COVD-19 is a serious virus
Strangely enough, this is my first post since 1 year ago today.
I have just recovered from the most serious illness of my 65 years – COVID-19. I never imagined I would get infected, but I did. As of this writing, it’s been a 29 day miserable odyssey.
In my case, I developed a dry hack on the 15th of August. The next day my upper bronchial tubes felt infected – swollen and sore. I took a CV test at Piedmont Hospital the next day. They stick the long swab way back in your sinus tube to the point of near pain. I had a video appointment with my provider at the VA clinic on Monday, the 17 of August, My Athens VA provider, Ms. Hawkins, prescribed a Z-pack which is Azithromycin along with some cough syrup, and an inhaler. My cough was not so bad. After the test at the ER, I was sent home. It hurt to breathe.
The next week at home was miserable. Lack of sleep, complete loss of appetite, diarrhea, and chest congestion and the overall pain and misery that goes with it all. It was on the horrible side, I scarcely recall the entire week.
Cathy called our primary GP and he suggested getting evaluated at the hospital on Monday, the 24th of August. Once triage was complete, I was taken to an isolated room off the ER. They monitored me for several hours there. After observation and numerous tests, I was admitted to Piedmont.
I spent the next 7 days in an isolated room complete with a large hepa-filter fan blowing the room air outside. This was Day 10 after feeling ill. I had IV ports inserted in both arms. The next 7 days were also miserable for me and mentally challenging. There were numerous medicines inserted into my system. The first 4 days, I had pneumonia. The administered antibacterials and antivirals after a few days the pneumonia cleared up. However, the other symptoms remained.
I have Type 2 Diabetes and it was running very high. So, I received insulin shots regularly. Normally, as I do now, I treat with Jardiance and Metformin only and it i kept under control. I also received injections of blood thinner daily in order to prevent blood clots as I had been lying down for 9 days prior to entering the hospital. They gave me Corticosteroids daily. This STRONG medication mimics cortisol, a hormone that is naturally produced by the adrenal glands in healthy people. This medication makes your entire body “amped up”. It wires you like a high voltage infusion. It is an overwhelming drug that makes a person’s mind race.. In addition to the steroids, I got 6 treatments intravenously of Remdesivir. This drug has not been approved by the FDA. It’s an antiviral drug that has shown effectiveness with SARS-COV2 and MERS. It was a week of intense medications and they took their toll on my overall being. On top of it all, my oxygen levels were low (87% – which should be 97-99%) and I was placed on .3 liters per minute. The nurse suggested that I do what I could to exercise my lungs. At this point if I took a deep breath, it was very painful. I used the spirometer during the day to exercise my lungs. I had a wonderful nurse for a day or two who was very upbeat, supportive, and cheered me up and on as much as she possibly could. One day, Monica ( I called her Santa Monica) told me, “Smell the Flowers and Blow the Leaves”. This was her illustration of how to breath. I also used the Spirometer to breath into as a pulmonary exercise. I did both and over time it help as my oxygen levels improved. Every day seemed a blur. I took a shower each day after the nurse taped plastic over my IV ports. It was unnerving since my balance was unsteady and my breathing was compromised. By the time I dried off with towel and put my hospital gown on, I was exhausted and my oxygen level was low. I spent the next 30 minutes recovering. I felt so weak that is was unnerving.
After 6 days, the doctor told me that if I could sleep without oxygen for a night, they would release me to go home. My oxygen was dropped to .2 liters per minute. I did sleep oxygen free overnight without any complications. I was elated. Cathy picked me up and took me home. That was about 5pm on Sunday the 30 of August 2020. It was a wonder-filled ride home. To simply to look out the window and see everything after being in a CV ward room for a week was so nice. I felt like an 8 year old checking out the world after a week in an isolated hospital room.
Cathy had the master bedroom all fixed up. I spent time in a chair or in the bed when napping. The first week I felt very weak, exhausted from lack of good sleep. I had a video appointment with Dr Chisom by GP on Monday The 31st at 830am. The medical equipment people brought an oxygen concentrator to our home. I remained at .2 liters perminue for a little over a week. Once my oxygen got back up to 95+, I dropped it to .1 liter per minute. The first week back was rough. I remained exhausted and my sleep cycles were in chaos. The steroids continued for 3 days after my return home. They had a strong effect on me and my mental state was not normal. I was hoping that I would quickly return to what I thought of as normal.
The initial video appointment showed the doctor how sick I still remained. I asked for some Ambien for sleep since that is what they gave me in the hospital along with the melatonin I normally take. I learned the hard way that Ambien can have side effects. When I woke to go to the bathroom one night, I was totally disoriented. One night was very dangerous a I literally fell backwards into the garden tub and had a time getting out of it. No more Ambien for me! I was scraped up, bruised and very sore for several days after that.
My senses of smell and taste were highly diminished. They remain in that state up to this writing, I missed the smell of things and, of course, the taste of food. It seems slowly improving. – very slowly.
I had a video appointment on the 11th of September. I made a list the day before with remaining symptoms. At the top of the list was continued sleep deprivation. So, my doctor prescribed Lorazepam (also known as Ativan) to take at bedtime. It is a relaxant. This medication worked but has a short half life – about 4 hours. The doctor said that if I woke in the middle of the night, I could take another. The problem is that, for instance, I would sleep a deep sleep from 9pm and then at 2am I would be wide awake. I did take another pill at 2am but it did not put me back to sleep. I believe the steroids were behind all of this. Still working on my sleep cycle. I napped during the day. Today, I will attempt the go through the whole day without a nap. Not sure if these naps (1-2 hours) are working against my nighttime sleep. I reviewed several other symptoms that have remained with the doctor. After meeting with him virtually, he told me that my body has antibodies and that I have been simply inoculated and get out and move around. No restrictions and no isolation. This was Day 30. I was declared by my main provider that I was non-contagious and not susceptible to re-infection. This was the most exciting day after 30 days of misery. I still felt rough and was continuing to recover. This meant that I could be close to Cathy. We could be together in one room. It was a reunion for us after several weeks being separated and isolated. My smell and taste were still diminished. I was still very weak and short of breath after any activity.
Now, I am taking short walks, moving freely about he house and attempting to be active and build up my body and mind. I won’t see the doctor for a month unless anything comes up. I am on FMLA an will continue to re-gain my strength, This is day 31 for me. Although I am not contagious, I continue with a few symptoms. It’s GOOD to be ALIVE!
Last and definitely not least, I have to send a profound thank you to those that sent flowers, cards (I loved the huge card with my co-workers kind, well-wishing comments. It is AWESOME), the texts and calls. I appreciated those things so much. The most wonderful person, my wife Cathy, has been a life-saver taking care of my every need. I cannot put into words how much I appreciate her. She made me feel like a king.