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ONE OF IRELAND’S 683 patients confirmed to have the Covid-19 virus has described his experience of being diagnosed and his time in self-isolation with his partner, who has also tested positive.
Speaking to TheJournal.ie, he said his symptoms started with a sore throat and cough, with aches and pains following that, and then a high temperature. He then began to experience some shortness of breath and pains in his ribs.
“It was bad on Day 4 but that has eased a bit today thankfully – on Day 4 I was finding it hard to hold a conversation on the phone as I’d be getting short of breath. That’s better today thankfully,” he said.
His partner’s symptoms, he said, progressed differently to his.
“My partner started with a high temperature and then got a cough and aches and pains. Her high temperature lasted for two days and subsided then. She’s just got aches and pains today and a slight cough.”
The man said he believes his partner may have been in contact with a positive case in her workplace, as another person there also has Covid-19.
He said it took a number of days to go through the process of getting tested and receiving their results. During this time, they followed public health advice and both remained in self-isolation.
“When the positive result came back to us the contact tracing was an eye-opener to how many people we come in contact with on a daily basis. We had to give names and contact details of anyone we had been in contact with from when the symptoms started,” he explained.
“They explained that their contact tracing team would make contact with them to explain that they had been in touch with a positive case and advise them accordingly.
“Credit has to go to everyone involved in the process for being so calm, kind and understanding. Everything was explained so well by all involved.”
The couple was told that symptoms and recovery can vary from person-to-person and were advised to stay home for two weeks from the day their symptoms started.
He said they were told there is no plan to re-test them at the end of the two weeks as the health service is already under pressure with a backlog of tests. However, they were told if they still have symptoms at the end of the two weeks they should consult their GP before going back to work.
The couple told their family and a few close friends – “anyone we’d normally see just to explain why we’ve dropped off the face of the earth for two weeks”.
“We haven’t broadcast it much further though, just in case our wider group of friends or work colleagues get freaked out by it, but I’m sure they’ll figure it out in no time.
“Everyone we’ve told have been extremely supportive. We’ve had so many people dropping supplies and treats to the house and unending offers from everyone else to help with shopping or anything we need. Friends and family have been the ones keeping us supplied with everything and we are very, very grateful.”
They have been keeping in contact with family and friends by text, phone calls and video calls.
“We’re trying to keep occupied around the house catching up on jobs we’ve been meaning to do like fixing things and spring cleaning. Both of us get short of breath quickly though and we’re wrecked so we can only do a little bit at a time. Energy levels are quite low.
“Working our way through Netflix is a big way of passing the time,” he said.
“We’re young and relatively healthy so we’re not too worried. We keeping an eye on the symptoms and if they get too bad we know we can ring Public Health or our GP for further advice, or if it’s very bad, if we’re very short of breath or have severe chest pain, we were told to call an ambulance.”
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Thank you for sharing your experience which I think will allay some fears for those who may get the virus. Hope you are both fighting fit soon.
If we ALL were self isolating like we were told we might not be getting these large numbers of people contacting the virus people are very ignorant when it comes to things like this if you have people social distancing and one doesn’t what is the point doing it.
@John O Donoghue: we have not all be told to self isolate. That’s mis information. It says the kids are off and should not mix. I for one work in the medical device industry and have to go to work on a rota basis.
@John O Donoghue: there are plenty of people working for businesses that have not shut.
@John O Donoghue: The ignorants are fearless
@Godknows: people who can stay at home should. Those that have to go out to work. Give them the benefit of the doubt that they will try protect themselves and others.
@John O Donoghue: The article says his girlfriend worked with someone that tested positive. You are told to self isolation if you have symptoms which they did. Also we were asked to cut our interactions with others that’s different to self isolating yourself.
@Anne Doddy: no Anne we weren’t asked to cut our interactions, we were told not to go out unless we absolutely have to like for work or you have no food left and that’s a lot like self isolation and rightly so. When are stupid people going understand don’t go outside unless you absolutely have too
Thanks for sharing your experience I hope both you and your partner come out the other side well and healthy
So want can we do with these people young or old who refused or don’t care about obeying these life saving measures on the island of Ireland! And it is usually the same groups of people in our society than demand this and demand that and don’t want to paid for anything in our society!
So they only inform people you’ve been in contact with AFTER symptoms show?? I thought you are also contagious during the incubation period?
Also just letting people return to work after 2 weeks with no test to ensure they’re negative is crazy!
@Louise S: contact your GP after 2 wks who will guide you on your course of action
@dowthebow: Seriously if your going to skim an article and not read it correctly refrain from writing panic inducing comments. They waited a few days to be tested. They won’t be retested after 2 weeks. They are no longer contagious after 2 weeks. The advice was if they are still unwell they should contact their GP for a follow up.
@Sandra Whelehan: so much is still not known about the virus and it’s after effects. “ But another study, following four medical professionals treated at a Wuhan hospital, revealed that traces of the virus could persist in the body for up to two weeks after symptoms had vanished; as the patients were no longer coughing or sneezing, the potential means of transmission were albeit much reduced. Less optimistic was a study published last week in The Lancet medical journal that showed the virus survived in one Chinese patient’s respiratory tract for 37 days – well above the average of 24 days for those with critical disease status.”
https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/03/coronavirus-recovery-what-happens-after-covid19/
@EillieEs: sneezing isn’t a symptom… In fact if you’ve a runny nose and sneezing you don’t have it.. Apparently
@Louise S: you can hardly inform people BEFORE symptoms show because you’re totally unaware of it during the incubation period that you have the virus. The point of having social distancing is to try slow down the spread and minimize the possibility of the contagion whilst not overwhelming the medical systems.The advice of the health authorities is what is most relevant in the present situation. Keep well.
I know two people either side of the country who definitely have it and were told to just stay at home from their respective doctors . So the test result you should take with a pinch of salt. Its a lot worse here than the numbers suggest.
@MitchConnor: have they been tested and confirmed to have it? If so then they’d be included in the numbers.
Speedy recovery to the couple .
I’m alarmed that : they are only testing close contacts from the time of patients being symptomatic when you’re contagious before symptoms
That there is no test by 14 days of developing symptoms . The rule is two negative tests to be cleared .
Clusters must be identified and testing must be done post 14 days if we’re trying to beat this outbreak.
@Isabel Oliveira: I suppose the health authorities do ask for the contact details of people who were in contact during the five or so days before the symptoms manifested.
“We haven’t broadcast it much further”. Just on the Journal! Fair play to both though for explaining and wish them both well.
@Toon Army: Did they give their names?
It’s a thermometer!
Thank you for sharing your experience.It’s good to hear from people who have come through this horrible virus.
Keep well everyone..Summer & good days are coming.
Does that look like a pregnancy test?
@Stan Kowalskis: it’s a thermometer
@Stan Kowalskis: If it was a pregnancy test, no wonder they cropped the photo to not show the look of surprise in his eyes!
“We’re young and relatively healthy, so we’re not too worried” meaning, whatever, others are now infected by us but we are ok cos we are young
@Caoimhín O Neill: harsh.she was infected by somebody..they are doing the right thing.everybody that has it is infected by somebody.can you not say thank god their young and healthy..they both have a killer virus..and thank you for telling us their story.people are anxious and this helps.whats your plan of action at the moment.??
@Caoimhín O Neill: interesting interpretation
@Caoimhín O Neill: I wouldn’t have taken that meaning out of that at all….quite sure that’s not what they meant.
@Caoimhín O Neill: that’s definitely not the interpretation I took from what they said.
@Shirley Hollingsworth: my plan of action is to self Isolate, wear masks and not meet many people. Sounds more reasonable no? For if I ever come into contact with the virus, I won’t be in the fearful situation of remembering *all* that I came into contact with, because I would have been self isolating.
@Caoimhín O Neill: except in studies done in China and Hong King a number of patients who’ve ‘recovered’ from the virus have been left with reduced lung function of 20-30%. In some cases this can be improved with physiotherapy and activities such as swimming but in others organ damage has occurred and it’s not known if it will develop into pulmonary fibrosis which is incurable.
@EillieEs: I don’t disagree.
The schools and colleges only shut last Thursday. People may have picked up the virus before that. My college was open last Wednesday. I don’t understand why people think the majority of positive tests mean those people are currently out mingling when we’ve only been told to stay in for just over a week. Also bear in mind the wait time for a test can be up to 7 days so people that rang last week or even Monday would have contracted it BEFORE we were told to work remotely/not go to college etc.
If they dont retest them after two weeks we are Fuked UP
@Margarita Si Marcel: need more than 2 weeks to recover. 4 weeks more likely
Check out a place in Italy called vo, they are doing things right.
Thanks for sharing your experience of Covid-19. Glad you’re both on the mend now and take it very easy though for a while, get well at your own pace. It was good to hear from someone who got through it.
This proves what I’ve been saying.. We are not getting a true picture of numbers of cases that have recovered if they are no been retested how do we know how many actually still have it and how many are now immune, we just keep getting numbers of cases not active cases
@nelliekel: yes, well spotted. If it wasnt for you nobody would have copped that. Well done you
it would be very scary taking this test, but I know that we all might have to do it at some stage
@Nakedcleanersireland.com: I don’t think so. I’d prefer to know and do everything recommended to keep away from anyone else. It’s only a swab, isn’t it? Better to know either way.
What medication was recommended as treatment.
have your say