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| Covid Chronicles: My journey through the wringer (Page 9/12) |
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Synthesis
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OCT 23, 07:47 PM
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Chris’ Covid Chronicles
It has been eight days since my release from captivity, and I am still trying to figure out how to live life on the outside… I feel like I’m drifting through the days, a proverbial leaf on the wind (RIP Wash…), and the days are just passing me by.
It’s hard to get back to normal when normal went on hiatus at the beginning of the year. I still struggle to move around the house, though things are slowly improving there. I’m still super weak and don’t have the strength to do much of anything, let alone the stamina. Going from throwing heavy iron around to barely being able to move has been a huge blow, mentally, for me. I’ve always been independent (Cindy might say co-dependent…) so having to lean on others is difficult.
I think the hardest part so far has been having to learn to ask for help. I feel helpless, borderline useless. I know it will take time to get back to a level of independence that allows me to not feel this way, but… It’s difficult.
Fred Rogers once said “Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.” I’m learning that the helpers are all around and willing to jump in and do. It’s been good for my tired, cynical heart.
The helpers have come out, and several friends, neighbors, and even strangers have stepped up to help Cindy and I through the recovery process with work around the house to help get us prepped for the winter. A call to the local neighborhood for help shoveling the heavy snow from Tuesday led to the guy that owns the auto shop around the corner to stop over and plow us out, completely unexpectedly. He refused money, so he got beer.
I’m still here. I still have a long road ahead of me. My doctor said it’s 4-5 days or so of recovery for every day hospitalized in some cases, though with Covid it may be months before things are back to normal. Some of my new Covid-survivor friends have said it was anywhere from 4-6 months for them, even without hospitalization or with milder cases than what I went through. I am hyper-aware of any aches/pains in my body now, and super paranoid about blood clots now. The last thing I want to do is wake up dead due to a pulmonary embolism, or worse, have a stroke because of a rogue blood clot. Talking with my doctor, he told me what to watch for, symptom-wise. I’m not having any symptoms, but every little new weird feeling has me on edge. I am dealing with random bouts of “brain fog”... I can be in the middle of something and completely lose track of what I was doing. About 20-30 minutes later, I can figure out where I was and pick up where I left off. This has happened to me about 2-3 times a day for the last several days. It’s driving me a bit crazy.
That’s it today… I’m doing OK. I just need to figure out how to stop “drifting” through the days and take charge again… But do so slowly, and with help.
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Monkeyman
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OCT 23, 08:39 PM
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| quote | | Originally posted by Synthesis:... leaf on the wind (RIP Wash…) |
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Nice. I'm another fan of Hoban. While we're at it, RIP Book.
Glad to hear you're feeling a little better, bro.
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Zeb
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OCT 23, 08:40 PM
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Good to hear you're doing better. Dwell on that. not the "not back to 100% yet" part. Yes, it'll take a while. If my 78 y/o mother in law can do it, so can you.
I know the whole concept of asking for help is alien to you, as it is to most guys. But it's like asking for directions. When you really need help, don't let your pride get in the way. That's really what's hurting the most right now. So remember that lots of people love you, and even "strangers" think you're worth helping. All those times you've done for others? It's payback time. And I bet your ledger is still on the plus side, and will be for quite a while.
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Boondawg
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OCT 23, 09:16 PM
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| quote | Originally posted by Synthesis:
Chris’ Covid Chronicles
It has been eight days since my release from captivity, and I am still trying to figure out how to live life on the outside… I feel like I’m drifting through the days, a proverbial leaf on the wind (RIP Wash…), and the days are just passing me by.
It’s hard to get back to normal when normal went on hiatus at the beginning of the year. I still struggle to move around the house, though things are slowly improving there. I’m still super weak and don’t have the strength to do much of anything, let alone the stamina. Going from throwing heavy iron around to barely being able to move has been a huge blow, mentally, for me. I’ve always been independent (Cindy might say co-dependent…) so having to lean on others is difficult.
I think the hardest part so far has been having to learn to ask for help. I feel helpless, borderline useless. I know it will take time to get back to a level of independence that allows me to not feel this way, but… It’s difficult.
Fred Rogers once said “Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.” I’m learning that the helpers are all around and willing to jump in and do. It’s been good for my tired, cynical heart.
The helpers have come out, and several friends, neighbors, and even strangers have stepped up to help Cindy and I through the recovery process with work around the house to help get us prepped for the winter. A call to the local neighborhood for help shoveling the heavy snow from Tuesday led to the guy that owns the auto shop around the corner to stop over and plow us out, completely unexpectedly. He refused money, so he got beer.
I’m still here. I still have a long road ahead of me. My doctor said it’s 4-5 days or so of recovery for every day hospitalized in some cases, though with Covid it may be months before things are back to normal. Some of my new Covid-survivor friends have said it was anywhere from 4-6 months for them, even without hospitalization or with milder cases than what I went through. I am hyper-aware of any aches/pains in my body now, and super paranoid about blood clots now. The last thing I want to do is wake up dead due to a pulmonary embolism, or worse, have a stroke because of a rogue blood clot. Talking with my doctor, he told me what to watch for, symptom-wise. I’m not having any symptoms, but every little new weird feeling has me on edge. I am dealing with random bouts of “brain fog”... I can be in the middle of something and completely lose track of what I was doing. About 20-30 minutes later, I can figure out where I was and pick up where I left off. This has happened to me about 2-3 times a day for the last several days. It’s driving me a bit crazy.
That’s it today… I’m doing OK. I just need to figure out how to stop “drifting” through the days and take charge again… But do so slowly, and with help.
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I enjoy your writing.
I think it helps us, as much as it helps you.
And isn't that what writing is all about?
Maybe even what LIFE is all about! Get Well Soon! 
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Raydar
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OCT 23, 09:35 PM
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Good to see you posting.
Just try to remember that every case - every person - is different.
I know a couple of people who only had "moderate" symptoms. (If you can call extreme exhaustion, screaming headaches, and no sense of smell or taste "moderate") And I also have a friend who is in ICU at her local hospital. I've also heard about several "friends of friends" who, sadly, didn't make it. Everyone is different.
But yeah... this thing is a really special circumstance. We've never seen it before. We never know how it's gonna act. Just try to progress at your own speed. But it DOES sound like youi're out of the woods.
Me? I'm going to continue wearing my mask when I'm in close proximity to people - at least multiple people - and will try to not do anything that will expose me (or anyone else, I suppose) unnecessarily.
Take care, man.[This message has been edited by Raydar (edited 10-23-2020).]
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maryjane
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OCT 23, 10:22 PM
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| quote | | Me? I'm going to continue wearing my mask when I'm in close proximity to people - at least multiple people |
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As will I.
Everyone gets it from someone else.
I do not want nor do I have the right to be that 'someone else'.
If the current daily new cases average of 60,000 continues the rest of 2020, by Jan 1, there will be an additional 4,080,000 cases in the USA.
If the current 7 day moving average of 805 new deaths/day USA continues for the rest of 2020, another (approx) 54,400 people will die by Jan 1 2021, totaling over 283,680 Covid19 deaths in 11 months. (1st US covid death was reported to have occurred in early Feb 2020)
IHME's projected US death toll for the same period is significantly higher.
In 2019,there was an estimated 38,800 traffic fatalities in the USA.
In 2019-202 flu season, (7 months long) an estimated 22,000 died from influenza.
https://www.cdc.gov/flu/abo...2022%2C000%20deaths.
https://www.nsc.org/road-sa...er%202018%20figures.[This message has been edited by maryjane (edited 10-23-2020).]
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MidEngineManiac
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OCT 23, 10:28 PM
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We have had next to nothing since last spring, but numbers jumped this week, starting with a church and spreading to a school, and the county isnt screwing around with isolation violators anymore. 5 grand a day.
https://ckphu.com/wp-conten...9H-dSNAPdyh1Fq8IM5rY
Dunno how I'm gonna get around this one. I've had a smokers cough (symptom) for 20 years, and a nasal drip since I took a hoof to the back of the head in 2008.. another "symptom".[This message has been edited by MidEngineManiac (edited 10-23-2020).]
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Synthesis
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OCT 24, 11:06 AM
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| quote | Originally posted by MidEngineManiac:
Dunno how I'm gonna get around this one. I've had a smokers cough (symptom) for 20 years, and a nasal drip since I took a hoof to the back of the head in 2008.. another "symptom".
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Maybe don't try to get around it? Wearing a mask costs you nothing. The cough and nasal drip aren't anyone else's business if you are Covid negative, and paranoid people can be paranoid all they want.
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blackrams
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OCT 24, 12:36 PM
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Synthesis
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OCT 28, 04:19 PM
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Chris’ Covid Chronicles
A tale of fog and pain...
The sensation of lightning shoots through the nerves in my lower legs or hands and causes me to twitch. A sharp sensation, as if a large needle was being violently inserted into the foot or leg or hand, piercing deep into the muscle. They come out of nowhere.
It started gradually at first, then with more regularity. I experience these several times per day, though last night and today has thankfully been free of them so far.
The headaches have returned with less regularity than prior to my hospitalization. They seem to start around 6PM or so, or I’ll wake up with it and it will just sit in the background all day, reminding me that no, it was just getting a drink in the kitchen, it would never leave me… Mocking me.
The Brain Fog, as it is called, is along for the ride and I’m struggling quite a bit with it. I feel as if I’m losing my mind some days, and it’s frustrating. I made a porchetta roast the other day in the sous vide, and it turned out beautifully. I tossed it on a wire rack placed on top of a baking sheet, and then put it in the oven under the broiler at 550 degrees to crust up the outside a bit. And then I got hit with a bout of the fog. When I reached into the oven to pull the pan out, I did so without oven mitts or pot holders. Fortunately, I came to my senses with my fingers about half an inch away from a baking sheet that was waiting to sear my fingers so badly that the top layer of skin would stick to the pan and tear away as I ripped my hands away from the pain. This scared me enough that it sent a jolt of adrenaline through my body, and I had the shakes for a short while after.
I am having pain in my ankles/knees/hips/shoulders/elbows, and my rib cage feels like I have been in a ring with Mike Tyson for three rounds whenever I move. It’s definitely in the ribs/muscles and not deeper. The pain is like a smoldering campfire towards the end of the evening, glowing coals with no flame until I move. Then, it flares up when you stir the coals. I. Hurt.
Generally I am OK when I am stationary, but having to get up and move through the house is like having had all of my joints replaced by an auto mechanic press-ganged into surgery and then being told to get up and walk off the pain.
Ibuprofen hasn’t touched any of it, but the acetaminophen seems to have helped a bit today.
My fever has not come back, and my oxygenation is getting better when I get up and move, so I do not feel like I am struggling as bad as I was. I’ll take this as a good sign that I am actually over the Covid virus now and just dealing with the after effects that affect some people.
I have been pretty quiet about this stuff around the house. I know Cindy will worry, and I don’t want her to. She knows I’m hurting, none of it is getting worse than it was, it’s just… There.
Today is day 30 since my symptoms started, 28 since I tested positive for this “scamdemic”... 14 since I was released from the hospital. I’m sick of being sick. I’m tired. I’m frustrated. I’m… Existing right now...
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