A Tale of Three Covids(Gordon England) A Tale of Three Covids

Covid is the most powerful force on our planet, striking any person it chooses regardless of age, medicine, health, or strength. World leaders become sick, economies stagger, cities shut down, and most wars stop. Unlike a flu or other viruses with predictable symptoms and cures, this insidious disease strikes people in different ways with reports of dissimilar treatments and survival methods. These are the stories of three people in my family that are Covid survivors.

My great-granddaughter, call her Brenda, was the first to fall. Though her classes at Oklahoma University were virtual, she worked for extra money as a greeter in a restaurant. She wore a mask and tried to distance herself from customers, but that wasn’t a realistic goal in a crowded business. When a fellow worker tested positive for Covid, Brenda decided to take the test even though she had no symptoms. After a nervous week of waiting, her doctor called to report she tested positive. Since she had no symptoms after a week, her doctor said she was lucky to be asymptomatic, but still had to quarantine for two more weeks. She didn’t like her alone time nor loss of income but was grateful to only have minor sniffles during the downtime. Two weeks later, after two negative tests, she went back to work and leads a normal life. Whatever that is now. A lack of serious symptoms is frequent with younger people, especially those with no underlying medical problems, though others inexplicably end up with a serious case anyhow.

Brenda’s grandfather, Gus, my son-in-law, worked for a high-tech company in Maryland. Two days before a scheduled business trip to Las Vegas, a headache and sniffles set in. Tylenol calmed the headache, so off he flew thru empty airports and on a plane with few people. Upon arrival, he realized Las Vegas was a ghost town - no taxis or tourists and the casinos and restaurants were closed. He stayed at the Flamingo, which had just reopened from a citywide Covid shut down, at a rate of $19 per night. Just a few rooms were in operation, though the restaurants and room service were not available. The front desk had no advice for food service.
The day after he arrived, his wife, Lea, called him to say she was seriously sick with overwhelming nausea and fatigue. On the second night the gastrointestinal attacks hit. Thinking she had Covid, she had taken the test and awaited the results. She told him to stock up on melatonin and vitamins C, D, and Zinc for his immune system. That same day, Gus’s headache returned like gangbusters, along with acute fatigue. After taking a rapid Covid test at a local clinic, a doctor told him not to come back, regardless of the results. Gus went back to his room and collapsed on the bed, knowing he probably had the virus.

Alone in the RV they lived in, Lea staggered back and forth between her bed and small bathroom, with a bucket used during violent duo attacks. The weakest part of her body was her GI tract and Covid attacked it mercilessly, as well as made her struggle to breathe. Luckily, those acute symptoms only lasted overnight, just leaving her wretchedly nauseous. With no one to help her, she struggled to take vitamins and water and get nourishment into her system. Lea’s stomach stayed nauseous, and eating anything became an act of will, the virus sucking up all of her energy and will to fight. She wanted to curl up and die. During sporadic coherent thought, between the hours of hot and cold chills and drenching sweats, she forced herself to eat and drink, knowing no one else would help her.

Back in Vegas, Gus tested positive. He notified the hotel he would be quarantined for at least a week. They asked him to leave, but no one would come into his room to force the issue. Where else could he go? They told him he was on his own for food since room service had not started back for just a few customers. He realized food would be an issue with no restaurants open. Not even pizza joints. Grub Hub informed him they were not allowed into the Hotel, and he was too weak (and contagious) to go down to the Lobby for delivery. After days of frustration not finding food, Gus gave up and curled up, suffering through a world-class headache, total fatigue, a raging fever, and trouble breathing. The next day he asked the hotel for a microwave. They would not provide that or any other service. As he rolled on his floor in agony, a family member ordered a microwave from Amazon to be delivered. A lack of food weakened and disoriented him after a few days. He tried to remember to drink water and take vitamins every few hours. Walking from his bed to the bathroom took a monumental effort. At one point he fell halfway to the bathroom and slept on the floor for hours. He woke up in a daze, realizing he desperately needed medical attention when he looked at his blue feet. He started calling doctor offices, only to find that they would not see him. Then he called hospitals. To his dismay, no hospitals would accept Covid patients. Anywhere in Nevada. He could get into a military hospital but driving to it for 30 minutes was totally beyond his ability. The hotel told him that if he left for a hospital, he could not come back after they discharged him. Where would he go? Gus was stranded. His microwave had not been delivered. He took a handful of pills, rolled up in a ball, and wailed.

Lea also dealt with a total loss of energy, sometimes the few feet to the living room couch took minutes to traverse. Who could she call? No one would come inside her RV to feed or take care of her. Driving to a hospital was out of the question for her also. At least she had food to eat. Filthy laundry filled the hamper to overflowing. Her bed was a disaster. Gus’s deterioration troubled her tremendously. What could she do? Lea cried helplessly through the longest, most painful night of her life, much of the time wrapped in a blanket on the couch and leaning against her pillows praying. In desperation the next morning, Lea called Gus’s sister in Salt Lake City who agreed to make a three-hour drive to deliver food to her brother.

The next day, he heard a knock at his door. He staggered to it, wondering who would be there. He was shocked to see a bag of food outside on the floor. He looked up to see his sister twenty feet away, waving. They both broke down in tears. He had been at the end of his rope, ready to give up. Gus called the manager to ask about the microwave delivery. The manager looked around and found it in a back room. Gus mostly pushed the microwave from the door to a desk. Being too weak to lift it, he left it on the floor, unopened. He didn't bother to heat his sister’s food. Forcing a small amount of food down for the first time in days gave him willpower to start caring again. No one else would help him. He had to survive on his own.

After three terrible days, Lea’s symptoms began a slow retreat. Nausea began to abate after six days... food stayed down, giving much-needed nourishment and a return of her will to survive the terrible Covid also. Caring neighbors left bags of groceries outside her door. That, in turn, gave her enough strength to take a much-needed bath. Cleaning grime off her tired, hurting body brought a new attitude. Fresh sheets made it onto the bed, depleting the rest of that day's strength, but she was going to make it.

The next day, Gus’s brother drove two hours from Reno to bring more food. After the fourth day of Covid, Gus’s fever broke, and his headache retreated a bit. The worst was over. He would survive, though another shocker hit when the hotel told him he had to move to a different room because his room was reserved for someone else. He could not believe they would put an unsuspecting customer in his contaminated room. Packing and moving down the hall was a monumental effort that drained what little energy had recently returned, leading to a 24-hour relapse. More life-saving food showed up from his sister. He could only focus on staying alive one day at a time. No planning beyond that.

Lea gained strength for two days, then relapsed for one. Then repeated the cycle. Each time a little stronger. She knew the worst was over, but recovery would be long and slow with fatigue coming and going. Ten days in, she fell in bed with a relapse and slept for 24 hours. When Gus called to say his symptoms had left and he would fly home in two days, she broke down in happy tears. Her alone fight would be over. They would get well together.

No one asked for test results when Gus went through the airport or onto the plane. Delta kept people spaced apart and masked. He slept through his flight and barely remembered driving home. Gus and Lea initially felt uncomfortable with another sick person in the same room, but they adjusted, slowly recovering together. After three weeks, occasional coughs and tired spells still lingered, but they had survived. At 22 days, they both had their first GOOD day.

Their take-home message was that without strong self-discipline to take care of themselves while on death’s bed, they would not have been able to survive their ordeals. Most people in nursing homes would not have the strength or willpower to survive Covid. They also felt their vitamin regime of D3, C, Zinc, and Melatonin provided vital immune system strength to keep Covid out of their lungs, which would have been fatal. Having a network of friends or family to at least bring food to the door brought physical as well as mental support when needed most.

---