Coronaeducation, Episode 4: What it's Like to Have Covid-19

[Sign in the Badlands, SD.]

One person's experience:

You're exposed. You later figure out where, and deal with idiots by phone with plenty of the f-bombs you so studiously avoid, because they had staff who were sick and stayed open.

You develop symptoms 5 days later, apparently a typical number. Fever, cough, aches, weakness, loss of appetite. You can throw in bloody nose. You talk to your doctor's office, and arrive at self-quarantine and 9-1-1 if you start having trouble breathing.

You wait. In a few days, you start feeling better, and think you skated like most seem to do. Go five days with no fever (CDC recommends waiting 3), and go out, wearing mask, social distance. Watch birds.

You start not feeling right. Quarantine. Fever, bad cough, bad aches, weak, no appetite. You wait.

One night at home breathing is hard, pulse is pounding. Can't cough anymore, ribs ache. You lay down with your phone dialed to 9-1-1, all you have to do is press the green button. You don't. You think those people have enough problems right now in this podunk county with weak healthcare being held up by some very good, strong and noble people. You have learned that basically they can't help until you need a vent, and that most people who need a vent eventually die.

And you ask, should I call my kids? My friends? All are far away, except a few friends, and it's not like they can do anything. Why should I worry them?

And then you think, who will find my body, and when? How long will it take for the neighbors to start thinking the local bird guy hasn't been taking out his garbage? It's not like anyone is visiting anybody, and rightly not.

And now you are two days without fever (apparently, thermometer battery is dead, but my trout stream thermometer says 98F.) And you know you are far better off than many.

["...Destruction leads to a very rough road but it also breeds creation. . ." - The Red Hot Chili Peppers, Californication. Eventually, Coronaeducation (© Donald Peter Freiday) will find its way to a platform other than The Freiday Bird Blog. For now, if it's birds and nature that are what you need, I'm with you, and so if that's the case, skip down a blog or more or check "Time Machine" to the right for some of that. With Coronaeducation, it is not my intent to play epidemiologist, scientist, or politician, except when my brand of training and teaching lends itself to that arena. Mainly, this pandemic has set me to wondering, about humans, family, friends, life, the future . . .]