is assuming that you can get to your doctor on the 11th day and get a proper letter signed that day.

Don't panic though.  Test again at home in a few days.  Then test again a few days later.  Stay at home for these next 2 weeks.  

Worst case scenario and you can't get cleared to board, get your refund and book a new cruise ASAP.

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38 minutes ago, Matt said:

First and foremost, hope you feel better soon.

As for the test, I spoke to Dr. Anthony Harris about this concern a few months ago and he confirmed that a PCR test could still come back as positive, but an antigen test probably wouldn't.

"If you're 10 days after the onset of your symptoms, you are generally no longer infected or infectious. And that's the standard that CDC still has that we use in the clinical community."

If you're past the 10 day period, Dr. Harris said an antigen test is fine, "After that 10 day period, if you can show, and if it's acceptable, a negative rapid test, that's okay."

Thank you.  This definitely helps me feel a bit less panicked.  

27 minutes ago, anxiouscruiser said:

Antigen wouldnt blow positive unless you’re still having intense symptoms. And im going to assume you’re vaxxed as you’re going on a cruise so they should be gone in 5-7 days. Dont stress about it. It will make you sicker. Get some of the gov tests and test yourself after your symptoms are gone. Test every day until your testing date. Then you will know what the test will say. 

I have 6 home tests and just ordered some more.  I have to test my whole family now.  So damn stressful.

 

Thanks, everyone.  I appreciate all of the responses. 

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14 minutes ago, LizzyBee23 said:

Do you have any unvaccinated kids travelling with you? You mentioned "family". Honestly, that's a huge wild card. When it comes time to get their PCR test, do everything you can to get an NAAT version.

My kids and husband are all vaccinated.  We have at-home proctored rapid tests scheduled for our cruise.  Is the NAAT version better than a rapid test?  I've never taken the NAAT and don't know if it's offered near me.

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Make sure your nose is clean (no nasal mucus). Soak a cotton ball with rubbing alcohol and swap your nose with it just prior to taking the antigen test.  I would never advocate doing that if you knew you were newly covid positive, but in your situation where you know you are well past it and are not at risk of being contagious, I would do it so as to not risk my cruise being ruined.  It will all but guarantee a negative result.  If you are doing the emed proctored test, don't stick the swab very far up your nose or rub very vigorously, they can't tell anyways, they are watching you through a cell phone camera.  Good luck.   

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23 minutes ago, JBC said:

Make sure your nose is clean (no nasal mucus). Soak a cotton ball with rubbing alcohol and swap your nose with it just prior to taking the antigen test.  I would never advocate doing that if you knew you were newly covid positive, but in your situation where you know you are well past it and are not at risk of being contagious, I would do it so as to not risk my cruise being ruined.  It will all but guarantee a negative result.  If you are doing the emed proctored test, don't stick the swab very far up your nose or rub very vigorously, they can't tell anyways, they are watching you through a cell phone camera.  Good luck.   

Thanks for the advice!  And I agree that while I wouldn't want anyone to knowingly be contagious while boarding, this will help me with peace of mind when testing, as I know I won't be contagious by then.

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44 minutes ago, Kirsten said:

My kids and husband are all vaccinated.  We have at-home proctored rapid tests scheduled for our cruise.  Is the NAAT version better than a rapid test?  I've never taken the NAAT and don't know if it's offered near me.

So I need to be more precise... An NAAT test can be synonymous with PCR tests when in reality a PCR test is a type of NAAT test. But when you see a place like Walgreens advertise a rapid NAAT test, it is generally an isothermal, "rapid" NAAT type that is done at the point of contact. It's not "better" persay (it depends on your perspective), but for us "better" means less likely to come up with a false positive (and in truth, more likely to miss subclinical infections). 

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13 minutes ago, LizzyBee23 said:

So I need to be more precise... An NAAT test can be synonymous with PCR tests when in reality a PCR test is a type of NAAT test. But when you see a place like Walgreens advertise a rapid NAAT test, it is generally an isothermal, "rapid" NAAT type that is done at the point of contact. It's not "better" persay (it depends on your perspective), but for us "better" means less likely to come up with a false positive (and in truth, more likely to miss subclinical infections). 

Thanks for this info.  From what I've read, a rapid antigen test is less likely to have a false positive than a PCR.  I could have read it incorrectly in my panicky state earlier, though.

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46 minutes ago, Kirsten said:

Thanks for this info.  From what I've read, a rapid antigen test is less likely to have a false positive than a PCR.  I could have read it incorrectly in my panicky state earlier, though.

No you're right.. Far less likely. But it's also quite a bit less sensitive than rapid-isothermal NAAT or PCR, meaning it's much less likely to catch early or subclinical infections that may be at the limit of its detection.

NAAT tests (both the rapid isothermal and PCR tests) "amplfy" bits of target viral genetic material. They vary in how they do the amplification and how the characterize the targeted viral material.

Antigen tests use a substrate matched for the virus to try to grab it directly. It would be like if you took half of a strip of velcro and ran a sample over it. If the "velcro" grabs something, you are probably positive. If it can't grab hold of anything, negative. All of the antigen tests are rapid, and to make it even more confusing, Binax offers both a rapid antigen and a rapid NAAT test (though obviously you can only buy and process a sample at home with the antigen test.

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My husband and I tested positive mid January (had the sniffles and tested to be sure).  I had a cruise on 2/11.   I took another test the weekend before I was suppose to test from the free at home test (it was the same exact test as the proctored home test) and it was negative.   I had to be  sure before I canceled.  Good Luck!  Hope all is fine for you and you get to  enjoy your cruise.

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1 hour ago, Kirsten said:

Thanks for this info.  From what I've read, a rapid antigen test is less likely to have a false positive than a PCR.  I could have read it incorrectly in my panicky state earlier, though.

You can always take multiples tests until one is negative. Not that I would ever do this or recommend it to anyone.

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52 minutes ago, LizzyBee23 said:

No you're right.. Far less likely. But it's also quite a bit less sensitive than rapid-isothermal NAAT or PCR, meaning it's much less likely to catch early or subclinical infections that may be at the limit of its detection.

NAAT tests (both the rapid isothermal and PCR tests) "amplfy" bits of target viral genetic material. They vary in how they do the amplification and how the characterize the targeted viral material.

Antigen tests use a substrate matched for the virus to try to grab it directly. It would be like if you took half of a strip of velcro and ran a sample over it. If the "velcro" grabs something, you are probably positive. If it can't grab hold of anything, negative. All of the antigen tests are rapid, and to make it even more confusing, Binax offers both a rapid antigen and a rapid NAAT test (though obviously you can only buy and process a sample at home with the antigen test.

That IS super confusing re: the Binax tests. 

 

So I took a rapid test last Saturday and it was negative. Now I feel awful that I may have inadvertently exposed others.  And here  I thought I was being super-responsible by testing when I only had mild cold symptoms.

 

 

37 minutes ago, Tania said:

My husband and I tested positive mid January (had the sniffles and tested to be sure).  I had a cruise on 2/11.   I took another test the weekend before I was suppose to test from the free at home test (it was the same exact test as the proctored home test) and it was negative.   I had to be  sure before I canceled.  Good Luck!  Hope all is fine for you and you get to  enjoy your cruise.

This is good to know!  I will be testing again Sunday night because I want to be able to go back to work on Monday (my boss said if it's negative I can go in).  Even if it's positive then, I'll be testing every few days in the hopes that it will be negative by the time of my proctored test.

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7 hours ago, Kirsten said:

So I need some input.  I started to get a cold last Friday, tested for COVID on Saturday, and it was negative.  Saw a friend on Sunday who just told me he tested positive for COVID, so I just took a test this morning and it's positive.  I need to test in exactly two weeks before we go on our cruise.  It's possible the test might still test positive then, correct?  Should I get a certificate of recovery?  If so, how do I go about doing that?  I'm panicking a bit right now.

I'm so sorry this is happening. It's one of my fears before our cruise. I hope you are feeling better soon and will make it on your cruise!

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Boarding questionnaire asks if you've tested positive within the past 10 days so make sure not to test on the record in that timeframe until it's pre-cruise test time. You WILL get a refund for your entire cabin if you test positive at any point 14 days prior to sailing but it has to be a proctored on the record test (similar to what is required to board).  

100% recommend using the antigen tests only for your pre-cruise testing.  I did NAAT after 7 days after my initial positive PCR result and it was still positive.  NAAT is a form of a PCR test.  I had a cruise shortly after I contracted COVID, so I made sure not to test again on the record (at home tests only) until it was go time for my pre-cruise test. Even then I burned an at home test to make sure that I would be negative on the antigen test I was taking the cruise.

 

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30 minutes ago, AshleyDillo said:

Boarding questionnaire asks if you've tested positive within the past 10 days so make sure not to test on the record in that timeframe until it's pre-cruise test time. You WILL get a refund for your entire cabin if you test positive at any point 14 days prior to sailing but it has to be a proctored on the record test (similar to what is required to board).  

100% recommend using the antigen tests only for your pre-cruise testing.  I did NAAT after 7 days after my initial positive PCR result and it was still positive.  NAAT is a form of a PCR test.  I had a cruise shortly after I contracted COVID, so I made sure not to test again on the record (at home tests only) until it was go time for my pre-cruise test. Even then I burned an at home test to make sure that I would be negative on the antigen test I was taking the cruise.

 

Thanks for the tips.  I plan on only doing rapid at-home tests (not proctored) until the 13th, when my pre-cruise test is due.  My kids just tested negative, thank goodness, so now it's time for quarantining the best I can from them and wearing a mask at home. Should be interesting.

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7 minutes ago, Kirsten said:

Thanks for the tips.  I plan on only doing rapid at-home tests (not proctored) until the 13th, when my pre-cruise test is due.  My kids just tested negative, thank goodness, so now it's time for quarantining the best I can from them and wearing a mask at home. Should be interesting.

Yeah..unfortunately when I tested positive I was within window where I wouldn't have been no to answer the question at boarding time so we had to cancel one of our cruises. Fortunately everything was okay for the one we had 2 weeks later but it was still very stressful! Might have been a blessing to have to cancel the first one since my traveling companions had not caught it and this was at the height of omicron.

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I also tested positive this week (Tuesday) and cruise is 3 weeks from today.   I tested every day after and today (Friday) I am already negative but I had little to no symptoms so was very light case.   Still I had 3 positives with 2 different brands of at home antigen tests.  On Wednesday morning I got a PCR test done at the lab thinking that I might be able to use it as a back up for a recovery certificate but it cam back negative.   The lab person swabbed my mouth but didnt go back very far I think thats why. 

I am scheduling my precruise test at Walgreens and noticed that there are 3 options.  For the rapid antigen (Binax Now), there is a check box to certify that you have symptoms or have been in close contact with someone that is +.   The regular PCR is the 2nd option but long turn around time (48 hr).   The 3rd option is called a Rapid NAAT test with 2 hr turn around.  I am thinking that the Rapid Antigen is least likely to pop positive with my recent recovery so may see if I can find someone  covid positive to stand by for 15 minutes  🙂  .  

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36 minutes ago, Ken Edgar said:

I also tested positive this week (Tuesday) and cruise is 3 weeks from today.   I tested every day after and today (Friday) I am already negative but I had little to no symptoms so was very light case.   Still I had 3 positives with 2 different brands of at home antigen tests.  On Wednesday morning I got a PCR test done at the lab thinking that I might be able to use it as a back up for a recovery certificate but it cam back negative.   The lab person swabbed my mouth but didnt go back very far I think thats why. 

I am scheduling my precruise test at Walgreens and noticed that there are 3 options.  For the rapid antigen (Binax Now), there is a check box to certify that you have symptoms or have been in close contact with someone that is +.   The regular PCR is the 2nd option but long turn around time (48 hr).   The 3rd option is called a Rapid NAAT test with 2 hr turn around.  I am thinking that the Rapid Antigen is least likely to pop positive with my recent recovery so may see if I can find someone  covid positive to stand by for 15 minutes  🙂  .  

Good plan definitely do the first one like you said

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On 4/29/2022 at 9:48 AM, CruisingNewb said:

Getting a Certificate of Recovery may be difficult at this point.  If the cruise is 14 days out and the certificate must show recovery at least 11 days prior to sailing, there is no way to know if you will recover in the tight 72 hour window.  That is assuming that you can get to your doctor on the 11th day and get a proper letter signed that day.

Don't panic though.  Test again at home in a few days.  Then test again a few days later.  Stay at home for these next 2 weeks.  

Worst case scenario and you can't get cleared to board, get your refund and book a new cruise ASAP.

@Kirsten There are telehealth/online options for a Certificate of Recovery. They cost $60-75, but do offer 24 hour turnaround time.

My wife and son both tested positive this week (I've been testing daily and remain negative), and we sail at the end of the month. We plan to do all the pre-cruise testing, but will also get Certificates of Recovery (my son is 3.5, so maybe it'll save him from needing the antigen test at the pier).

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