I've got Coronavirus - FWIW

5MilesBack

"DADDY"
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Around day 6 I was beginning to wonder how long this would last, so I reached out to a doctor through a friend and he prescribed a Zpack and Dexamethasone. He assured me it would knock it out in a few days.

I took dexamethasone when I threw my lower back out last year. After three days I had to stop taking it as it was tearing my stomach up. Worst heartburn and stomach pain I've ever had. I won't take it again.

But good luck with the recovery. I know one guy that took 4 months to finally get off O2, but he is 69 and in bad health to start with. Three others I know that got it have been fine, but they're all in their 40's. One guy I spent time with for 3 days the week before he was tested, and we shook hands, had lunch, talked a bunch over those 3 days, and then he tested positive. That was three weeks ago and everyone else he was around during that time has been fine.
 
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fwafwow

fwafwow

WKR
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Apr 8, 2018
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I took dexamethasone when I threw my lower back out last year. After three days I had to stop taking it as it was tearing my stomach up. Worst heartburn and stomach pain I've ever had. I won't take it again.

But good luck with the recovery. I know one guy that took 4 months to finally get off O2, but he is 69 and in bad health to start with. Three others I know that got it have been fine, but they're all in their 40's. One guy I spent time with for 3 days the week before he was tested, and we shook hands, had lunch, talked a bunch over those 3 days, and then he tested positive. That was three weeks ago and everyone else he was around during that time has been fine.

I think the meds have had side effects. Hard to pin down which is which, but my stomach was pretty torn up at times, which is a known issue with the Zpack. I also think that the Levofloxacin caused a severe bout of insomnia one night.
 
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fwafwow

fwafwow

WKR
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Thank you to everyone for the well wishes! I think I'm really on the mend, and am actually looking forward to when I roll off of some of these meds. My breathing is fine and I forgot to use my inhaler before bed last night and suffered no downside. Last dose of hydroxychloroquine is tonight, but I still have about 5 days on the oral steroids and a couple more days on the pneumonia antibiotics.

Now really just praying that my 7/9 diagnostic test comes back negative. Otherwise I've got 14 days more of quarantine - and my son is stuck with the same time period. Seems so unfair to him since he hasn't had any symptoms in a couple of weeks!
 

Wrench

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Thanks for sharing. I'm guilty of forming opinions based on my own observations, yours helps.
 

TheGDog

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Jun 12, 2020
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I have the Coronavirus. I’m 50 years old. I'm not looking for sympathy and I won’t bore you with too much of the details. (EDIT - more details added below per request.) This also isn't meant to start a political discussion. Just intended as my story so far.

I contracted it in SC while out of town, but I don't know how. My symptoms have been “mild” as the cases are defined, but they still sucked and I had a few nights when I debated going to the hospital (the concern being over tightness in my chest behind my breastbone). My first symptoms started June 25th and on July 9th I learned that I have pneumonia. (That sounds worse than it is, but it is something more than nothing.) I’m confident I will be fully recovered (I already have received a positive antibody test), although who knows if that will equate to immunity? My son and I are currently quarantined in our basement, which isn't perfect, but we hope we can maintain enough separation so that my wife doesn't get it. (She's wavered back and forth on wanting to get it and "get it over with", but I'm too paranoid that she will have a different experience.)

One of the hardest parts about having it was the worry about who else I may have exposed before I showed symptoms. Not a good feeling. So far I think everyone else is OK.

My $0.02 PSA - if you don’t already have a relationship with a physician, try to establish one. Then do not hesitate to push for a proactive approach to your treatment if you get sick. (My medical provider - communicating with me remotely - advised Tylenol and Advil. I eventually got some meds that I think helped a lot, and wish I had pushed for same sooner.)
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Push for some Promethizene w/ Codeine syrup to control that horrible Cough. Also the Benzonatate "Pearls" to help against the cough. A regular old ZPac to help attack the lungs issue. And for the pneumonia a vaporizor system with generous amounts of the Camphor poured into the water it will turn to steam. Can't tell ya how much the vaporizer helps when you're lungs are girgling crackling wheezing away while sleeping.

Curious... during your initial onset... did you have 2 days of initial high fever where you did not eat anything?

P.S. Had gotten it starting 2nd week in Feb and lasted thru end of March and petered-out just barely into april. It got my lungs in a death-grip. But I am prone to chronic bronchitis, for example. My initial onset was marked by 2 days of super high fever in which I did not have any desire to eat. and if you knew my always-eatin' self, you'd have been amazed!

The fluid in the lungs was causing me to cough soo hard an old tailbone injury inflammed right up and everytime I would cough, that tailbone injury felt that it was gonna drop me to the floor and make my tailbone give-out on me! That tailbone and lowerback/sacro-iliac trauma have remained since it went away. Wear a pack and when I come back home I feel hobble back there for like 3 days. Pretty soon gonna do MRI's to figure what's up with the area. As well as back specialist and Physical Therapy appts.
 
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