Why am I sharing my story? Well, a part of me wants to dispel the stigma which follows those who get covid. I have read horror stories of abuse and unkindness to those who contracted this sickness and I know putting myself out there welcomes that sort of feedback. I also wanted to share my story as a person who took as many precautions as possible, who is pro-vaccination, and who (admittedly) gets incredibly frustrated when people use politics, faith, or any similar argument to go against expert advice.

Before I rant and ostricize myself more, here is my story:

Thursday, July 15

One of the new requirements to travel locally was to have at least the 1st dose of any vaccine. So, we exhausted all of our connections in hopes that we could find a reputable source for a vaccine. After a few disappointments, a friend of ours was able to arrange an “at home” appointment with the recognized government/police hospital for dose 1. Finally!

This particular morning, both Husband and I were not feeling 100%. It wasn’t unusual for either of us to feel under the weather because of allergies or stress so it didn’t cause us any concern. We just continued our morning as planned.

We drove to our friend’s home and waited as the 3 nurses arrived and set up a mini triage centre and vaccinated 6 of us foreigners. It took a little time but, as per usual, we were masked up, everything was sanitized, and then we went back home.

A couple of hours later, our symptoms progressed a little more and felt like a common cold; slight sore throats, a little achey, and minor headaches. We did just have a vaccine, so maybe that was also contributing to how we felt. It still wasn’t severe and I remember exercising that afternoon because I felt well enough to do so.

By the evening, things had felt a little more progressed and Husband, especially, had a low-grade fever. So, once the kids were in bed, we took some paracetamol and went on to bed ourselves to sleep it off.

Friday, July 16

Throughout the night things had progressed significantly for Husband. His fever could be controlled by OTC medication but he had a persistent headache that would not subside, no matter what he was taking. My body felt a little more achy and I was tired. But again, we assumed that a large part of the issue was the cold-like sickness we had and it was compounded by the vaccine. The particular vaccine we had was synonymous with immediate side-effects, so we chalked in up to that.

The day was a bust because we both were just feeling unwell. So, thankfully our helper had cared for all the necessities and we just had to get through the day.

Saturday, July 17

This would be day 3 of symptoms and now they were ramping up.

Husband’s symptoms:

• Consistent headache
• Fever, chills
• Body aches
• Moderate skin irritation on his chest

My symptoms:

• Headache
• Fever, chills
• Moderate body aches
• Fatigue

Our helper cared for the kids on Saturday until she went home to her own family. And we were so grateful for her. But having her in our home began to worry me. While Husband’s symptoms were moderate, they seemed to stay consistent. For me, however, throughout the day my symptoms grew worse and I just felt heavy under the weight of what was happening in my body. It felt as though a blanket of pain was placed on my entire body; from the hair on my head, the entirety of my skin, down my back and beyond. Everything just ached from the inside out. Even the clothes on my body was causing pain, probably due to the fever and skin sensitivity.

It was mid-afternoon and I was in tears wanting to know what was wrong with me. Husband and I discussed the best options and we decided to go to a private hospital which offered 24-hour testing. I went in to get a basic antigen test done. My thought process was that we needed to know if I had covid-19 because it is our responsibility to care for ourselves, our family, and our friends who we had contact with.

Husband parked the car and waited with the kids while I went in the hospital for my test. You pay, you wait, and then your get tested.

The test results came back positive immediately; no more waiting, no more wondering. I cried. Right there in the office where the nurse offered me the results, I cried. The kind nurse comforted me, said not to worry, and advised me to go home, isolate, and as long as the symptoms were manageable, stay home. In that moment, that individual was my moment of comfort. He gently touched my shoulder, told me not to cry, and that it would be okay.

I walked back to the car and wept. Yes, I just sat there and wept. Why? Well, because I had covid-19, I was feeling terrible, I was far from family, and I was worrying about both myself and Husband. We had two children to care for, we had to stay in our home for at least 10 more days, and I had to let my family know what was happening.

While we were driving home from the hospital, I contacted each family unit we had contact with since Thursday. I transferred money to our dearest friends to go get tested immediately, and we did everything we could to protect others round us. That evening we locked down our home, we began to process what was happening, and I think I also just gave in to the severity of my sickness.

I remember having a video call with my parents and talking with them about our physical symptoms, as well as my emotional and mental state. We cried together. Tearfully, my dad prayed for our family for healing and I felt broken. Not only was my body struggling physically, my heart was downcast, and my mind was numb.

We were now in survival mode.

Sunday, July 18

Everyone we had been in contact with tested negative, thankfully! That was such a huge sigh of relief for us. A part of living abroad is expanding your family. And to know that our extended family were healthy and not at risk was a HUGH win for us. But physically, Husband and I were fighting a battle.

We did end up getting Husband and our boy, J, tested as well. We just wanted proof that Husband was sick with covid and we were curious as to whether or not J was sick and just asymptomatic. Husband immediately tested positive but J tested negative. Either the kids already had it and recovered (we are even thinking J was the source of our getting the virus) or they just had an incredible tolerance to it.

Husband’s symptoms stayed very consistent. His fever, aches, skin irritation, and headache stayed with him. We both felt drained of all energy. We were going to bed immediately after the kids, I was needing to take a mid-afternoon rest, and there was a lot of laying on the couch, video games, movies, and helping our kids adjust to being isolated. Our son, J, understood what was happening and was showing such kindness and care towards us. M, our daughter, struggled with not going to her friends house so we had to be a little more creative in keeping her inside. But we made it work.

Monday, July 19

This was the day that my taste and smell vanished. And I mean literally…. I woke up and realized that there was absolutely no ability to smell or taste. For those of you who have experienced that, you know how tough this is. We take for granted how much we rely on both taste and smell to eat and drink our daily portions. It is bad enough that you don’t have the energy to drink or eat, but then you lose the want to do it because nothing has a taste or flavour. It is just texture and consistency. It was rough staying hydrated and fed but being an adult, I knew I had to stay on top of it or there would be longer lasting issues.

Our helper came by after making a market run and cooked up all the essentials for us. We were concerned about having her in our home so we isolated from her, wore masks, sanitized every surface, and she was extra careful to stay at a distance. Thankfully, her test was negative, she had been vaccinated, and her confidence in her health and faith helped her through that day. But we insisted that she take the week off, to keep track of any and all symptoms, and that we would be okay.

Husband was feeling as though his symptoms were lessening slightly on day 5 but he still knew that his body was working against the virus. I’m grateful that his symptoms were limited and he was able to handle them with basic medications and healthy eating. There was a sense of relief knowing exactly what was going on in our bodies and that with each day that passed, we would be getting better.

Tuesday, July 20 – Monday, July 26

The remainder of this week saw improvement for Husband, which was great because my symptoms were a little longer lasting and it was exhausting. When I couldn’t keep my eyes open, Husband was able to entertain the kids for an hour or two. Our aim was to get through each day and rest as much as possible. We really did our best to eat healthy, drink adequate water, top up vitamin intake, and do whatever we could to help our bodies recover.

We were grateful when friends dropped off meals, fresh juices, a few treats, and an abundance of items to sanitize our home. They would drop things outside our gate and we would say hello from a distance. But we appreciated those who took the time to check in daily to help meet our needs. A true sign of love is when people who are generally scared about the pandemic will still help you as much as possible. We were cared for.

Long Term Effects

I wish I could say that we bounced back quickly. But that wasn’t the case. Husband was feeling on the mend a week or so after his first signs of symptoms. Eventually he was able to take the kids outside just after dark so they could ride their bikes and get out the pent-up energy. While we were cautious, we know that our kids needed some release. Just after dark was the perfect time to get out for an hour when no one else was around. That hour was precious to our kids because it was the one hour a day they could get outside of our gate and exercise and be free. But still masked up and still just themselves.

Covid is also a lonely sickness.

My initial symptoms lasted a solid 10 days before I felt any improvement. My taste and smell was still completely gone and on day 7 or 8 I was also feeling as though I could not get a full, deep breath. I didn’t deem it necessary to go to the hospital but not being able to fully catch your breath caused a little anxiety. I also developed a cough and that persisted for another week or so. But what I found most difficult was the severe fatigue.

I would go to bed around 830 or 900 at night and be woken up by the kids in the morning. Thankfully they were usually asleep until 7 or 8am. We would do the typical routine and start our day. By noon, I couldn’t hardly move from the couch. And I would literally feel my eyes get so heavy that I couldn’t keep stay awake. Husband and/or our helper would just suggest so go sleep and I’d be in bed for another 2 hours or so. I’d wake up and finish the afternoon, get everyone fed, and then I’d be done again. I was physically exhausted!

Even a month after we had been sick, I would go to the grocery store to do shopping and have to stop in the middle of the store, lean on my shopping cart, and rest. I’d come home, put the groceries away and sleep again in the afternoon. Exercise was struggle. I’d be able to complete a couple of days and then the third day was a bust. Only now, two months later, I am able exercise and feel good while doing it! And as for my taste and smell, I’m working on about half my ability to smell and taste is about 75%. It is a slow return to normal, that’s for sure.

We were fortunate to test negative for travel and were able to get the worst of the sickness behind us before we travelled home to Canada. And the upside, if there really is any, is that we were able to show proof of our sickness which helped with the processing as we entered Canada.

Our struggle with covid was not severe as some experiences. We were not hospitalized, we didn’t require extra medical attention,

BUT

It was awful. My dad asked me how it compared to other sicknesses I’ve had and my response was that I would not want my kids to be as sick as I felt, I wouldn’t want my grandparents dealing with this, and I wouldn’t wish covid on anyone. We also discussed how I felt about those who downplay the pandemic or call covid a hoax (or any other utterly foolish narrative about this virus). I got angry. I cannot and will never understand how anyone can live in the same world as us and not see the severity of the coronavirus. Millions suffering, hundreds of thousands dying, hospitals being overrun, oxygen supplies being spent, the world coming to a halt… This is real, this is happening, this is serious. When you see the photos of mass graves being dug in your host country and knowing an individual whose job was to do the digging, how dare I deny?

Know this:

I will never agree with the anti-vax narrative, I will never support those who claim their freedom is being taken away, I will not bend towards conspiracies, I will not change my mind about the effectiveness of masks, vaccines, sanitizing, social distancing, etc. And until we are living with the coronavirus comfortably, I will support any and all decisions put in place by government and leaders who are much more educated in this area than me. I am not so arrogant as to think that I know better!

Are these new restrictions enjoyable? Of course not. Is it inconvenient? Absolutely. But it has proven itself effective. And people who are complaining about vaccine passports or restrictions or required testing, I just will not have this conversation with you. We happily give our personal credit information when we buy top branded electronics, we easily show our membership ID cards to get in to Costco, we will be the first to prove our age at a bar to consume alcohol, we don’t question a police officer who pulls us over but rather just give our license and registration, but as soon as we are asked to offer status of our vaccines, we cry foul. We are so hypercritical and unreasonable and privileged.

That is our story and if you’re read it to the end, I appreciate you bearing with me. And through my very biased rants and stance, I hope you can appreciate why; even if you disagree.

J xo