COVID Queen
After 9 months of reporting on COVID-19 and how to navigate life during a pandemic, yours truly got infected with this horrendous virus.
Short story: I’m on day 10 now and about to leave strict isolation tomorrow on Christmas Eve, grateful to celebrate with my family and even more thankful that so far, all of the contact tracing to people at work and at home has come back negative. That is a true blessing. I never had a fever, and my symptoms were mostly mild: lower back aches, a slightly phlegmy cough. Lost my sense of smell COMPLETELY on day 3. It’s back about 10%. Is my brain jacked up in some way? Time will tell. But I’m alive, I’m on the mend, and I’m about to bust out of this room with a mask and a new appreciation for eucalyptus oil steam facials.
Long story: grab a cup of cocoa and I will tell you what it was like to have COVID. First—the 50% more infectious variant that Gov. Cuomo says we need to keep in England by banning those blokes from coming here? I agree with Dr. Fauci. It’s already here. I was the 4th on-air NBC correspondent in the span of two weeks based in the NY/NJ area to come down with COVID. And we had no contact with each other at all. * I have done NOTHING different: I wear a double layer cloth mask everywhere, maintain social distancing, and shoot outside almost exclusively. And my quaranteam is either related to me by blood, or a small circle of immediate co-workers.
I got sick anyway.
Could have been at a recent shoot in a well ventilated conference room. Could have been outside at a food bank. Could have been during a shoot where we had to go into some local stores. I did all of that the week before I first started feeling sick.
Can we talk about the COVID stigma? There’s such a stigma. Like a little schadenfreude when you hear someone has COVID. Like they must have been careless or dirty or NOT FOLLOWING THE RULES. At first it’s even a little embarrassing to say you have COVID. You then immediately feel horrible for everyone you’ve come in contact with. By the time you show symptoms, you’ve already been the most infectious in the previous 48 hours. This virus is wicked like that. You can be super careful but when you come in contact with a super shedder/spreader, you don’t stand a chance.
So please don’t let your guard down. Limit your contact with strangers, always wear a mask, keep your distance, wash your hands. Avoid being indoors with strangers when possible. I understand it’s important to have a small social pod, just meet up outdoors, stay apart, be militant about it.
COVID is not fun. It takes forever to get over, and you have to isolate so that you don’t spread it to others. And then if you do expose others in your home, the whole thing starts over and they have to isolate.
OK. So what was it like?
Day 1, Monday: Took my first flight in 9 months. LGA to Houston, with a stop in Atlanta. I landed around 5pm and thought my lower back ache was from being uncomfortable on the flight. Had a seafood dinner. An hour later, stomach cramps and the worst diarrhea of my life. That night, chills and body aches. Thought it was classic food poisoning. Woke up at 4AM to do a live shot for TODAY’s Season of Giving at the Houston Food Bank. Took two Tylenol with some oatmeal and hot tea and powered through the morning. Got on a flight home Tuesday morning at 1030AM. Thankfully the producer I worked with had COVID in the summer. We wore masks in the car and she never felt sick and also tested negative later that week. Same for the NBC crew. Praise be.
Day 2, Tuesday: Got home around 4PM. Still felt achy with a headache and some chills. Started to get a slight runny nose and cough. My first inkling this could be respiratory and not just food poisoning but was still convinced I had bad fish. Had brief contact with the girls—no kisses but we hugged when I got home. Husband said I needed to go into quarantine as a precaution. No fever. Thankfully a live shot for the next morning was cancelled. Divine intervention. Went to bed at 8PM and slept 12 hours.
Day 3, Wednesday: Same symptoms and so I took a DayQuil at 1pm. Felt much better. Took a COVID PCR saliva test provided by my work. Noticed I could not smell or taste. Didn’t feel bad at night but took some NyQuil and slept.
Day 4, Thursday: Still a slight low grade headache and back aches but everything else was normal. Got my COVID positive test result that morning. HR started the process of contacting everyone. They said I was most contagious the 48 hours before Monday when I started showing symptoms. That was Saturday and Sunday, when I only spent time with my family. HR said I should stay isolated for 10 days, which means I’m not allowed out until Christmas Eve. Thank God, I thought it was going to be 14 days but in the summer the CDC said you can leave isolation 10 days after the onset of symptoms as long as you’re fever free without meds for 24 hours and your symptoms are improving.
At this point, we are in full quarantine mode. My husband is wearing an N95 and faceshield and only bringing me three meals a day. My lovely Consumer Investigative Unit sent over Pastrami Queen for the COVID Queen. Sources tell me Mike Wallace loved PQ.
Ate two bowls of matzoh ball soup and some toast with butter. Started doing steam facials with a couple drops of eucalyptus oil to clear my congested nose. Also started taking one famotidine each day (supposed to lower risk of death from COVID?) and 1000mg of fish oil twice a day to help me recover my sense of smell. Taking a multivitamin and also some gummy Vitamin Cs and probiotics. Because, why not.
Day 5, Friday: Still low grade headache and lower back aches. Still no fever. Some dry coughing overnight but mostly sleeping fine. Slightly phlegmy cough in the day. Hungry in the morning. Rice porridge for breakfast and egg and bacon burrito with kimchi for lunch. Running the air filter in the room or keeping my window open for air circulation. Appetite is back. Chicken pho for dinner. My quarantine meals are the highlight of my day. My husband delivered a light and some tripods to the room, enough for me to set up a studio in this room to tape an on camera tag for a Nightly News report on, ironically, COVID testing. I sound congested but my team says you can’t tell I’m on day 5 of COVID.
Day 6, Saturday: Still a 5-10% headache. Husband got his PCR test result: negative HALLELUJAH. Someone from the NYC test and tracing team called. Spent 20 minutes telling me a lot of things our HR department and my doctah husband and the Internets have already told me. Impressive though. They offer mental health counseling, hotel rooms if you need somewhere to isolate. They were really helpful and informed. Felt a little queasy and tired that evening.
Day 7, Sunday: Alternating between dry cough overnight and light phlegmy cough once I get up and moving. Took two DayQuil at 11AM. Don’t know why I hadn’t taken them sooner. Felt much better after the meds but overall still 85-90%. Achy lower back and slight chills at night. This weekend was mentally grueling. Lots of FaceTiming with the family. The days and nights are long when it’s cold and gray and snowy outside. Renley yells, “Love you Mama” every time she walks by my door. A couple times she’s at the end of the hallway and I catch a glimpse of her when The Good Doctor is bringing me one of my allotted meals. It’s hard on her and hard on me to be so close but so separate.
This has easily been the most depressed I’ve ever been and I don’t get depressed. I now understand firsthand how isolating this pandemic can be. I had the best possible circumstances for quarantine—family bringing me meals, a comfortable and decent sized room and bathroom, access to WiFi and a computer to do work and watch shows. But no human touch or contact. Once I accidentally touched my husband’s finger while taking my food plate and he yelled at me before speeding off to scrub his hands with soap and water. I understand why mental health experts say we need to get outside, we need physical activity, we need a social safety net. COVID related isolation and depression have had an immeasurable impact on people that is harsh and real. So don’t forget about your seniors, your neighbors, the people around you who are all struggling. Let’s be more generous and kinder to each other because we are all going through something with this horrible and unpredictable virus.
Day 8, Monday: Still having lower back aches. Took one DayQuil and felt like a hero. Stressing about my loss of smell. Like is this forever? Reading that 80% or more of people with COVID lose their sense of smell, some for months, some forever. I hate this virus and all the unknowns. And the permanence of its effects. Thinking a lot about all the people who’ve died. Many of them died alone. Many of them left behind so many people who loved them. I’m grateful that my case is so mild. I can’t believe it’s almost Christmas and thousands of people continue to get sick every day and our healthcare workers are ending the year even worse than we started, with so much suffering and death in hospitals across the country.
Day 9, Tuesday: Woke up and felt great. Did a live shot for TODAY for our BOPIS piece. Took one DayQuil at 9AM because my back is still slightly aching. Less congested. Slept well. Had a hardboiled egg and toast and could taste the salt about 10%. Did a spot on gift cards and scams for Nightly News. Strange to be working every day from my bedroom with COVID but also helps to keep my mind busy.
This afternoon, stress level at 1,000%. Odessa suddenly has a stomachache and slight headache. Feels a little nauseated. Husband is working late. Asian Grandma has to do all the caretaking. Odessa is isolating in the office where she and I used to do our work and school together. She doesn’t have a fever but we are all freaking out that she’s now starting Day 1 of COVID. Kids have all been at home since my diagnosis and no one has gone out but now are we poised for a second COVID case and a domino effect through the family where everyone keeps having to go into isolation and this stretches on for another month??? My biggest fear is that my mom or dad will now get sick from caring for Odessa. Spent the afternoon and evening stress texting to make sure my mom is limiting her contact with Odessa. Everyone has been wearing a mask in the house since I tested positive but this virus is so contagious.
At night, got a slight whiff of my facial moisturizer and couldn’t believe I could smell it. Went to bed worried our family didn’t dodge the COVID bullet I fired into our apartment.
Day 10, Wednesday: No meds today. I can smell about 5% but only certain things that are very strong like a bottle of perfume or a scented candle—I get the faintest smell now. I have hope my smell and taste will come back. Did another live shot from my bedroom on fire safety for TODAY.
Odessa and my dad got rapid antigen tests at City MD. Longest 15 minutes ever but the results came back NEGATIVE FOR BOTH. The Good Doctor gave major props to CITY MD. They were really professional and friendly and dealing with massive long lines of potentially sick and often grumpy people. Odessa also went to her pediatrician this afternoon for a PCR test but we won’t know those results for 2-3 days. For now, she’s still isolating but her doctor says if she feels better tomorrow she should be able to come out of the room. Pure relief. I haven’t prayed this hard in a while.
Hang in there. The Good Doc got his first dose of the Pfizer vaccine on Saturday. I hope my parents can get theirs soon. But don’t give up. Try to be as safe as you can, reduce your risk for yourself and your family. Connect with loved ones because being lonely is not healthy. But don’t let the fatigue lull you into complacency. We can see the light at the end of the tunnel but it’s still a few months away. I’m wishing you and your family good health.
Leaving you with a pic of my home for the past 10 days. I love my room but I will be happy to leave it for a long walk outside with my favorite people.
