Last Sunday I was feeling fine. Better than fine. I was energized and ready for a full week ahead. All of that changed very suddenly on Monday afternoon. I was the first one in our home to contract the Coronavirus and I wanted to write out the whole story with all of the boring minute details. I know I always appreciated these timelines from my handful of friends that actually have had COVID. So this is for anyone like me, relentlessly researching what you might expect to encounter when/if the coronavirus enters your home.

First of all, I’m obviously not a medical professional at all and I know all cases are different. We are blessed to not have any conditions that would make us high risk. This is just my personal account.

MONDAY MORNING

I started homeschool with the kids and packed up their workbooks to bring to the car dealership where I get my oil changed. I was texting friends, helping the kids with their schooling, and really loving the fall weather! The kids were creating their own caramel apples by doing drawings and writing ingredients. We were going to make caramel apples later.

MONDAY AFTERNOON

11:30 I started getting chills and feeling like my skin was crawling and my breath was hot. I know what time it was because I texted J.

2:00 I was miserable. Body aches and fatigue were setting in quickly. Anytime one of the kids touched me at all it burned. I felt prickly all over and their fingers felt like cold razors. I took my temperature and it was just below 100.

3:00 I went to sleep and didn’t eat much of anything that day. I just slept hard other than waking up with a minor cough, fever, and aches.

TUESDAY MORNING

8:00  I woke up and still had a fever which had increased to 100.8.

10:00 J brought me to the Urgent Care Doctor. I didn’t want a drive-through COVID test because at that point I thought it was the Flu.

11:30 I sat in the car for triage and then went into an exam room where the first thing they did was stick a swab down my nose for the COVID test. The dreaded COVID test wasn’t the worst thing ever, but it wasn’t pleasant. They also took two more swabs, one in each nostril for the flu test.

The flu swab was instant results and they came back negative. I told the Doctor that I was shocked because I thought for sure I had the flu. He informed me that the Coronavirus feels just like the flu. I told him that I never lost my taste or smell. He said that only 2/3 of people with COVID have that symptom. He wasn’t diagnosing me with COVID. He was actually very nuetral and said it could be a different type of viral infection that was neither flu nor corona. They sent me home to wait 2-3 days for results. The only treatment was over the counter flu and cold medication.

TUESDAY EVENING

I was too weak to do anything. Even when I was in the Doctors office I was tempted to lay down on the exam table because I felt like I could barely sit up. I stayed in my room all night and just getting dressed caused me to feel winded.

WEDNESDAY

On day three I was still lethargic all day. My fever actually came and went. At the end of the day stuff was tasting super weird. I still never lost my taste or smell completely, but it was altered. I was feeling slightly better than the day before but still horrible.

1:00 J got chills and then a fever of 102.

4:00 Z (age 13) started coughing and had a fever also over 102.

THURSDAY

I still had no lab results, but it was looking more and more like Coronavirus from what I read. Luckily on day four, I was feeling slightly better. I could stand on my feet for more than two minutes and I made simple things like oatmeal. The two grown-ups and one teen were all down for the count leaving a 10-year-old to hold down the fort with her two younger siblings. Luckily she relishes being in charge and handled it all like a champ.

FRIDAY

This was day five for me. I was fever free and had a lot more energy and strength. J and Z were only on Day three though and J was miserable. He had missed work all week except Monday. Z on the other hand still did all of his online classes and I was having to stop him from running around or staying up late. He still had a cough and fever, but he was feeling good otherwise.

I called the Doctor and there were still no results. Ugh. I was disappointed.

At this point, I had labeled us all COVID positive anyway and canceled all of our plans for the next two weekends. This included photo shoots, a party, and camping reservations we had for fall break.

SATURDAY

I finally got the results which confirmed a positive COVID result. We only have to quarantine for 10 days.

I asked if my terrible congestion is a COVID symptom and she said yes. I asked how long it should last and she said up to two weeks like with any viral infection. I asked if we should assume that my husband and son had it since their symptoms were the same and she said Yes. They only need to get tested if they need a Doctor’s note for school or work.

It was now day six and we were able to eat together as a family and spent some time outside, but definitely took it easy.  J still had a lot of discomfort and fatigue. One symptom I still had (and have) is the congestion, which keeps me up at night because when I sleep I won’t breathe through my mouth so I feel like I am suffocating. We also all three still have terrible barking coughs.

 

SUNDAY

I got a call from the health department today and recieved my official “Intiation of Isolation” documents. Assuming we continue to recover this well this will be our final week of quarantine and recuperation.  I’m glad we finally have some answers… and antibodies.