Any recommendations for how to deal with covid from those that have lived it?

[FrugalSaver]

I’ve not known anyone that had it until 2 family members got it.

One mid 60s male with no comorbidities, works out regularly, non smoker, good overall heath, thin, has had a fever for almost a week. That finally stopped about 2 days ago and now experiencing shortness of breath. X rays show no pneumonia. First began showing symptoms around Wednesday 10/7.

Being admitted to ER for oxygen. Blood oxygen hovering between 90-94. With CPAP machine it’s over 95.

Had hoped when the fever broke were through the worst of it.

So what comes next?  Anyone been through this?  Any suggestions or recommendations?

Would like some of what Trump got from Regeneron.

[iluvzbeach]

PTF

[geekette]

Well, there is a compassionate use policy, but it has lots of hoops, has to be initiated by a physician, and, well, your family isn't related to Drumpf, right? 

Most people do pull through, even though we tend to fixate on the bad outcomes.  I've had 4 family members have it, and all have recovered.

[amberfocus]

Would like some of what Trump got from Regeneron.

I am so, so sorry that your family member is ill. If he is interested in Regeneron's drug, the best course of action is to check if he is eligible for their clinical trial. Although there is a chance that he may get placebo, this is the only way to help science prove whether or not these experimental treatments truly work.

My best wishes for his recovery.

[Another Reader]

He is at Day 11.  The second week is often when things go south.  What have they offered him for treatment?  Remdesivir and convalescent plasma are often used early on in the large hospitals in places like NYC.  If he is in an outlying area with a marginal hospital, maybe not.  Yes, do check clinical trials to see what is offered in his area. 

[the_fixer]

I’ve not known anyone that had it until 2 family members got it.

One mid 60s male with no comorbidities, works out regularly, non smoker, good overall heath, thin, has had a fever for almost a week. That finally stopped about 2 days ago and now experiencing shortness of breath. X rays show no pneumonia. First began showing symptoms around Wednesday 10/7.

Being admitted to ER for oxygen. Blood oxygen hovering between 90-94. With CPAP machine it’s over 95.

Had hoped when the fever broke were through the worst of it.

So what comes next?  Anyone been through this?  Any suggestions or recommendations?

Would like some of what Trump got from Regeneron.

Best wishes I hope everyone pulls through and gets feeling better soon.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[MudPuppy]

He is at Day 11.  The second week is often when things go south.  What have they offered him for treatment?  Remdesivir and convalescent plasma are often used early on in the large hospitals in places like NYC.  If he is in an outlying area with a marginal hospital, maybe not.  Yes, do check clinical trials to see what is offered in his area.

Seconding this. Adding that you’re unlikely to get the regeneron or similar unless you can find a hospital enrolling people for trials. Remember that most people do survive, even though it’s sometimes a long road. I’ve had a fair chunk of my friends, coworkers, and some loved ones sick with it. Most of them have made it and most of those are doing well, though some have lingering issues. Hoped a little time with the supportive care and medication in the hospital helps your loved one over the hump for their own body to finish the work.


How are you doing mentally and emotionally? 2020 is a weird place and it is a heavy thing when a threat you can’t control has made it into your circle.

[zygote]

I had it back in early March in NYC. At the time, everyone was discouraged from seeking medical attention unless they were on death's door, so I never got any. No idea what my blood oxygen levels were. I felt pretty crappy, though. I'm pretty sure I had pneumonia at some point because my lung crackled when I breathed (but I luckily never felt short of breath).

Hopefully your relative will do okay. The medical community has learned a lot since March, and has a better idea of the kind of supportive care that really helps. I can't speak to the specifics, but I have heard that it is common for things to get worse the second week and that it doesn't necessarily mean bad news.

Once he is on the road to recovery, he should take it easy. I was training for a half marathon when I got sick and tried to pick it back up again when I got better. Mistake. I definitely did not bounce back the way I do after a regular cold, and I think I made things worse pushing too much too fast.

[FrugalSaver]

PTF

What is PTF?

[FrugalSaver]

I had it back in early March in NYC. At the time, everyone was discouraged from seeking medical attention unless they were on death's door, so I never got any. No idea what my blood oxygen levels were. I felt pretty crappy, though. I'm pretty sure I had pneumonia at some point because my lung crackled when I breathed (but I luckily never felt short of breath).

Hopefully your relative will do okay. The medical community has learned a lot since March, and has a better idea of the kind of supportive care that really helps. I can't speak to the specifics, but I have heard that it is common for things to get worse the second week and that it doesn't necessarily mean bad news.

Once he is on the road to recovery, he should take it easy. I was training for a half marathon when I got sick and tried to pick it back up again when I got better. Mistake. I definitely did not bounce back the way I do after a regular cold, and I think I made things worth pushing too much too fast.

Thanks for the info everyone. I appreciate it. They told h he was nowhere near bad enough to need remdemsivir so maybe that’s encouraging.  back home again now. Praying constantly.

[Raeon]

2 family friends had it pretty bad and ended up on an oxygen tank at the house while they recovered. Both are up now and slowly regaining strength with no more need for supplemental oxygen. Sounds like he should be past the worst of it. Hope all continues to go as hoped. PTF= Posting to follow

[Dollar Slice]

You can get a pulse oximeter to track their oxygen levels at home, if the doctors didn't give them one. They're like $20 or $30 on Amazon and HSA/FSA eligible. Super easy to use, just press a button and it works.

There is a pulmonary rehab doctor in NYC who has treated a lot of COVID patients, he made an online program that people can use if they have lingering symptoms - kind of like physical therapy for the cardiovascular system as well as some mental health support. Might come in handy later on if they need it: https://pulmonarywellness.org/covid-bootcamp/  I believe it's free but I haven't used it or tried to log in so I'm not 100% sure.

[rosarugosa]

PTF

What is PTF?

It means "post to follow."  It's a comment so that new posts on this thread will show up when you select "show new replies to your posts."

[Dicey]

PTF

What is PTF?

It means "post to follow."  It's a comment so that new posts on this thread will show up when you select "show new replies to your posts."

It's a good tool. I don't understand why some folks hate it so...

[geekette]

Notify works well.  You can follow a thread but you can also unfollow if it is no longer of interest.

[2sk22]

My whole family had covid back in April when it was spreading very rapidly in my area (northern NJ). Wife and daughters had relatively mild symptoms - minimal fever (maybe one day if that) and coughing. I had a fever for about 4 or 5 days but got better pretty quickly after that. Thanks to help from my primary care doctor, I was able to get tested and was on the mend by the time the positive PCR test result came five days after giving the sample.

I would add that I recently got myself tested for antibodies and I still have them six months after the infection.

[2sk22]

One more thing to add - my weight started to drop very rapidly once the infection took hold. My weight was going down by a pound and a half every day! I don't know if others had this experience but I found myself becoming very light headed. Then it occurred to me that I was probably becoming hypoglycemic. I then started shoveling food into me and I felt my strength come back quickly - and the recovery progressed quickly after that.

[Just Joe]

Are people taking it more seriously after they have had it? Trump did not but whatever.

I live in a red state. Our area has a fair bit of folks who don't want to take precautions.

I'd like to think the skeptics will be more cautious as it works it way through the population here.

Maybe they will figure they've had it, screw everyone else?

[Imma]

Several of my family members have had it during the first wave. All but one very elderly person survived, one is still recovering. Recovery seems to take longer than recovery from the flu.

Don't underestimate it. Most people pull through but it will take a bit of time, there are ups and downs. The tricky thing with Covid seems to be that very unwell people can feel relatively good and relatively healthy (non-pneumonia) patients can feel like they're dying. It's scary.

@2sk22 my family members also lost a ton of weight. They struggled to eat, when they forced themselves they'd just throw it up. I haven't had Covid but due to medical issues I feel light headed/faint quite often. If I can't eat for some reason I drink sugary drinks like apple juice or coke that I leave sitting around until the bubbles are gone.

[Sibley]

Several of my family members have had it during the first wave. All but one very elderly person survived, one is still recovering. Recovery seems to take longer than recovery from the flu.

Don't underestimate it. Most people pull through but it will take a bit of time, there are ups and downs. The tricky thing with Covid seems to be that very unwell people can feel relatively good and relatively healthy (non-pneumonia) patients can feel like they're dying. It's scary.

@2sk22 my family members also lost a ton of weight. They struggled to eat, when they forced themselves they'd just throw it up. I haven't had Covid but due to medical issues I feel light headed/faint quite often. If I can't eat for some reason I drink sugary drinks like apple juice or coke that I leave sitting around until the bubbles are gone.

If you can tolerate them: dairy products and Ensure and similar are also helpful when you need calories but eating isn't going so well. They also have some protein, which often helps.

[slappy]

Several of my family members have had it during the first wave. All but one very elderly person survived, one is still recovering. Recovery seems to take longer than recovery from the flu.

Don't underestimate it. Most people pull through but it will take a bit of time, there are ups and downs. The tricky thing with Covid seems to be that very unwell people can feel relatively good and relatively healthy (non-pneumonia) patients can feel like they're dying. It's scary.

@2sk22 my family members also lost a ton of weight. They struggled to eat, when they forced themselves they'd just throw it up. I haven't had Covid but due to medical issues I feel light headed/faint quite often. If I can't eat for some reason I drink sugary drinks like apple juice or coke that I leave sitting around until the bubbles are gone.

If you can tolerate them: dairy products and Ensure and similar are also helpful when you need calories but eating isn't going so well. They also have some protein, which often helps.

This is what I did when I had covid. I couldn't taste anything anyway, so I just threw a bunch of healthy stuff into a blender.

[Dicey]

Pinging @FrugalSaver. Have your relatives recovered?

[bmjohnson35]

I have a close friend who got it in July. He's in his late 60's, overweight, doesn't exercise and a former long-term smoker.    He could hardly get out of bed at one point and said that at times felt like he couldn't breath.  He treated it like a regular flu, drank a lot of fluids, lots of rest and simply toughed it out.  His kids tried to force him to go to the hospital when you got to his worse state, but he refused to go.  It took him around 3-4 weeks to complete the main recovery.  He says that he still feels the shortness of breath at times, even so it has been 4 plus months.

[KarefulKactus15]

My report doesn't help much.

Brother and cousin are roommates and both had it.

20 year old cousin in shape no underlying conditions. His worst symptoms resembled a crappy cold.  5 days for the  crappy part, 10 days full circle.

40 year old brother - not a single symptom. - Wild

[Prairie Gal]

PTF

[FIRE Artist]

Are people taking it more seriously after they have had it? Trump did not but whatever.

I live in a red state. Our area has a fair bit of folks who don't want to take precautions.

I'd like to think the skeptics will be more cautious as it works it way through the population here.

Maybe they will figure they've had it, screw everyone else?

I have heard a report from a doctor in a red state saying that COVID is running rampant, and people admitted to hospital for oxygen treatment still refusing to believe they have COVID. 

[katsiki]

Maybe they will figure they've had it, screw everyone else?

The people I know who have had it (small sample set) have basically acted like it is no big deal because they had a mild experience.  It drives me crazy...  Get ready for the Thanksgiving surge.

[RetiredAt63]

Maybe they will figure they've had it, screw everyone else?

The people I know who have had it (small sample set) have basically acted like it is no big deal because they had a mild experience.  It drives me crazy...  Get ready for the Thanksgiving surge.

Just like people think the flu, measles, etc. are nothing because they had mild cases. I had measles as a child (before the vaccine) and I was really sick, and my parents were worried for my eyesight.  I still have scars from chickenpox.  You can believe my daughter got all her childhood immunizations on schedule.

[katsiki]

Maybe they will figure they've had it, screw everyone else?

The people I know who have had it (small sample set) have basically acted like it is no big deal because they had a mild experience.  It drives me crazy...  Get ready for the Thanksgiving surge.

Just like people think the flu, measles, etc. are nothing because they had mild cases. I had measles as a child (before the vaccine) and I was really sick, and my parents were worried for my eyesight.  I still have scars from chickenpox.  You can believe my daughter got all her childhood immunizations on schedule.

Good point.  I am worried personally about the variety of impact on different people and the long-term effects.  I just saw a story about neurological effects on covid survivors.

I am young and relatively healthy, so I would PROBABLY be ok but WHO KNOWS!!

[Cassie]

A friend of mine stayed home for 8 months except for the grocery store. He got Covid and a few days later was dead. He was 68 and overweight with sleep apnea. I am 66 with asthma and lost 22lbs the past 4 months.  I can’t wait to get the vaccine.

[OtherJen]

Maybe they will figure they've had it, screw everyone else?

The people I know who have had it (small sample set) have basically acted like it is no big deal because they had a mild experience.  It drives me crazy...  Get ready for the Thanksgiving surge.

Just like people think the flu, measles, etc. are nothing because they had mild cases. I had measles as a child (before the vaccine) and I was really sick, and my parents were worried for my eyesight.  I still have scars from chickenpox.  You can believe my daughter got all her childhood immunizations on schedule.

Good point.  I am worried personally about the variety of impact on different people and the long-term effects.  I just saw a story about neurological effects on covid survivors.

I am young and relatively healthy, so I would PROBABLY be ok but WHO KNOWS!!

My dad has eyesight problems from childhood measles. My great uncle had long-term issues from childhood polio. One of my best friends just spent several days in the hospital with a severe outbreak of shingles (she's 45).

Get your vaccinations.