EDIT: (Small quick update on page 5)

I was diagnosed with Covid this morning.

I had a super bad sinus last weekend, which I do get sinuses all the time, and I thought that was just it. The sinus went away after last Monday and other wierd oddball symptons appeared. I got the 1st Moderna injection Thursday. What sucked was we had to stand in line for an hour, which wore me out.

Anyway, I was in sort of a state of shock when the Doc told me this morning and I did not retain everything that was said, or perhaps was not said.

I was told to check with my Pulse OX every few hours, but I don't recall how low it could go before I'd have to go to the ER. Anyone know this answer? Currently I'm holding at 95%.

I was given Azithromycin 6 doses (Zpack?) and Prednisone and an inhaler.

I'm basically freaked out.

For those of you in the medical field, or have had Covid and beat it, anything else I should know or do or watch out for?

Prayers are most welcome.

Thank you.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: OKCGene,

Oh, my. You have my prayers and best wishes for a full and speedy recovery.

Man, sorry to hear that!

I had it around Christmas. Stay hydrated, vitamin C and zinc. Just rest as best you can.

I found benadryl helped me too along with Tylenol.

Prayer sent Gene. Don't panic. That will not help.
The odd's are heavily in your favor to make a full recovery.
So try and relax, eat well (healthy) drink lots of fluids.

I also like pistolria' advice.

Did you get it standing in line, do you figure?

Ok, you are on the same battery of stuff I used to beat it. First, the Z-pack is probably there to keep the lung congestion from turning into pneumonia. Covid is a virus, so antibiotics don't kill the virus, but they do prevent some nasty follow-on diseases.

The prednisone is most likely to reduce the inflammation in your lungs. I had it for that reason, and it helps with pain and promotes lung healing.

I imagine that the inhaler is albuterol. That is to open airways and help you breathe.

If your chest starts to get really tight, and the albuterol doesn't release it adequately, ask your Dr. for a prescription for a nebulizer and Duoneb. That is a device that atomizes a lung opening drug, and allows you to breath it deeply into your lungs, opening up the airways and relieving lung pain, chest tightness, and shortness of breath.

Drink lots of water. You won't feel like it, but DO IT.

Mucinex DM, or the Walgreens generic equivalent is your friend. It will help loosen the shit in your chest, and give you some chance of hacking it out.

I don't know what the magic number is for blood 02, but if it goes below 90, I'd give my doc a call. I didn't have a pulse oximeter when I had covid; I have one now.

When you are over it, and you WILL get over it, watch for an accelerated heart beat and high blood pressure. If you are continually exhausted after you are past the chest symptoms, see your doc and have your heart checked.

Finally, if you feel like you are going down hill fast, as in getting significantly sicker quickly, take yee to the ER with all deliberate speed. This thing can come at you very fast, even after you think you are improving.

Good luck.

Well that just SUCKS. Said a prayer in hopes that you start feeling better in short time. John

I had it in January. I also have pretty serious underlying lung issues.
Liquid Mucinex helped me keep the phlegm moving.

As stated before, rest, and hydrate. Pedialyte was a life saver for me, once the fever sweats started.

Try to keep your O2 saturation above 90%. I’ve heard it’s ER time if it gets down around 85.

Good luck to you. It wasn’t the sickest I’d ever been, but it was the sickest I’d been in a while.

I've only spoken to one person who said they had Covid.
I asked them if they could get the injection in order to avoid risk of a Covid recurrence?
They said doc told them they'd need to wait 3mos for the injection since they've had Covid.
That information, were I in your shoes, would prompt a bunch of questions with my doc.
Such as, does this mean the injection I got Thursday will need to be repeated? Etc etc

As was said earlier, vitamin C and zinc, and I’ve read that vitamin D is important as well.

My wife and I both had COVID in January. It hit us pretty hard and we were both hospitalized.

What made me go to the hospital is my O2 was in the upper 70's to lower 80's. You are OK in the mid to upper 90's. If you have continued readings in the lower 90's or below call your doctor. Before you get readings like mine, head to the ER.

I called my doctor and gave him my numbers over the phone and he said HEAD to the ER NOW. These 2 x-rays show my healthy versus COVID lungs:



Definitely watch your pulse/o2 readings. Also if you have difficulty breathing, chest pain, etc.

Note I'm not a physician, just been there/done that.

Feel free to email me with any other questions.

Prayers sent.

I have not have Covid, nor am I in the medical field.

My niece is a nurse and had Covid over the summer. Besides the good advice already provided here, I remember her telling me that she did not over-suppress her fever but instead allowed it to simmer around 101 for a couple of days. I don't know why she did that but apparently it helped expedite the recovery. I also don't know how one fine tunes medication to keep a fever at a certain range, but just something to keep in mind.

Prayers Sent. Do what the doctors say. Around here they keep talking about a treatment called MABS, you should look into it and see if it's for you.

quote:

Currently I'm holding at 95%.

Mine varies but normally mostly 96 to 98. But if you are using one of the cheaper finger type units, keep the unit away from strong light during the measurement phase. The light can decrease the reading by 5 percent or more.

I'd notify the doc if the readings drop below 95 or 94 consistently.

Fortunately unlike the early days they now have found several treatments that work and keep the levels below that of requiring hospitalization.

I know many from the Epping PD and my former PD that tested positive and most had nothing more than the symptoms of a bad clod. So monitor it and keep taking the meds they suggested.

quote:

Originally posted by Graniteguy:
I don't know why she did that ....

A fever is considered to be the body’s natural effort to fight infections by making a less-hospitable environment for the pathogens. In recent times I’ve seen more opinions expressed that although extremely high fevers can be harmful in themselves, fevers shouldn’t be suppressed entirely.

So sorry this happened. Your goal now is to notice if there's a severe worsening of symptoms. This could indicate a condition called "cytokine storm", where the immune system goes into global overdrive and starts indiscriminately attacking tissue and organ systems.

If you do notice a sudden and significant worsening of symptoms, contact medical services immediately. There's a simple blood test that can confirm cytokine storm.

Also, Sigfreund is correct that a fever right now may be your best friend, burning out the virus, as long as it doesn't kill you in the process. A nice middle-ground is what to shoot for.

Sounds like you're doing everything right. I had it too. PulseOx was something my doc recommended. I breezed right through it. Worst symptoms were fever spiking at 101.5 and the associated flu-like achiness that goes along with that. My PulseOx never went below 95%. I was over it in a week. I'm 62, a bit overweight but in reasonably decent shape except for that.

Keep checking PulseOx and fever, know that it's not serious for most, and hang in there.

Prayers sent.

My doc said if my O2 dropped below 90 to head to ER, mine never did. I bought a pretty good pulse oximeter last year so I had it before covid. The majority of people I know that had it (which is most people I know) never had it bad. My daughter has a weak immune system and it barely bothered her. My 74 year old friend got over it in three days and he is not in the best of health.

Like was said, drink lots of water and I loaded up on Vitamin C, D and zinc when I had it. It took three weeks for me to get over but it hit me harder than anyone I know personally. You will be ok, relax, rest, take vitamins and watch your O2.

Prayers for you bro. You will beat it.

From a COVID site regarding monitoring your O2 level:

91% to 94%
This oxygen level is concerning and may indicate a medical problem. Call your health care provider immediately

90% or less
This oxygen level is very concerning and may indicate a severe medical problem. Call 911 or go to your nearest emergency room immediately. You may need an urgent x-ray or heart test.
.

Thank you for all the replies.

This is day 8 and I have never run a fever yet.

My temp was 98.2 at the clinic this morning, and my blood pressure was 117/75.

Basically, physically I feel pretty good, except for being slightly short of breath when I walk around the house, then I take a hit or 2 from the Albuterol inhaler.

I'm taking those as good signs, so far. Could be a whole lot worse.

Thank you guys, it's great just to be able to talk about it, makes me feel better and more relaxed.