COVID-19 Symptom Watch
Take your temperature if you have a thermometer. (They're as hard to get as masks and hand sanitizer.)
joan_crystal said:
When in doubt call your doctor and describe your symptoms.
Yeah, I'll probably wait til tomorrow for that. If it's just an allergy attack, it rarely lasts for more than a day, so I'll see how I am tomorrow.
Just took my temp - no fever.
cramer said:
Take your temperature if you have a thermometer. (They're as hard to get as masks and hand sanitizer.)
Hard to believe there are people who needed to all of a sudden get a thermometer. That's kind of a basic piece of household equipment.
drummerboy said:
Hard to believe there are people who needed to all of a sudden get a thermometer. That's kind of a basic piece of household equipment.
It's possible that people owned one only to find out it had gone dead or was otherwise not functioning correctly. We use ours pretty frequently.
Anyway, did you try taking Benadryl? It knocks me out but also knocks out whatever allergy I'm suffering from. I find if I take a shower, put on clean clothes, take Benadryl and stay inside I can stop just about any level of allergy misery, at least in the short term. Something like that might help you rule out an allergy attack. Worst case is you get a good night's sleep.
yeah, I've been taking benadryl kind of regularly for the past few weeks. Just took some awhile ago.
My allergies have been atrocious for more than a week, and I have heard the same from others. Everything is coming into bloom way earlier than Mother Nature would prefer.
Many of the symptoms you describe are (or were) not uncommon for you to have year round. Plus, you shelter in place quite a bit already, if I recall correctly -- I think you have fewer contacts outside your home than most people.
Without a fever, I think the (early) change of seasons may be what's causing your symptoms to be worse. I'd wait to call the doctor unless a fever presents, or your coughing gets so bad that you're having trouble breathing. (The holding your breath for a minute and seeing if you can get that far without coughing-- (while it's been deemed a hoax -- is still a good way of measuring your lung funtion. Can't hurt.)
Plus a lot of doctors are implementing "telemedecine". You might look into that option to check in with your doctor, while avoiding going outside or hanging around sick people.
Feel better!
I visited China in September and was diagnosed with Hpylori bacteria in December, which impacts the digestive system. I was put on a rather large dose of antibiotics 14 pills a day for 10 days. While at the Dr. in December I was diagnosed with a mild case of bronchitis, coughing, sneezing but no fever. The Dr. warned me at the time that the antibiotics I was on would pretty much kill everything in my digestive system good and bad.
Six weeks later, the cough was gone but the runny nose and sneezing hit with abandon. I rarely, if ever, get spring time allergies, however, I was assured at the time (mid february) that it was allergies. I have started taking benadryl and it also knocks me out.
I haven't had a fever or sore throat, just non-stop post nasal drip. Funny thing is that today, my symptoms are mild compared to other days. My guess is you have allergies.
Yeah, it's probably allergies, but I'll tell you, it's been a miserable day. Haven't had one of these in a while.
Yes, my symptoms were allergies. Cleared up the next day, and I'm glad no one has posted here with real symptoms. Knock on wood.
Came across this twitter thread by a person who describes their progression of symptoms with COVID. Eye opening - for me anyway. This definitely ain't the flu.
========================================================
https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1243554346396246018.html
I've been debating about whether to 'go public' on having coronavirus - which I kind of did inadvertently this morning. So, now I may as well share my experience(s) with you in order to help those who are worried about it or who are thinking they might have it. Here goes... 1/I was taking this thing pretty seriously from an early stage because of advice from my good friend @amhitchens, who rightly identified the coming crisis. So I put my house in lockdown, I closed @ICSR_Centre early, and I started taking precautions 2/
But you need to be constantly vigilant with coronavirus. All it takes is one careless moment, one unthinking touch of your face, accidentally touching a contaminated surface once and suddenly, boom, you've got it. 3/
I'm 38 and have no underlying health conditions. I figured if I got it, I'd shake it. Here's how things have played out. Firstly, it's not the flu. Whoever originally said that, did everyone a great disservice. This thing is not the flu. It's a nasty, horrible, illness. 4/
I started having symptoms about two weeks ago. The fever was mild and went very quickly. Is it Covid-19? Who knows, but I've shaken it quickly. Great. Then my lungs started packing up and my chest got very tight. This happened around 15-16 March. 5/
The cough was dry and unlike anything I've ever had before. It was much more extreme and pronounced than a dry cough you might have during a bout of the flu. It feels like there's something deeply lodged within your lungs, that they're (violently) trying to eject. 6/
Of course, there's nothing to actually eject. The resulting cough is dusty, dry and painful. Much more scary is that you're unsure of when you'll stop coughing. You have no control over it. There were times I was worried I'd start vomiting because the coughing was so severe 7/
When you finally stop, it's a relief - but now you're in a new phase altogether. You're fighting to draw air into your lungs but your chest is tight and, frankly, your lungs are in distress. They're not functioning the way they should. 8/
Your head is also pounding because of the violent coughing. I suffered terrible headaches after these coughing fits. The evening of Wednesday 18th was the worst day for me. I fought for breath for about 3-4 hours. It was horrific. 9/
I recorded my symptoms and sent it to doctors (my friends). "Classic Covid" came the reply. I kept monitoring it and, frankly, staying awake was a struggle. I went to bed. My breathing remained severely impaired for another 2 days, but I was managing it all from home. 10/
By Friday, I thought I'd got through the worst of it and things were looking good. Coronavirus is particularly cruel. Recovery is not linear. On Saturday night I started to feel distinctly unwell again. I decided to take my blood pressure because I have a home monitor... 11/
Anything over 180/120 is classified as 'hypertensive crisis' (basically, heart attack/stroke territory). Without revealing what mine was, lets just say I was well, well in excess of this (again, I don't have an underlying issue). This was easily the most terrifying moment. 12/
I called my doctor friends and told them. "Time to call 999" they said - so I did. It took more than 15 minutes to speak with a representative; that's how overwhelmed the emergency services are. I told them my BP and that I have coronavirus. 13/
Ultimately they decided they couldn't respond to my call. I am not criticising the London ambulance service. They are doing superb work under incredible, unprecedented circumstances. I'm telling you this part of the story to underscore two things... 14/
The first is that you should only call them in an absolute emergency. It's not a diagnostic service. The more unnecessary calls, the longer the delay in them answering becomes. Secondly, be prepared to take decisive action for yourself because they might not be able to help 15/
So I called my doctor friends again and started to take actions to lower my blood pressure naturally, at home. I spent the next 48 hours in bed and, only after this time, did my blood pressure return to anything vaguely resembling 'normal' (it was still high, but acceptable). 16/
Now we're into the start of this week. Symptoms have slowly evolved into a less severe cough and my chest being less tight (although these get worse in the evenings). But I have lots of new symptoms: crazy abdominal pains and headaches. The lethargy has persisted throughout. 17/
Today we're approaching the end of 2+ weeks since I first developed symptoms and about 11-12 days since they became particularly acute. For the first time, I feel like I'm starting to beat it but I'm nowhere near feeling 100%. 18/
Coronavirus appears to have a completely different trajectory in different people. I can't spot a pattern. Although I'm only speaking publicly about it now, I've been whatsapping with lots of friends/colleagues who've also had it. 19/
Some are shaking it off relatively easily. Others are suffering very badly. The most difficult part of this is the extent to which it takes hold within your lungs. There's just no way to tell what will happen at the start. You need to watch this symptom if it develops. 20/
So that's my coronavirus story. It's a completely mad, crazy illness. It had made me feel more intensely ill than I've ever been in my life. On the Wednesday & Saturday of last week, I was genuinely fearful of what could happen if those symptoms continued to escalate. 21/
I didn't want to tweet about my experience until I was more comfortable in my own assessment that I'm through the worst of it. And I'm sharing this with you now so that you can really think about the way this thing is hitting people. 22/
Do you really need to go out right now? Is social distancing really that hard? Is it too much of an effort to wash your hands repeatedly, and to wash them properly, with soap? 23/
I've lost several days of my life to this illness. Many, many other people will lose their lives to it. This virus continues to spread everywhere and you - literally, you - can help stop it with the most basic of efforts. Wash your hands. Stay at home. Do it now. /ENDS
The wildcard factor about the nature and severity of the symptoms in "mild" cases is maddening. It's seems clear that a significant number of the "mild" cases are in fact quite unpleasant. But its also clear that for many people it is pretty mild, and maybe asymptomatic. It's bizarre.
As bub points out, the case above is one of the 80% of cases called “mild” because he did not end up in the hospital in need of oxygen.
susan1014 said:
As bub points out, the case above is one of the 80% of cases called “mild” because he did not end up in the hospital in need of oxygen.
Yeah, that doesn't sound mild to me, but I take your point. It's a nasty bug. His description of the cough is disturbing.
The more I use cleaning agents, the more often my throat is "scratchy."
Of 41 confirmed cases in Millburn as of today, only 1 person is hospitalized. Not terrible. What's the word on the MSO numbers?
bub said:
Of 41 confirmed cases in Millburn as of today, only 1 person is hospitalized. Not terrible. What's the word on the MSO numbers?
Maplewood has 49 cases, South Orange has 16 cases. The Maplewood number may include the 44-year-old resident who died today. I haven't seen anything about how many are being hospitalized.
eta: Populations:
Millburn 20,500
Maplewood 25,000
South Orange 17,000
I have chronic sinus congestion, plus I suffer from allergies on occasion.
I have been sneezing all day (that's about 8 hours so far). Runny nose. A bit of a cough.
Though a day like this is not unheard of for me, I am naturally thinking whether I caught the big one.
Has anyone else experienced especially bad allergy symptoms today?
Here's the list of symptoms from the WHO site:
The most common symptoms of COVID-19 are fever, tiredness, and dry cough. Some patients may have aches and pains, nasal congestion, runny nose, sore throat or diarrhea. These symptoms are usually mild and begin gradually. Some people become infected but don’t develop any symptoms and don't feel unwell. Most people (about 80%) recover from the disease without needing special treatment. Around 1 out of every 6 people who gets COVID-19 becomes seriously ill and develops difficulty breathing. Older people, and those with underlying medical problems like high blood pressure, heart problems or diabetes, are more likely to develop serious illness. People with fever, cough and difficulty breathing should seek medical attention.
I don't have a sore throat. Not tired. No fever. A bit of a dry cough.
Nasal congestion is my normal state, but not a runny nose, which I have today. No aches or pains.
I do, unfortunately, have a few of the risk factors for us older folks.
I'm not much of a hypochondriac, and I don't want to be alarmist, but you know, I can't help but be a little worried.
bleh