80% Covid-19 infections are mild -- but.....

I had an appointment with my gastroenterologist this morning, via a phone call. Our doctors are doing all appointments using FaceTime on android or by telephone. I went through my history of my illnesses beginning a week before Christmas when I had a severe upper respiratory infection that lasted six weeks. In March I got what I thought was a flu but it wasn't a normal flu. I had projectile vomiting and diarrhea for 72 hours, high fever, weakness, dehydration, weight loss, etc.

I resolved the respiratory infection with a lot of bed rest, liquids, Mucinex and over the counter cold pills. I was in such respiratory distress that I could barely exhale never mind inhale. I literally felt like dying would be easier. The virus in March was long lasting, 72 hours of the worse diarrhea imaginable then another full week of it tapering off.

I'm left with a very red face that's described medically as a 'butterfly'. Redness that runs from between the eyebrows, down the nose and spreading across the apple of the cheeks. I suspected that this was a reaction of my immune system fighting the virus. My doctor called it 'malar rash' which may indicate several things including Lupus. The doctor believes that it's a response of my immune system being over-stressed. I feel good now, no symptoms like fever, sore joints, etc. If it doesn't resolve in a couple of weeks, I'll have a blood test done to rule out other possible diseases.

My doctor told me that all that I described sounds like it was indeed Covid-19 and that I qualify for the nasal swab test. I told him that I'm feeling better and will forego the swab test, let someone else have it because I don't feel I need it. Every person that gets a nasal swab for coronavirus must be referred by a physician first. If I needed to be tested, the request goes from the doctor to the Health Dept., then they contact the patient and let them know where the 'drive-through' tents are for testing and give them an appointment. They don't let this information out to the general public or they would be swamped with people requesting the swab.

When I became ill, my son had come down with it one day earlier, during both the respiratory infection and the gastrointestinal infection. So it was acquired extremely rapidly. This is a good example of how extremely contagious coronavirus is if it was indeed Covid-19. My son had the same upper respiratory infection and it lasted nearly 2 full months. No nasal congestion at all, strictly lung congestion and extremely debilitating.

If you've had something similar during Dec, Jan or Feb, there's a good chance you may have already been exposed to coronavirus and survived it. However, my doctor cautioned me to remain at home self-quarantining and to wear PPE whenever I go out, which I have been doing all along. As the doctor said, we know very little about this virus and whether or not it's still transmissible even after recovery. Some people report their very first sign of Covid-19 is a loss of smell and taste but I never experienced that. I hope this helps and I hope it gives people hope that coronavirus is very survivable.

 

Thanks for providing this info, it definitely helps. Please keep us updated. I wish you a full recovery.

 

Thank you, I'm getting there.