Sickly Me

UPDATE 3/15/20, at 1:50 pm shown at the bottom of the post

I rarely get ill, at least not with common colds and viruses. I may get conditions (allergic reactions, trigger finger etc.) but I don't get anything beyond a mild sniffle. And I mean a MILD sniffle that lasts about a day. I am just this side of an OCD hand washer when I am at work, use paper towels to open the restroom door (faucets and paper towel dispenser and touch-less), and wash my hands frequently outside of nature's call.

Tuesday I went to work as usual feeling just fine. By 9:30 (4 hours into my work day), I had developed a sore throat and my nose was getting stuffed up. Being sensitive to the current times, the fact that I hate it when other people come to work sick, and that my boss always wants us to go home / stay home if sick, I gathered my computer and some paperwork and headed home to work. By late Tuesday evening it had settled into my upper chest and by last night it progressed to mid chest and had some heavy coughing up of phlegm.

Wednesday was more of the same, except it had moved to the middle of my chest. Thursday was more of the same, although toward the afternoon I also had a couple of chills (no fever, just some chills which might have been a psychosomatic reaction to the heavy overcast and rain we had). Thursday night it changed direction and went back to my sinuses. Friday and yesterday my eyes got itchy, I was a snot machine with occasional hacking cough attacks. I finally opened a box of tissues, instead of using TP as I normally do. To go along with the runny nose, yesterday I could have earned the nickname "Sneezy" too.

By late afternoon on Saturday, I had lost my sense of smell and taste. I didn't even realize it until I was making shower gel and couldn't smell any of the essential oils I was using. That includes Ylang-ylang and patchouli which are powerful scents. I could get a bit of "sharpness" smelling rosemary, but that was it. Thinking back on what I ate that day, cinnamon was a bit flat at breakfast and I didn't get any heat or sharpness from the salsa and guacamole I had at lunch.

This morning the sinuses have slowed down, my throat is not sore and the sneezing has ended. Still have the occasional hack, and the sinuses are backed up a bit. Haven't gotten my sense of smell or taste back yet.

Thru this whole thing I have not had a fever - my temp has been between 97.6 and 98.8. The rest of my body has felt pretty good - no aches, no tiredness etc. So, according to my symptoms I do not have flu or the latest health threat. Just a nasty cold or other bug.

I've had people ask if I'm getting myself tested for COVID-19. No I am not for a couple of reasons

• I do not qualify. First question is if you have a fever - nope (one of the signatures is a fever of 100.4 or higher). Second question is do you have a dry cough - nope, cough is very productive
• I have not even been out of 2 counties in the last couple of months, much less overseas
• I haven't come in contact with anyone who is a known carrier
• I don't have a social life so it is highly unlikely I unknowingly came in contact with any of the known cases in NH
• And because of the point above, I most likely caught this thing at work. I am surrounded by people who have small kids (or grandchildren that they live with). Those people are constantly sick themselves or staying home with sick kids.

Even though I am 99.99999....% sure I don't have COVID, I have been pretty much self-quarantining since I left work on Tuesday. Yesterday I did go to the dump and stopped at the grocery store for some perishables. The store wasn't crowded and I kept my distance from people, used hand sanitizer at the register, and wiped down the cart I used with the sanitizer wipes the store provides. Otherwise, I have been at home either working remotely, reading or wishing the weather was decent so I could go outside. However,  I do not plan on being out for 14 days, unless something changes. As I stated before, I most likely caught this at work and I would be the least common vector for anyone else to be affected.

Work has been proactive in keeping everyone informed. They have pretty much shut down international travel and discourage travel at all unless required. And that travel has to be okayed by management.From what my boss says, there have been a lot of people out of work in my building (an office building). The cafeteria sent out a notice that all "self-serve" areas such as the salad bar, soup pots and pizza carousel are being shut down and they will pre-package so 100's of people aren't handling the same utensils.

NH has declared a state of emergency, in order to give the government flexibility (that lasts 21 days). The SOE gives schools the ability to shut down (all schools in the county that has confirmed cases have shut down for a coupe of weeks) . It also gives towns the ability to reschedule town meetings (which is not allowed unless there is a SOE) - and several have taken the opportunity.

EDIT: I was supposed to have an eye appointment on Tuesday. It is the first of my bi-annual appointments. I called Friday and rescheduled it for the first week in April.

EDIT II: As of 1:30 pm Sunday, the Governor of NH has ordered all schools to shut down - giving them 1 week to develop remote learning plans to last at least until April 3. I assume this is because overnight the state's cases of COVID-19 have nearly doubled from 7 to 13).

Comments

[Cop Car]

From my vast medical training (I read a brochure in a doctor's office, once, concerning migraines), I've decided that you have experienced a bacterial sinus infection, the drainage from which caused your sneezing. I can't imagine why you wouldn't take my word for it! Would it be because our family's medical duo would tell you that I am all wet?

Happy that you are taking care of yourself and your co-workers by being selfish in not sharing your germs. I used to hate that co-workers didn't stay at home. Somehow, they thought that going to work while ill showed valor. In my view, not so much - more like a lack of caring.

When we called off our Sunday lunch, your sister shared the following advice: "Everyone stay safe, wash your hands, eat your veggies, and get plenty of sleep!!! And of course……DRINK MORE WATER!!!"

[bogie]

At first glance, your diagnosis sounds good. Looked it up and they say it is often caused by strep throat virus. My 2nd day out a coworker had emailed me and asked if it was strep throat. Her grandkid has it. I rode in a car with her to an audit, conducted an audit with her (mostly in a small office), then rode back in the same car. That was on Monday - oh yeah, she left work shortly after getting back from the audit.

[Cop Car]

Having been diagnosed with strep, and understanding that it is capable of lead to heart damaging rheumatic fever, I know it is nothing with which to trifle. Glad you have been taking good care. As Mayo says, "Sometimes in response to a strep infection, the body's immune system will attack healthy tissues, causing complications such as rheumatic fever, inflammation of the kidneys (glomerulonephritis), or pediatric autoimmune neuropsychiatric disorders associated with streptococcal infections (PANDAS)."

As a point of interest (or not): Until the medical people, finally, when she was an old woman, found the congenital hole between the chambers of her heart, Mom was told by her doctors that her heart troubles were probably due to childhood rheumatic fever. She bounced right back once they patched the hole!

[Cop Car]

People are starting to get serious (NH schools closing). When incidents of contracting a disease increase exponentially, it quickly gets out of hand.