After dodging COVID for two years, I had started to believe that I would never get it, thanks to my three jabs and my (supposedly) genetically strong immune system.
Well, I was wrong.
Exactly 12 days ago, I found out that I was once again a close contact. Preparing for my 7 days at home, I was quick to make a list of all that needed fixing in the house, all side projects I could start doing, cleaning jobs, etc. However, two days into what I thought would be my forced holiday, I woke up with a scratchy throat.
My first thought was :” No way this is COVID”. I had slept the night before with the windows open, that would certainly explain the throat. No COVID.
However, by the afternoon, I was feeling so dreadful that I reluctantly did what every good citizen must do; I got a PCR. By the time the results came back the next day, I already knew I was positive.
Now, fact number one : YOU DO NOT NEED THAT SWAB TO GO UP YOUR NOSE TO THE POINT OF MAKING YOU UNCOMFORTABLE AND TEARY. The nurse that picked up my infection gave me the most gentle and subtle nose swab, it almost felt pleasant… Well, in any case, it was to the point that my boyfriend and I were convinced that there was no way that swab would come back positive…. Wrong again!
In preparation for your potential infection in the near future or if you simply want to compare your COVID experience to mine, here is the overview of my week spent dealing with the dreaded 19 :
DAY 1 Woke up with scratchy throat in am and was in total denial. Felt absolutely dreadful in pm; runny nose, achy all over, super tired..
DAY 2 Felt dreadful all day, developed the mother of all sore throat in the evening.
Day 3 Only managed two hour of sleep, thanks to the sore throat. Sucked on 700 popsicles, had 6 hot baths, and constantly sucked on ice blocks when I ran out of popsicles. Annoying blocked nose and overall miserable. Contacted the pharmacy and got a mouth spray delivered which provided some relief ( probably sprayed my throat way too much !)
Day 4 Two hours of sleep again. Considered jumping off my balcony but realised that since I’m on the second floor, I would only injure myself further. Unable swallow my own saliva and mostly had to (my apologies!!) spit it out either in the sink or in tissues (YUCK!). Miserable. Contacted doctor by phone and got prescribed panadeine forte. Once again, not much relief.
Day 5 Started to feel a little better, still in bed.
Day 6 Sore throat is almost gone ( worst at night and in the morning). Lingering cough, runny nose and feeling very congested in the morning. Overall feeling flat.
And here we are : I’m at day 12 and I am still not back at work. Turns out that I am still testing positive on a RAT which is a real pain. From what I read, although you can still be positive on PCR for months, there is a grey area if you still test positive on RATs and therefore, you should still consider yourself (minimally) contagious. Conscious of not putting my friends through the same agony (I’m exaggerating here but it was definitely REALLY unpleasant) I have not seen anyone as yet. Worst of it all, despite not being capable of swallowing my own saliva for two days , I have not lost a SINGLE pound ?!? There is definitely no silver lining to this COVID thing for me! Jokes aside, I am extremely grateful that I only got the mild symptoms of the disease and that I never had trouble breathing because that would have sure been scary.
Now that I definitely know that COVID is real and that it is far from pleasant, I will certainly be more careful.. So everyone, stay safe! And out of curiosity, who else got the terrible throat?
