The nurse said my symptoms seem mild (if I had tested negative, I feel good enough that I would have traveled to New Hampshire to see my client). I don’t think I’m going to try Paxlovid since I am not high risk. I don’t want to get a rebound case. She said I have a couple of days to change my mind if I get worse.
I love my husband dearly, but he is not great in the caretaking department. Not sure why that is, because he’s usually very helpful. I think it unnerves him when I’m ill and he can’t deal with it.
Our MD also didn’t prescribe Paxlovid when my H had his mild case before xmas. It was never more than a runny nose and a scratchy throat. Never a fever and he worked regular hours from isolation in his home office.
We followed the CDC isolation procedures and no one else in the family got it.
We isolated him in our primary bedroom/bath and the office, which is conveniently connected to the primary by a small hallway closet pass through. I had him open windows every day and I bleached wiped everything coming and going into his room (I served him all his meals on a tray outside his door) and then we’d FaceTime over meals with me in a different part of the house.
He did mask up after isolation in the house until he tested negative. He went back to the office on day 11 after two negative tests.
Thanks for the information. I’m glad we work from home. We have a pretty big office so I will mask when I’m in here and I think it will be OK. DH has certainly been exposed to me a lot the past day or two, so it may be too late.
CDC gives it in number of days, probably because most people do not have a big supply of tests. Actual length of testing positive with rapid antigen testing can vary from under 5 days to over 10 days (PCR testing may give false positives from dead virus for months after).
In my family antigen tests turned negative at 12, 14 and 17 days (son, daughter, me).
Just want to add the recent articles say that Paxlovid does not “cause” rebound. People who don’t take Paxlovid may also rebound. However, it is true that pockets of virus may remain after 5 days and then start replicating. There are studies on doing 10 days.
I texted my kids to tell them I was positive, and my daughter responded that she just tested positive, too! I haven’t seen her since Christmas, so I don’t think the cases are related. She’s already had COVID multiple times. She went to Philadelphia over the weekend - drove there, flew back - so she thinks that’s where she got it.
I hope you feel better and have a mild case. DH and I still have colds. We tested on Saturday and were negative, but still masked up to return home that day. So I am wondering if I should test again? I suppose I could have been exposed returning home, but Ive stayed in pretty much this past week because I feel crummy and didn’t want to expose anyone else to my head cold.
BUT, the weirdest thing happened Tuesday morning. I am hoping it’s just that I tend to sleep with my hands under my head and maybe pinched a nerve ,but I have had weakness in my dominant hand and index finger. I am trying to do things like squeeze a tennis ball and a hand exerciser my DH had, but it’s been odd. Had trouble holding a pen the first day. Still hard to do fine motor things. I hope I didn’t have a TIA!
To follow up, the cleaning lady was coming Tuesday and she likes to be paid by check. I went to write one and realized I had trouble holding the pen! I had to support it with my non-dominant hand! My hand is weaker (somewhat better but still weaker) and my index finger is particularly weak (trouble with fine motor things like sewing, which I did yesterday when hemming some pants, using tweezers, etc.) It’s quite disconcerting, and I will continue to try to do some strengthening exercises (I have some putty around here somewhere) and one of my bridge friends’ SIL is a hand specialist , so if needed I will go see him. But short of checking for a pinched nerve or doing a CT to see if I had a TIA, I suspect the strengthening exercises will be recommended. Anyone else experience this?
From what I and my husband had in November this is wrong. It was more like the flu. We were sick in bed with fevers and felt horrible. Definitely the sickest I’ve been in probably a decade or more. And I am not immunocompromised and rarely get sick. I have a pretty strong immune system.
It seems to be an entirely individual thing. I’ve had Covid 3x. First time like a mild flu, second time a headache and mild sore throat, third time like a cold. The third time though I got it from a friend who was extremely ill and nearly hospitalized, so same strain but completely different symptoms. Her husband also had a very mild case.
At some point we’ll have better information on why some cases are so much worse than others. It’s fascinating.
Re: Covid, do the test again if it makes you feel better to know one way or another.
Re: your hand/finger weakness….if it’s not relieved by ibuprofen (which would perhaps reduce any inflammation if it was from sleeping on it or an irritated nerve) why not run it by your primary care? It’s an odd thing….and maybe nothing - but myself, I like the reassurance that it IS or ISN’T something to look into further! (Unless you can somehow call the office of the hand specialist and see if they will talk you through it)
When H tested positive, I had already had contact during the time he was most likely to give it to me. We stayed away from the kids, but I didn’t mask around him or isolate. did do that in August 2022 when I got it and was pretty sick … but he had already been exposed & hot it, anyway. Since this go-round was mild for him, I just did things like washing my hands a lot and avoiding being right near him. Strangely enough, I didn’t get it. It’s an odd virus.
We are able to get free tests from our library. We can just pull up to their drive up window, ring the bell & get tests. They ask how many, and they don’t ask for a name. It’s been a godsend … we tested daily.
@jym626 do you have migraines? One of my kids had those symptoms, was weak on the entire right side actually and could not hold a pen etc., and it was a hemiplegic migraine. They did do a CT scan to make sure.
As soon as you tell a doc this situation, I would bet they tell you to go to the ER!
Rebounds are not limited to Paxlovid! I had a rebound without the drug. My husband’s “rebound” was sniffles and positive test (as compared to being absolutely sick with insanely high BP before taking the drug).
That said, if your symptoms are mild, leave it up to your doctor to make the call whether to take the drug or not.
So I asked my close friends (two of my closest 4) if they would test before I come to dinner tonight, considering that there is a surge locally and COVID put me in the hospital (it attacked my heart)- I would bring the tests. Or we could take a walk.
I heard back that there was a schedule change so no dinner, and we could take a walk this weekend. No mention of testing. This happened with different friends during the post-holiday surge last year. Very disappointing.
Any friend (or acquaintance) should jump at the suggestion to test, especially given your severe circumstances. There is not a single possible reason not to do so.
I’m sorry for you. Personally, I would rethink the friendships.
I think people – even well meaning people – are cavalier with other people’s health. It really doesn’t register with them just how severe the consequences can be.
Not sure why that is, because he’s usually very helpful. I think it unnerves him when I’m ill and he can’t deal with it.