I Got Covid

Sunday, November 8th was a hot, windy day, reminiscent of a Nebraska August, not November. My windows were open, my cheap ass not wanting to turn the air conditioner on. The weather reports said a cold front was moving in that night.

All of this is important, trust me.

I woke up with a headache and thought my head was going to explode considering the amount of sinus pressure I had going on. I stopped taking my allergy meds two months earlier when I ran out so I figured I’d just suffer through the day and if they didn’t go away with the cold front, I’d get more meds on my way to work. I was also super sore all over. I chalked it up to the cold front and me being old. Weather changes always made my knees ache, what’s a few more sore body parts?

I didn’t really feel better Monday morning but I was still thinking it was just a bad case of allergies, maybe a sinus infection if I was unlucky. Went to work and carried on like normal.

Still felt crappy Tuesday morning when I woke up so I stopped on my way to work and got some allergy meds and a thermometer. In the age of Covid, you can’t be too careful. Come lunch time, I noticed I couldn’t really taste my Cheetos but I could taste my sandwich without a problem so I figured it was just because I was stuffed up. Got home from work and decided to make sausage, potato, and cabbage soup.

Because soup fixes everything.

I realized when I was cooking the sausage that I couldn’t really smell it. I also couldn’t taste the sausage I tried.

Oh. No.

I checked with Test Nebraska and the soonest I could get tested was Friday. I emailed my boss letting her know that I’ve been feeling sick and I just lost taste and smell and that I couldn’t get tested until Friday. What did she want me to do?

She emailed me back that I could get the rapid testing done at work. She added the HR gal in charge of testing in on the email and she got me set up with an appointment 9am Wednesday morning. I’d go straight to the testing, wait in my car until I heard back, then we’d go from there.

Y’all, I had the original testing done earlier in the year where they basically tickle your brain through your nose. I can’t tell you which one is worse. The rapid test I did, she vigorously swirled the swab around at the back of my nose in one nostril, then did the same thing in the second. I had tears in my eyes and the need to itch inside my face.

The nurse said my results would be done within the hour so I drove over to the garage under my building and waited. 20 minutes later, she called and she didn’t even have to say the words and I knew.

“Hi Katherine? This is Jane from the rapid test… I’m sorry, you tested positive.”

I sighed, thanked her for letting me know, hung up, and burst into tears. Once I could see again, I started letting everybody know. Texted my family and my best friend. Texted the people I spent a few hours with the day before my symptoms showed up. Emailed my boss and the higher ups at work to let them know my results. Texted two of my coworkers.

Everybody was so kind. My coworkers packed up my desk and brought my equipment to the garage so I could work from home during my quarantine. My friends and family immediately asked me what I needed and if they could drop anything off for me. My heath-nut sister (I say that with love) started doing research and found a bunch of things that I could do that might help stave off the worst of the symptoms. And then she sent me a bunch of stuff to keep me well supplied in the two weeks I’d be locked up.

It was one of the darkest times in my life and my loved ones rallied to let me know I wasn’t alone.

At some point during my isolation, I decided I
wanted a dragon onesie so I ordered one. It doesn’t
quite fit but it was good enough for a picture

I ended up getting the whole laundry list of symptoms: head and chest congestion, head ache, severe tiredness/lethargy, abdominal cramping and diarrhea, joint pain, loss of taste and smell, loss of appetite; but I never did get a fever.

Some things to not eat when you can’t taste:
· Scrambled eggs
· Yogurt
· Peanut butter
· McNuggets (the crunchy outside was delightful, the gooey breading between the crunchy and the chicken was repulsive)

Things to eat when you can’t taste:
· Toast
· Soup
· Things you don’t like but are good for you (for me, it was the seaweed in miso soup)

Thankfully most of the symptoms are gone now (my taste and smell are still pretty spotty but gradually coming back) and life has somewhat returned to pre-isolation state.

My whole office went work from home the day after my positive results. My work friends blame me, which probably isn’t totally off base.

I managed to work the whole time I was sick (I did take a day off to rest), which is not something I recommend. There were 2-3 days that the only time I was awake was when I was at my desk and I probably should have just let myself sleep and heal.

I had about 8-9 days of actually feeling horrible before it started getting better, think the worst flu you’ve ever had and add like 12%. The first time I washed my hair after testing positive, wore me out, like I got winded and dizzy. I had to lean against the shower wall until it went away. That’s how much it took me out.

I still don’t know where or how I got it. Apparently, severity of symptoms can indicate amount of exposure and since mine was a mild/moderate case, I’d say I got it from random contact, either at work or my apartment building since I don’t go anywhere else.

I was doing things right. I wore my mask all day at work (except when was eating or talking on the phone) and anytime I went into a business, I washed my hands or used sanitizer, I avoided large groups and limited the places I went, and I still got it.

I was exceptionally lucky. It could have been so much worse and I pray for those people who were not as lucky as I was.

I’m not going to sugar coat it. It sucked. Really bad.

Wear a damn mask and wash your damn hands.