I know, everyone was excited to see the end of 2020. It was a year we would all like to forget, but there is little chance of that. And, I believe that for some reason, we knew - or at least certainly hoped - that the new year had to be better. It just had to be.
Well, my new year didn't start off well.
And, the old one didn't end so very well either. Symptoms started off slowly, but I found myself unusually tired. I went to bed early on Christmas Eve and again on Christmas Day. After that, I just stayed in bed . . . for four weeks. So, if your math is good, you can see that the old year ended the same way the new year began for me. I was sick in bed with no good reason to ring in the new year.
My symptoms were weird. I had little or no fever, no chills, no sneezing, and little coughing. I had over-all body aches and fatigue. And, if I tried to get out of bed, I felt dizzy and woozy. So, I stayed in bed. Nothing changed. I didn't get any better or worse for two weeks. I just remained in bed, exhausted.
My brother stayed with me during this time. It was more because I had a functioning car and he didn't. If he stayed with me, he could still drive to work. He is a much better chef in the kitchen than me. But, for whatever reason, he has discovered T.V. dinners -- and he likes them. How is that possible? I have no idea. Swanson invented the frozen meal back in 1954. It was an instant icon, so very trendy and ultra-modern. But, as far as I'm concerned, T.V. dinners should have gone the way of lava lamps, bell bottoms, Cabbage Patch dolls, leg warmers, Hot Wheels, mood rings and Gangnam Style.
One night, after about eleven days in bed, my brother needed my help with an airline ticket. I had to sit up in bed, check out some things on the computer for him, and give him some instructions. It had to be done. He needed my help. There was nobody else to help him out. So, I sat up, getting woozier by the minute, and helped him with his problems. By the time everything was resolved, I was an exhausted wreck. It took me a long time to recover, and I decided then and there that it was time to go to Urgent Care in the morning to find out what I had and how to fix it.
Fortunately for me, I live in a very convenient location. There was an Urgent Care center perhaps two minutes from my home. In these times of Covid-19, I just couldn't walk in the front door. I had to text them, wait for a call, answer too many questions, and then go into Urgent Care when they were ready for me.
It was almost too far for me to walk. I wasn't sure I'd make it to the examination room. Thankfully, I did. I had a test for the flu, another for Covid-19, and some chest x-rays. There might have been more tests, but I don't remember. At one point the nurse asked if I'd ever had pneumonia. I said, "Not that I remember, but I did have malaria five times." She'd never had that answer before. I'd never had pneumonia either, but x-rays indicated there's a first time for everything. As far as other results that day, the flu test was negative and the Covid-19 test was positive. Yikes! What? I was told to go on to the hospital where they would check me in for a few days. That wasn't at all what I expected to hear.
I drove myself to the hospital.
When I arrived, I wasn't exactly sure where to go. So, I walked in the main entrance. One woman greeted me with, "Hello, how can I help you?" But, very fortunately, another woman asked, "Would you like a wheelchair?" It was an excellent suggestion. They strolled me down to the Emergency Room.
More tests. Blood drawn. Clips and needles were placed on various parts of my body. And, I was thoroughly checked over. Throughout the experience, I realized I was now on the front line of defense against this nasty virus. At least a dozen health workers came into my room for various reasons. Some wore masks. Others wore additional face shields. But, all of them knew that I had tested positive for the coronavirus. It didn't stop a one of them from doing their job. I heard throughout 2020, that year we all want to forget, that the health workers around the world are heroes. This was my first time to actually see them with my own eyes. It was humbling.
The doctor who finally checked me over said that he, too, had fought his own personal battle with that virus for eleven or twelve days back in February or March. A lot has happened in the world since then. That was before the world really knew how to treat this virus. That was before several different treatments have proven successful. It was when this was at its scariest. He faced it all bravely, lived to tell about it, and then returned to take care of people like me. This doctor, whose name I never actually caught, was the biggest hero I met in the Emergency Room. He also said words that really comforted me, "What made you come to the hospital at the tail end of this virus?" I was so pleased - and very relieved - to learn I was at the tail end. It had been a long haul with little change in symptoms. But, just hearing that I was near the end of this experience was such wonderful news.
Then, bigger surprising news came. I was told my oxygen levels were almost normal. They saw no reason to admit me overnight. I was sent home and ordered into quarantine for two weeks. That was not going to be a problem. Getting up and walking around was still a challenge. I think some of that difficulty was due to dehydration. I had an I.V. bag of fluids while in the Emergency Room, and the walk back to my car was easier than the walk into the hospital. Anyway, it took almost the entire time I was in quarantine to finally get my energy back and move around my home.
The trip to the hospital was about two weeks ago. Since then, I've still spent a lot of time in bed. For most of those two weeks, every time I got out of bed to do the smallest task, I had to go back to bed to recover. But, my quarantine ends today, and I can finally move around with a lot less exhaustion.
I may be a couple of weeks late, but I can now wish you a Happy New Year! I still hope this year is going to be better than 2020. However, judging by the way things have started, I'm not holding my breath.
Well, my new year didn't start off well.
And, the old one didn't end so very well either. Symptoms started off slowly, but I found myself unusually tired. I went to bed early on Christmas Eve and again on Christmas Day. After that, I just stayed in bed . . . for four weeks. So, if your math is good, you can see that the old year ended the same way the new year began for me. I was sick in bed with no good reason to ring in the new year.
My symptoms were weird. I had little or no fever, no chills, no sneezing, and little coughing. I had over-all body aches and fatigue. And, if I tried to get out of bed, I felt dizzy and woozy. So, I stayed in bed. Nothing changed. I didn't get any better or worse for two weeks. I just remained in bed, exhausted.
My brother stayed with me during this time. It was more because I had a functioning car and he didn't. If he stayed with me, he could still drive to work. He is a much better chef in the kitchen than me. But, for whatever reason, he has discovered T.V. dinners -- and he likes them. How is that possible? I have no idea. Swanson invented the frozen meal back in 1954. It was an instant icon, so very trendy and ultra-modern. But, as far as I'm concerned, T.V. dinners should have gone the way of lava lamps, bell bottoms, Cabbage Patch dolls, leg warmers, Hot Wheels, mood rings and Gangnam Style.
One night, after about eleven days in bed, my brother needed my help with an airline ticket. I had to sit up in bed, check out some things on the computer for him, and give him some instructions. It had to be done. He needed my help. There was nobody else to help him out. So, I sat up, getting woozier by the minute, and helped him with his problems. By the time everything was resolved, I was an exhausted wreck. It took me a long time to recover, and I decided then and there that it was time to go to Urgent Care in the morning to find out what I had and how to fix it.
Fortunately for me, I live in a very convenient location. There was an Urgent Care center perhaps two minutes from my home. In these times of Covid-19, I just couldn't walk in the front door. I had to text them, wait for a call, answer too many questions, and then go into Urgent Care when they were ready for me.
It was almost too far for me to walk. I wasn't sure I'd make it to the examination room. Thankfully, I did. I had a test for the flu, another for Covid-19, and some chest x-rays. There might have been more tests, but I don't remember. At one point the nurse asked if I'd ever had pneumonia. I said, "Not that I remember, but I did have malaria five times." She'd never had that answer before. I'd never had pneumonia either, but x-rays indicated there's a first time for everything. As far as other results that day, the flu test was negative and the Covid-19 test was positive. Yikes! What? I was told to go on to the hospital where they would check me in for a few days. That wasn't at all what I expected to hear.
I drove myself to the hospital.
When I arrived, I wasn't exactly sure where to go. So, I walked in the main entrance. One woman greeted me with, "Hello, how can I help you?" But, very fortunately, another woman asked, "Would you like a wheelchair?" It was an excellent suggestion. They strolled me down to the Emergency Room.
More tests. Blood drawn. Clips and needles were placed on various parts of my body. And, I was thoroughly checked over. Throughout the experience, I realized I was now on the front line of defense against this nasty virus. At least a dozen health workers came into my room for various reasons. Some wore masks. Others wore additional face shields. But, all of them knew that I had tested positive for the coronavirus. It didn't stop a one of them from doing their job. I heard throughout 2020, that year we all want to forget, that the health workers around the world are heroes. This was my first time to actually see them with my own eyes. It was humbling.
The doctor who finally checked me over said that he, too, had fought his own personal battle with that virus for eleven or twelve days back in February or March. A lot has happened in the world since then. That was before the world really knew how to treat this virus. That was before several different treatments have proven successful. It was when this was at its scariest. He faced it all bravely, lived to tell about it, and then returned to take care of people like me. This doctor, whose name I never actually caught, was the biggest hero I met in the Emergency Room. He also said words that really comforted me, "What made you come to the hospital at the tail end of this virus?" I was so pleased - and very relieved - to learn I was at the tail end. It had been a long haul with little change in symptoms. But, just hearing that I was near the end of this experience was such wonderful news.
Then, bigger surprising news came. I was told my oxygen levels were almost normal. They saw no reason to admit me overnight. I was sent home and ordered into quarantine for two weeks. That was not going to be a problem. Getting up and walking around was still a challenge. I think some of that difficulty was due to dehydration. I had an I.V. bag of fluids while in the Emergency Room, and the walk back to my car was easier than the walk into the hospital. Anyway, it took almost the entire time I was in quarantine to finally get my energy back and move around my home.
The trip to the hospital was about two weeks ago. Since then, I've still spent a lot of time in bed. For most of those two weeks, every time I got out of bed to do the smallest task, I had to go back to bed to recover. But, my quarantine ends today, and I can finally move around with a lot less exhaustion.
I may be a couple of weeks late, but I can now wish you a Happy New Year! I still hope this year is going to be better than 2020. However, judging by the way things have started, I'm not holding my breath.
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