Does Anyone Know Anybody Who Has Had the Virus? Share Your Experiences

[Thomas McCurnin]

I happen to know two people.

One 50 year old male, who contracted the virus in New York City either at a bar or the subway prior to lockdown. He described the symptoms as this: Imagine a really bad cold. That's a "1." Now remember the worst flu or sickness you've ever had with fever, sneezes, coughs chills etc. That's a "10." Coronavirus was a "100." He said, "I thought I was going to die." He was totally out for two weeks.

One 30 year old male, who got the virus from his job in Los Angeles, The symptoms were fever, cough, diarrhea, chills and really bad asthma. Not nearly as bad as the 50 year old. He was totally out for a week.

PS None of my friends were tested which were unavailable except for critically ill. No question though that this was the virus based on the symptoms

[Kevin Jenness]

My son, his wife and 3 year old daughter probably had it (did not get tested). The little girl had one really bad night where they discussed taking her to the ER, then had symptoms like a really bad cold. The parents were seriously sick for nearly two weeks with flu-like symptoms. My son said one day he couldn't raise his head off the pillow without getting a blinding headache. They are early 30's and in excellent health normally. Not something an old person wants to be even close to.

[Stan Calow]

I know a ton of people who were sick January-March, but none who were sick enough to get tested so none of them know if it was COVID or not.

[Rod Sheridan]

My daughter, who is an ER nurse had the same experience in January.

She was tested afterwards for influenza for work purposes and was negative for that. They did not test for Covid-19 however now she's considered a probable case.

Her best friends Mom now has it and it's doubtful that she will survive, tough because absolutely no visitors.

Regards, Rod.

[Dan Hunkele]

My next door neighbor (76) died March 31st from pneumonia. His wife, same age was hospitalized five days later and is a confirmed case of Covid-19. She is recovered and home, says she feels like she might at 96yrs, but is getting better. Her husband was never tested but she is sure he had the virus. She feels they got it in a doctors office waiting room before the shut down.

[Jim Becker]

AFAK, I had it end-of-March/early April, but until I can actually get an antibody test, there's no way to know for sure. Fortunately, the one "feature" I didn't get was the pneumonia part. Still, it was the worst sickness I've ever had in my memory. No other family members have had it, at least symptomatically, and until antibody tests are readily available, we'll not know for sure. I do know a number of folks who have had it, but fortunately no deaths to-date. I worry most about my mother...she's about to turn 90, has pulmonary compromises and lives in a skilled nursing facility in her life care community. So far...they have kept it out of there.

[Jerry Thompson]

I believe I had it. I'm 77 but it was not as debilitating as I was led to believe. I had a fever, cough, runny nose and generalized aches. The fever left when my body had enough antibodies to fight it. The other symptoms left after 5-6 days. I had no way to be tested to find out for sure that I had it.
I will return to my part time job as a home health RN on May 4th.

[Bruce Page]

I woke up Saturday, March 28th with a temperature of 105 and intense rigors. My temperature fluctuated between 104 & 101 all day. Sunday it was a little more under control, hovering between 102.5 and 99.9. It remained at 99-101 the following 1½ weeks, gradually returning to normal. I didn’t have any breathing problems, loss of smell or taste. I experienced light dizziness if I turned or moved too fast and had a mild headache.
I talked with my Doctors the following Monday morning and they confirmed that I was likely experiencing the early stages of Covid-19.

The rigors I experienced that first morning were unlike anything I had ever felt before.

[Bruce Wrenn]

Don't get me started on the lack of testing.

New York state did random testing of 3000 persons. 14% showed antibodies of CV-19, even though they had shown no symptoms. Even though they had no symptoms, all were contaiguus at the time of infection. This is what is so bad, carriers don't know they have virus and are spreading it

[Thomas McCurnin]

It also might mean that the cough or flu they had back in November or December was not an ordinary cough, but the coronavirus.

I had an awful flu in November, with a fever and bad cough, and trouble breathing. I finally kicked it after nearly 3 weeks. Perhaps it was the coronaviruis? Perhaps its been here longer than we suspect.

Testing is key, and we are simply not there yet, and I wonder how States are going to reopen without a test to figure whose got antibodies and who doesn't.

Another problem: My friend who did have it so bad he went the hospital--his fever went up and down during the same day, and sometimes he had no fever at all. So if one thinks they can figure out if you're sick using a thermometer, well, they may have missed their mark.

[Scott Winners]

I will return to my part time job as a home health RN on May 4th.

I am a full time Home Health nurse and I know I had an unusual Upper Respiratory Virus in early March 2020. I get my flu shot religiously and still get a couple or three garden variety URVs (Upper Respiratory Viruses) every winter. I had a hum-dinger this spring. While I was on a vacation, praise Jesus.

It started Wednesday night, I had bloody snot. Pretty unusual unless I get behind running the humidifier next to the wood stove, which I wasn't behind on. I was already wearing a cloth mask in public off the clock, though we only had one case down in Anchorage at the time. Thursday morning I felt fine and didn't have a temperature, so I went in to work.

I saw one guy first thing in the morning feeling fine, he is still COVID19 negative 6 weeks later. At my second stop I was wrapping up when my head started spinning and my nose started running. I measured both that patient's temperature and mine while I had my thermometer and out and got out of his house as fast as I could. I kept telling myself "I don't have a fever, I don't have a fever" but put a mask on anyway when I was the third stop of the day because I felt like a dog's breakfast. All three of those folks are still COVID negative actually. I only had three that day and did all my charting at home, and then took a serious nap.

Friday morning I felt good, only had one visit, no temperature, wore a mask anyway, that one is still COVID negative, charted from home and started my vacation. Saturday afternoon my head was spinning again. Sunday and Monday I was good, Tuesday my head was spinning and and my nose was running like a hose. Wednesday I felt a little off but nothing crazy.

Thursday afternoon it hit, I felt like I got hit by a truck. I sat down in my arm chair and just didn't get up for a couple hours. Still no fever all the way through, I had started measuring my temp morning and night on the Thursday the week before when I was working. While I was in that chair for those couple hours I couldn't even have got up to pee if I had needed to. My own thoughts didn't even make sense, I just had to sit down and, uhh, be very disoriented and woozy and wait it out.

Friday morning I was a bit depleted, but otherwise OK, and it was better and better from there with good sleep, good nutrition and good hydration. I checked in with Occupational Health at my hospital Monday AM, no fever, no problem and my employer had all the nurses in an N95 mask for every patient interaction by the time I returned from vaca. IIRC I did 65 hours that first week back. None of my census has tested COVID positive.

I think I will either test positive for having had Covid or we also had some other atypical URV running around Alaska this spring. Typically in summertime my immune system will crawl out of my body to go kill squirrels while it is waiting for something to do inside my body. I haven't had to spend two hours in an arm chair fighting off a URV since I was 7 or 8 years old. If I don't test positive when a reliable serum titer test is available I will be surprised.

Thanks for doing your part to flatten the curve, to all y'all. I am happy to take care of folks with Covid or HIV or HepC or tuberculosis or ebola even as long as I have appropriate PPE. Flattening the curve has given the manufacturers a little time to ramp up production on N95 masks, which I need to keep me and my family and my other patients safe from this thing.

[Scott Winners]

Another problem: My friend who did have it so bad he went the hospital--his fever went up and down during the same day, and sometimes he had no fever at all. So if one thinks they can figure out if you're sick using a thermometer, well, they may have missed their mark.

This is probably going to prove to be true. There is plenty of evidence to support this hypothesis, especially with the growing huge number of folks who test positive for having had COVID and never had any symptoms. There is no question it is killing folks with underlying health problems.

What we don't know are the long term effects from having had it - like folks who had rheumatic fever as a kid and suddenly pop up with severe cardiac issues around their 60th birthday; and we don't really know how many strains or mutations of the thing are out there for sure either. The last reputable source I saw a month or so ago identified two known strains, one more severe than the other. I do remember one was named "L", but I don't even remember what letter they assigned to the other.

The number of strains is one of the bugaboos with coming up with a vaccine. To come up with an effective vaccine the folks in the lab are going to have to find something all the strains have in common, and then come up with a vaccine that will work on all of them.

It is a fascinating time to be living in. My microbiology prof in nursing school was a PhD endocrinologist, but her hobby was epidemiology and I caught that 'bug' from her. I am deep in the weeds keeping up with data from the Alaska Dept of Health and keeping my patients negative with basic stuff like bleach and handwashing and masking when social distancing is not possible. So far so good on protecting my patients, but I fully understand the need to manage this and put it behind us.

FWIW please do NOT inject yourself with lysol or give yourself a bleach enema. Disinfectants are powerful chemicals that kill everything in their path, including your own healthy tissues. Plain old soap and water will kill this thing; you don't _need_ to bleach your laundry but you do want to not breathe the thing in to your body.

[Brian Elfert]

Pretty sure my aunt and uncle both had it about a month ago. Most of the time they don't want you to go to the doctor unless it is bad. My aunt called nurse line and was directed to see a doctor. I don't know if she had a test or not. My uncle came down with same thing, but milder.

I suspect I may have had COVID-19 first of the year. Shortness of breath, 104 fever, cough, and all that. No loss of taste that I recall. Rapid influenza test was negative. Started Tuesday afternoon and didn't go back to work until the next Thursday. I stayed home two extra days because I was so tired. It took a good two plus weeks to fully recover.

[Jim Becker]

New York state did random testing of 3000 persons. 14% showed antibodies of CV-19, even though they had shown no symptoms. Even though they had no symptoms, all were contaiguus at the time of infection. This is what is so bad, carriers don't know they have virus and are spreading it

What's scarier is that testing in some other areas has shown higher percentages that that...some at 30%. A study in Iceland put it close to 50% of asymptomatic infections that had recovered. This is one of the scariest things about this particular virus. It's also why they are now discovering that infections started much earlier than previously was suggested. It was here in North America, spreading silently in communities simply because folks didn't know they had it. It's also why masks are now suggested/required. Even though casual masks are less "protective" than medical grade masks, the idea is that they help hinder expelling the virus into the air by an asymptomatic or pre-symptomatic individual, potentially reducing the chance of infecting others nearby. IE...my mask helps to protect you and vice versa.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Jim,

there was a study in a small village of over 3,000 in northern Italy where they were able to test the entire population. 54% of the village tested positive asymptomatic. A nursing home in San Diego tested similarly this week.

It's those who are pre-symptomatic or asymptomatic who IMO we need to be worried about. They can unknowingly infect others. A photograph in the local newspaper and the accompanying article talked about the 50 or so people protesting at the county courthouse about the stay-at-home order by Idaho's governor Little. They and their signs clamor about personal liberty or Freedom. If you think the governor's stay-at-home order restricts your personal liberty or Freedom, try being intubated in an ICU bed or staring at the inside of a coffin.

Darwin and Wallace developed and promoted the idea of "natural selection". I'd suggest natural selection/survival of the fittest isn't restricted to just being the strongest, the loudest or the most physically fit.

I am not scared or fearful but I am cautious. I am home alone while my wife has been away home schooling 3 grandkids in central California for 6 weeks. I go out 1 or 2 times a week shopping for groceries. When necessary, I go out to pay bills. Yesterday I traveled to HD and a local nursery to buy some more tomato and pepper plants to get into the ground. In my sparsely populated county, we had our 14th Covid-19 death yesterday. All of the deaths have been in the 70+ age group of which my wife and I are members. There are 2 families in the area that have more than one restaurant, one has 12 in a 30 mile area and one has 2 in town. While we usually eat out 1 meal a week, since the stay-at-home order was put in place, I have been getting 2 take out meals a week, one from a restaurant of each family to support them. Once every 2 weeks, I drive across the Snake River to Riverport Brewery where I have a 1/2 gallon growler filled with River Rat Red, IMO, a fine scotch ale.

A new neighbor sewed 28 masks for her husband, his coworkers at WSU and U-of-I and for me. When I go out I wear that mask as the last paper ones I had in the shop I sent with my wife 6 weeks ago.

Until there is a vaccine or highly successful therapy treatment available for Covid-19, I will continue to live cautiously.