I Just Got Lucky.
I have been very, very fortunate. A week after my fever hit, I am nearly symptom-free.
COVID has been my source of terror for a full year. Last January, I was in Orange, California the day before the first case of COVID was discovered in Orange, California.
Like almost everyone, I spent the rest of 2020 running scared, hiding, and masking up to keep myself, and my family, as safe as could be. When I somehow got COVID anyway, I got a very mild case. I’d like to say I did something right, but I did not. I just got lucky.
Instead of being in the hospital now, like so many people have been, I am getting ready to end my quarantine and go back to the world. I don’t know why I am getting through this and so many people have died, but I am sincerely grateful.
A lot of people have asked what it feels like, what happened to my body. Obviously the symptoms are different for different people, so this is just my experience.
Here is how I experienced COVID symptoms:
- My fever was mercifully short – barely lasted more than 24 hours – but for several days afterward, I kept checking my temperature. I still felt achy and sore and exhausted. I kept saying, “I feel like I’ve been hit by a truck.” But my temperature didn’t go back up above 98.7.
- I had a dry, occasional cough that told me I was breathing okay. I appreciated the cough – and occasional sneeze – more than I’d ever have imagined. It reminded me that I was sick – and alive.
- On Day 5, when they say the virus can turn on a dime, I was able to check my oxygen levels. While it’s dangerous to allow oxygen levels to drop under 94 for any period of time, mine have stayed around 98 all week long. I took tons of deep breaths every day, just to be sure I could.
- I was especially thrilled to wake up on Day 6 feeling nearly COVID-free. My symptoms had stayed the same mostly, but suddenly they almost disappeared on Day 6 – and on Day 7, they were gone. I felt good.
- I got two or three sharp, shooting pains in my head (over the course of a week) that inspired me to take aspirin once a day. Blood clots are a real threat during COVID, especially with a lack of movement.
- I slept 10-15 hours every night and took a ton of Vitamin D. These are the things that may have contributed to my getting well. Or maybe I just got lucky.
- The most interesting symptom happened quite suddenly, and without my even noticing. I ate an entire meal without realizing I couldn’t taste the food on my plate. Losing one’s sense of smell is bizarre, and probably deserves a whole blog of its own. I hope, however, that it comes back before I write one.
- I have a little brain fog, but I’ve had a little brain fog for about a year. I watched copious amounts of Jeopardy to help the situation, but it doesn’t seem to have made a difference.
Neither Bill (who has now had both vaccines) or Shane (who had none) got COVID – through the air vents or from me. I am happier about that than I am about surviving it myself.
In three days, I am allowed to go back into the wild. Like everyone else, I can go back to seeking my first vaccination. I may have survived my bout with COVID – thank you, God – but it’s never going to be my friend.