How did I get covid?
I work at a school of 3000+ students so it was inevitable that I would eventually get covid, especially as I have contact with 12 classrooms, teaching literacy skills.
I had a meeting on Tuesday about my work and, later that night, I received a phone call from the person I had a meeting with that she had just tested positive for covid.
That was Tuesday and by Thursday afternoon, I was starting to feel unwell.
That night, the headaches, fever, body aches, and sore throat started. Followed by constant coughing.
My covid vaccination history
I had my booster 3rd vaccination 3 weeks prior to this. It was awful.
I had a different booster to my first two vaccinations, which were Astra-Zeneca. The booster was pfizer as it had the omicron elements added.
The symptoms were quite severe for a week. I went back to work the following week but it was very difficult getting through the day.
I went home and just collapsed on the couch as my headaches were bad and my body was aching terribly.
The following week I felt better and that's when I had the meeting and contracted covid. Neither of us had been wearing masks and we sat quite close to each other.
I had taken mine off as I was working in my office and simply forgot to put it on, as we were not always wearing masks at school.
Living with Covid.
I had a fever for 2 days and occasionally afterward. The sore throat took a week to subside but I had facial numbness on the right side of my face. Even my ears! I liken it to getting a strong injection from the dentist to numb your mouth.
I could not stop coughing and eventually tore a muscle along my left rib cage, which made coughing painful. My back also hurt from the coughing.
The coughing was unproductive and the tickle would not go away.
At night, I started to wheeze as I lay down, and my nose would block up, making breathing difficult.
The headaches were constant for one and a half weeks. Sometimes, they would subside for a few hours but then they would come back.
Same for the body aches and pains and exhaustion-just carrying the groceries they had delivered to my kitchen left me breathless.
I think I started to panic as, unlike colds and flu, you do not get cumulatively better each day. When you think you're getting better, boom! Back to square one.
As I'm older now and need medication for blood pressure problems, and I have a history of cancer, I was quite worried as I kept hearing that I needed to be monitored as things can change quickly with covid.
I suppose, at the back of my mind, I was anxious thinking I might be the one it changes to the dangerous level.
The fact that a healthy school teacher in her 40's had died on her second day of being tested positive did not allay my subconscious fears.
So the psychological effect of covid is quite impacting on mental health, along with the need to isolate when sick.
Getting over covid.
My doctor just said 'take panadol and rest' but it wasn't working.
I was really panicking about my endless cough so my daughter bought me some Benadryl and some vaporizers to help me breathe at night.
I put eucalyptus oil in the water to help me breathe and stop the coughing.
I also used Vicks Vaporub (this is my 'go-to' for many things-read my post on its other uses that will benefit you) under my nose and on my chest to help open up my nasal passages and help me breathe.
I drank copious amounts of lemon tea, laced with Apple Cider Vinegar. Our chiropractor advised us that this would help.
A few days after I had initially contacted my doctor, he rang me to check on me. I think he heard my foghorn voice, as my chest was congested, and he finally prescribed some antibiotics and Ventolin.
I was wheezing slightly when I went to bed but found that the Vicks Vaporub and vaporiser helped to stop the wheezing.
Covid practices in Australia
In Australia, we have to contact the relevant government department when we have a positive covid result. They put you in contact on a daily basis with doctors and nurses, who call you each day.
I cannot even praise them enough as they helped me enormously through a difficult time.
This was such a great service for me as the doctors and nurses ring you daily for a week to monitor your symptoms. You can extend this service if you feel the need.
Unlike doctors in these finance model clinics, they have all the time to chat with you. I needed that as I was waking up at night in a heightened state and they could talk me through it.
They gave me the number for the Nurse On Call, which is a 24-hour access number, in Australia.
They sent me medical equipment e.g. oximeter to measure my oxygen levels, at no cost to me. They informed me how to get my meds delivered and my groceries, and asked if I needed any other type of help.
They asked about mental health issues as people are not coping with being ill and being in 7-day lockdown. They were great as my doctor only has a few minutes to talk about the essentials I needed and how I felt.
Where I am now with Covid.
It's been a week and 5 days since I became ill.
I am not suffering headaches all day long but just get occasional twinges throughout the day.
I am not challenging myself with physical activity but still get very tired. Some nights I sleep well while other nights I just can't sleep and feel anxious.
I am still coughing but it is bringing up small amounts of phlegm and it's more settled. But my back is still hurting, my chest still feels heavy, and my voice is still a bit hoarse.
My work entails me going up and downstairs to 12 different classrooms. This amounts to 10 kilometers of stair walking in 3 days.
I have a Health app that I used to measure my walking at school.
There is no way I feel ready for work at the moment as a healthy person can get quite breathless with the distances walked at this very large school.
I'm hoping to be back on board next week!
Have you had covid?
What's your experience been like?
* update: Been back at school for two weeks and am absolutely exhausted and having difficulty thinking as I am still having headaches!
So glad I am having an Easter break and resting. This covid is crap.
**further update: had to have another covid test as headaches severe and spent last night shaking with cold sweats, then alternating with burning up with fever. It's been 5 weeks now since the original positive tests.
I had to revisit my resource How To Keep Your Brain Mentally Fit? as it doesn't feel great at the moment. It's a free resource.
