I tested positive for the Coronavirus on October 07, 2020. This is my attempt to keep a day-by-day account of my COVID journey. Will try and update this blog as often as possible.
Day 1: October 7, Wednesday
I am quite sure that I contracted the virus from office. After the Gandhi Jayanti long weekend, as soon as we resumed office on Monday, Oct 5, we got to know that our office boy-cum-housekeeping-cum-teamaker had tested positive. The news of his report set off alarm bells as he practically touched every corner and surface of the office. On Tuesday, we got to know that the front office girl also tested positive. And on Wednesday, one of my team members tested positive. I already had a sore throat so had taken a precautionary day off. Now the office finally woke up from its slumber and was closed. Everyone was asked to get a test done.
I went to the local public health center to get a rapid antigen test done. All you need to show is your Aadhar card for the test to be done. Even before getting the test done, i started blabbering that there's been an outbreak in the office. So while i was still waiting for the result, the attendant who tested me casually mentioned that I might turn positive. And when I actually did, a part of me thought that I may have inadvertently influenced the outcome by talking about the outbreak.
This conspiracy theory was laid to rest over the next 18 hours.
One of the perks of living in Baroda is a large house where I at least have space for self isolation. I shifted to the room on the second floor. As I didn't have any symptoms as such I didn't take any thermometers or O2 meters with me. Just the medications and a change of clothes.
It is important to take plenty of rest and plenty of fluids through the day. And although i took the fluid, I didn't rest much. Continued answering the work emails and WhatsApp messages. I realized my folly when I got pretty tired and burning sensation in my eyes by day end. Need to sleep more often.
On day 1, I took 4 tablets of HCQ 200mg, BComplex and chewed the Vit C+Zinc tablet. I didn't take the paracetamol, nor the Azithromycin during the day as i didn't have any fever. In addition I had all the kadha, haldi dudh, warm water, Guava (which contains 4 times more VitC than oranges, as stated to me by wife) etc etc. I guess I'm just plain lucky to have contracted COVID rather than my wife. Because I doubt i could have taken as good care of her as she has of me.
By nightfall, I could feel fever creeping in. So took a paracetamol to preempt the fever. Managed to sleep quite well. Surprisingly.
Day 2: October 8, Thursday
When I woke up, I felt as if it was just a normal day. But as soon as i started to walk, I could sense weakness, backpain and a throbbing headache. I knew then and there that the rapid test was not a conspiracy. That although the paracetamol ensured that there was no fever, I was still weak. I slowed down a lot. Told the office guys that I won't be able to work from home or any such shit. Had another round of meds after breakfast (thankfully the sense of taste and smell, and my appetite are all in tact *touchwood*)
On a side note, while it is important and ethically responsible to make your infection public, be wary of whom you choose to talk about it. A majority of them haven't really gone through this and will just expound advices from their echo chambers. Some just want to know how it feels like because they fear that they'll get it soon. Very few will be genuinely interested in your well-being. They'll call, share credible info, answer your questions and allay your fears. Unfortunately, you will not know beforehand who these good ones are. There will be surprises - some you never expected anything from but were especially sweet and concerned; and shocks - some you expected a lot from, but ended up disappointing you with their nonchalance. Such is life.
Fever, headache, body pain, loss of taste and diarrhea are all symptoms of COVID19 and I've had all of them in varying degrees. Although now I'm not sure if the odd taste in the mouth and diarrhea is because of the virus or the HCQ, paracetamol and Azithromycin tablets I'm taking.
OTT platforms are over-rated. There is only that much time you can while away in quarantine. Started reading Catch22 today. Have lost the habit of reading long content so I'm taking it slow. 25 pages down so far.
Day 3: October 9
It's 1:20 am right now and I can feel the last of the big symptoms rearing their ugly heads - congestion and loss of smell. Just when I lied down to sleep, i could feel a runny nose. This was odd because this is the first time I was feeling it since starting the medications. I've already taken 6 tablets of HCQ, 4 tablets of Bcomplex, chewed 3 tablets of VitC+Zinc and gulped 1 tablet of Azithromycin. Having a congestion now is worrying. Will try to sleep again. Wish me luck.
3 am. This is why I hate isolation. Even under usual circumstances, I hate being on my own. Now all of a sudden every symptom or a small change in my body, is like a fragment of food stuck between the teeth and I'm the solitary tongue picking at it. Anything I feel, feels magnified. I think I'm losing my sense of smell. Tried smelling the deodorant but i could only feel the coolness of the spray on my wrist. Took one more round of steam (have one of those electric, portable steaming pots. Quite cheap and efficient for such midnight struggles), checked the O2 saturation (98) and googled "loss of smell in covid" (PRO TIP: while searching for any info regarding COVID, be sure to consider articles that are a month old at max. This is a fast evolving disease. What was true in March 2020, may not be true right now.) Eventually, I think I over thought so much that I got tired and slept off.
Woke up at 6:30 out of sheer habit. Rough night. Cant smell the toothpaste but can feel the tingling of menthol. Couldn't really smell the coffee but could still taste the bitterness of it a bit. I guess the olfactory senses are working at reduced capacity. I too must follow suit today.
12:30 pm: I pretty much have all the symptoms now except high fever. So the doc asked me to get an HRCT scan done to find out the extent of infection in the lungs. Basically they wanted to rule out Pneumonia and remove 4000 bucks from my account. Yet to get the report but I don't see anything alarming coming out of it. Fingers crossed.
Side note: I fail to understand why a viral infection has become such a taboo in the society!!.. I have neighbors who have seen me grow up over the last three decades, and since the time they got to know of my infection they have shunned not just me but my whole family like an outcast! Their doors are always closed, they've started drying their clothes at the other end of the front yard!.. not even a courtesy call over phone to check if we might be needing anything. My family is in a self-imposed quarantine as it is morally the right thing to do. But such denigration is disgusting. Koi baat nahi. Sabka time aayega. Vaccine me bahut der hai.
Side side note (whatever that means): I headed out after 2 days to get the chest CT scan done. And all eyes of the society were on me. Piercing at me with looks that ask "why is he out?", "Shouldn't he be inside?!". Kept my gaze low and tried my best not to raise the middle finger, sat on the two wheeler and drove away. For those 15 seconds, I got a teeny tiny glimpse of what women must be feeling day in and day out in this country and society. Exhausting.
The CT scan showed "5% parenchymal involvement" (whatever that is) and " early changes of viral pneumonia to be considered". The mention of pneumonia triggered some alarm bells but my family doctor said that this can be controlled by doubling the dose of Azithromycin.
Rest of the day was quite uneventful. Didn't develop any new symptoms, nor did any of the existing symptoms worsen (Hallelujah!). Was about to call it a night when I got into a conversation with a friend of mine. Now I'm usually not in regular touch with this guy and the chat started out like a regular "heard you tested positive, how are you feeling now?".. but then, it just graduated into a full fledged info session!.. he'd recently defeated the virus and was sharing tips on how he did it. He and I have a lot in common. Similar age and we are both hands-on fathers; he is a LOT fitter and used to cycle distances I wouldn't normally even drive! May be that helped him recuperate better. Anyway, the chat was super helpful. It's so good to have someone who has been through this and has relevant and updated tips and hacks!
Days 4 & 5: October 10-11
The oddest things happen when you least expect them to. After 2 days of symptoms coming and going in varying severities, I have had a 36 hour period where I've been... Just... Bored. No fever, no cough, no body pain, no headache, no diarrhea... Even my sense of smell is back!.. in fact, on Saturday, there was a brief period where I even doubted if I had COVID at all. I mean, think about it.. even common cold or a throat infection can bring mild fever; and everything else can be attributed as side effects of the medication that it was taking. That thought was horrifying. Almost as horrifying as that moment on Wednesday when I came to know that I am "probably positive". You see, I have been bravely facing everything since Wednesday because a part of me was actually relieved that I have COVID and that it doesn't seems to be 'that' bad, and that it'll be over in 14 days... And I'll have antibodies to keep me safe for at least some period of time in future. I know now that this doubt was, to quote Billy the Butcher, "f&£+g diabolical" and it was unnecessary. Because, a rapid antigen test is somewhat like a pregnancy kit. If it's negative, it can still be wrong. But if it's positive, it's "probably" right.
Woke up on Sunday absolutely fine. I even did some physical exercise in addition to the breathing ones that I've been doing the past few days. I spoke to the doctor and told him that I haven't got any symptoms in last 36 hours. He said that it's a good thing and that there are an increased number of milder infections happening these days. I could be one of them. But still, he asked me to remain calm for two more days and we can perhaps do the PCR test on Tuesday (7th day) to check if I'm negative or not. I was elated. Unfortunately elations are ephemeral in 2020.
After lunch I spoke to the security guard of my office (he too tested positive on Wednesday). He had been asked to do an RT-PCR test and his results had just come in. Despite not having any symptoms other than an infrequent cough, his report was alarming. His CT values were between 15-17. So he was having a high viral load despite not showing much symptom. I think I'll just wait for my PCR report before I start partying.
Day 6: October 12, Monday
The day was quite uneventful except for the fact that I finally took the full subscription of Disney HotStar and discovered Succession. What a beauty!... Unfortunately, that wasn't the high point of the day.
Today is Day 6, so I'm done with my course of HCQ 200mg and Azithromycin 500mg. I only have Paracetamol, VitC+Zinc and B-Complex tablets with me. I'd stopped taking Paracetamol and by evening I got feverish again. I was sweating but had this burning sensation in my eyes. I usually get it when I have fever inside me. So I checked. 100.3!... The fever is still low grade, I have managed up to 104 in the past. But what is worrying is that I am getting fever after 5 days of medication. May be I'm not out of the woods yet. Took a paracetamol, had some haldi dudh and slept off
Day 7: October 13, Tuesday
Woke up with 99.7 degree fever. Spoke to the doc. He too was worried that I am getting fever after all these days. Has asked me to keep a check every 3 hours today and call back in the evening. If the fever persists, we'll go for an RT-PCR to check the viral load. In the evening, my brother in law referred my case to one of the empanelled doctors in his company. The fever hasn't really spiked. Has remained constant in the 99.3 to 100.3 degree area. I decided not to take a paracetamol and just sleep it off.
Day 8: October 14, Wednesday
Every COVID story is slightly different from the other. I've heard of people testing negative after a week, I've heard of people serving out 21 days of quarantine instead of 14; and I've also heard of scary stories where people who were perfectly normal at the outset end up getting admitted with Oxygen support as their condition deteriorates. I've tried my best to be positive (God knows positivity doesn't come naturally to me). A part of me genuinely hoped that I'll test negative on 8th day. Doesn't seem like that's gonna happen.
Spoke to that empanelled doctor. He said that it is imperative for every covid patient to serve out 14 days in isolation and that I may have some symptom or the other throughout this period. The PCR test would have to be done after the 14th day and see if I get a negative result. That would mean that I can resume normal life.
Speaking of normal life, I tried to restart work life with a teams meeting where I tool stock of what the team plans to do during Navratri. Incredibly enough, this simple process of sitting through a meeting and discussing idea proved to be so exhausting. But I need to do more of this, nonetheless. The show must go on.
Ended the day with again 100 degrees on the thermometer.
