Man to spend 'tough' third Christmas shielding

A man who will spend his third Christmas shielding said it "can be tough" for him.

Karl Knights from Leiston, Suffolk, has cerebral palsy and is immuno-supressed.

The 26-year-old is continuing to stay at home due to his increased risk of complications from a potential Covid-19 infection.

"Outside of the house I haven’t seen anyone in the flesh for three years now," he said.

There are around 500,000 people in the UK with suppressed immune systems.

That means their bodies struggle to produce antibodies, so the existing vaccines offer them little or no protection, leaving them very vulnerable to coronavirus.

Mr Knights said: "Around the holiday season, special occasions, like birthdays, it can be tough.

"I’m lucky that I have family members in the house still, so I see them and talk to them."

'Living in a question mark'

Mr Knights, who is a writer, has only left the house since to first lockdown to receive his vaccines.

"The great thing with where we are with technology is we can Zoom, and call, and email and text, but we're just not meeting in person," he said.

"One of the few blessings is I’m glad this horrible event and all the shielding is happening in this moment where we have this connectivity.

"I’m grateful for it, especially at this time of year."

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He described shielding for almost three years as "very strange, very odd, you're in this kind of bubble, you’re on pause, watching the world go by and you’re still in place".

Mr Knights said he did not know when he would stop shielding.

"We never know how this pandemic will develop, you’re living inside of a question mark," he said.

He added he would be having "quite a quiet Christmas" with his father and siblings.

"It'll be just a normal day with a lot more food."