Weird Experience is one way to put it.
I had planned to write my October blog on the 30th and 31st of last month (October), but I didn’t get a chance to because I woke up on the 30th extremely tired and with fever. I started my self-isolation immediately and for the next 2 days, I was in bed, drinking plenty of fluids, taking Tylenol, and I missed what would have been a 1 year streak of writing a blog every month.
I’m writing this blog today, on what would be my 10th day since my symptoms started and self-isolation and 7th day since I got my my results for a Covid-19 test that I was positive.
Normally I wouldn’t write a blog in one sitting because I like to edit and refine it before I post, but this one I felt needed not to be filtered.
My Physical Experience
Each person’s experience is different with this virus, and based on how bad this virus can hit people, I would say I had it somewhat mild, but then again I don’t know what mild is. The first 2 days were the worst. I had a fever of 39 C, body aches, and just plain old fatigue that kept me in bed in all day. After those 2 days, my fever and body aches got a bit better, but then I started to get sporadic headaches, stomach aches, and lost sense of taste and smell up to day 6 then gradually getting better again. Losing sense of taste was the weirdest and newest experience of them all; your brain knows what it should be tasting, but nothing is registering. You can sense if something is sweet or spicy but no sense of actual flavor at all. By day 8, I felt that I was back to being 95%.
My Psychological Experience
Staying in my room, not having to work, and having food brought to my room’s door while I have access to internet and your computer seems like a hotel experience, but non of that mattered when I was worried and anxious if I had somehow transmitted to someone in my family before showing symptoms and starting my isolation.
My parents and brother had to self isolate at home too for the same amount I’m isolating and every day I am hoping that no one develops any symptoms. I had already made my mind to move out before I got sick because working on the frontlines of retail is inherently riskier than an office job, but paperwork delays didn’t make that happen. God knows how I would feel if I was the reason for my parents getting sick…
There are also the thoughts of what else I could have done to avoid getting it.. I always wore a mask outside, tried to keep my social distance, but I will have to admit that I became a bit complacent with sanitizing my hands whenever I touched a surface outside home. No excuses there. When you lock yourself in a room with nothing to do, you are left with your mind and whatever can distract you. I also felt worry that anyone else outside my family may have gotten it from me before I isolated myself and the fact that they may go through similar experience and potentially worse depending on well their immune system can fend off the infection.
That being said, I can keep wondering about the what-ifs or I can focus on my recovery and hope for the best. Knowing that I did whatever I could to limit the spread once I developed symptoms is all I could ask of myself. I am thankful to God that no one that I know I have been in contact with has developed symptoms.
Conclusion
Getting sick and having to quarantine for 10 days with no physical contact with outside world and not being allowed out of my house was let’s say inconvenient. I wouldn’t go as far to say it was challenging, because I know what challenging looks like but maybe that’s a topic for another blog.
The way I’m choosing to look at it is that I got a mild infection no worse than a flu/cold episode (Thank God) in exchange for (hopefully) developing immunity to this virus for the next 3–6 months going into the winter months where it is likely to get worse.
That being said; This is a reminder to always wear your mask, be diligent when social distancing, NEVER BE COMPLACENT with washing hands and sanitize often, and keep your HANDS AWAY FROM YOUR FACE.
