Sunday, February 7, 2021

Coronavirus Day 3 - A Surly Nurse

When I woke up around 8 on Friday morning, my fever was nearly gone (around 99.5) and my joint pain had resolved. I still felt nauseated but was able to prepare and eat hot buckwheat cereal with bananas, peanut butter, and kefir (drinkable goat yogurt). I was grateful that I enjoyed the flavor; unlike 86% of Covid-19 patients, I had not lost my sense of taste or smell. That bit of food eased the nausea, but I needed a two-hour nap after all that effort.

I slept off and on all through the day. While I was awake, I enjoyed the pleasant surroundings of my designated sick room, Allyson's old room which contains a bed with an adjustable base. If you've been reading a very long time, you might remember how much fun we had redecorating that room. She has since outgrown the ocean theme, but I haven't. The many shades of blue and green are quite relaxing, and the shells, painted dresser, and orca wallpaper border all remind me of the many loved ones who helped us transform the room

The other great comfort was the cats, who worked rotating shifts to keep me calm and quiet. Each time Arwen's shift was over, CiCi gave her a forceful shove off the bed before taking her place on my lap. If you ever saw Garfield knock Odie off a table, you know exactly how that looked. Arwen responded with a pitiful shriek and then meekly left the room. 



Although I wish CiCi would treat Arwen, her onetime surrogate mother, with the kindness she deserves, I couldn't resist giving Naughty Cat her turn. I reveled in her unusual affection for an hour or more, but finally I got cocky and petted her a bit too long. Without a warning, she whirled around and bit my hand with the rapidity of a rattlesnake strike. This little nurse definitely has room for improvement in her bedside manner!

The rest of my day was unremarkable aside from receiving notice of my positive test result that evening. 

At bedtime, after spending the entire day in bed and many hours napping, I was disappointed to find that my temperature was now higher than the previous day, at 101.1. I also found myself unable to clean the litter boxes; just feeding the cats left me exhausted. I turned in at 8 and hoped, once more, that I could sleep this off. 

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Vitals: 96/61, 96 beats per minute. Temperature: from 99.5 to 101.1.

Symptoms: fever, chills, headache, mild nausea, dizziness, fatigue, mild nasal congestion, mild sore throat

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