I’ve been sick for exactly one month and two days… I had 2-3 days where I was SO much better a week ago, but needed food, walked to a gas station to buy bread and peanut butter, and while I was paying, this guy sneezed TWICE, and he was standing right by the door. I only got 3 hours of sleep that night, so I felt sick anyway (I’ve always been like this) and actually walked to the gas station at 6am thinking I wouldn’t have come in contact with people (store has glass separation) but by the next day, I was awful.
I’ve also noticed this on 3-4 occasions, and now I have to lay down the law. My health will be improving, and then after a phone call (usually long), I feel so sick. Unbelievable fatigue, complete weakness, horrible body aches, chills… A little bit of coughing and running nose (but that could be something else - dust perhaps). I don’t have a thermometer, but I’m old enough to know I have a fever… My throat also hurts from phone calls, but I’m SO lonely, live alone, and sometimes say “Whatever consequences I get will have to do, because at this moment, I need to talk to someone about something”, but thinking about keeping my phone off, although I doubt I will.
If you have any tips to help, please list as many as possible. I have nothing but my feet, I’m probably a few months from being homeless again. I don’t have the things most have. I actually posted a thread about my laptop not working, and its on its last leg. My flip phone keeps turning off every few minutes. So basically, I have limited options, so the more options, the more its appreciated.
Even if its something I can’t do, that can’t help me, list them anyway so maybe you can help another fellow Doper.
Sorry to hear this. I live alone and also got really sick. Flu like symptoms though, just a headache and tiredness but it’s been five weeks and I’m still not 100%. You might not have the energy right now but exercise is so important to your mental health, do whatever you can without overdoing it. I was feeling really down a few years ago and started working out. Not even that much - but it turned my mood around.
Also maybe do a project. Even something simple that nobody else will see. So it could be art - it doesn’t matter if you’re no good at it, it’ll be for you. My little project is making a sourdough starter to eventually bake bread. This is a 20 minute a day exercise but it’s something to do every day.
Hey…you should consider trying taking Claritin for 2-3 weeks - every day, without fail or it doesn’t work - and see if it helps. A constant headache and tiredness are extremely common hay fever symptoms and allergy season began early this year, about 6 weeks ago here, and for the past several days the pollen count has been 90% of the maximum of the pollen scale.
Unfortunately, even though I’m not sneezing much, only have a mildly stuffy nose, and I’m not feeling completely exhausted because my allergy meds are doing a reasonably good job, headaches keep coming back the past 4 days because the pollen count is just that high now.
And people can develop seasonal allergies at any point in their life, so even people who have never suffered them before can suddenly join us, sigh.
Thanks. The odd thing is, that I’ve gone on two walks while on the phone, and when I’m inside, I’ll pace around, and when I’m done, I notice I’m sicker than usual. I did go online regarding this on one of those free and friendly WebMD kinda sites. I remember it reading “If you have pains under the neck, rest and relax”… I usually get headaches/migraines but actually haven’t had one in at least a week.
OP, I think the issues here are that a) you really don’t know what the malady is and b) it’s gone on for far too long. Is it COVID? No way to tell. Is it the flu? A month is a VERY long time for your symptoms to be strictly flu-related. Is it something else entirely? Something serious? Don’t know. Or is it a combination of diseases/conditions? Again, no way to tell.
Your resources are obviously extremely limited. Are you on Medicaid? Could you get to an ER? You really, really need testing and treatment. As someone who, like you, must “depend on my feet,” I can get rides on the city’s disability bus. Do you have something similar?
I’m so sorry you’re in such a lonely, deprived state. I imagine you’re not able to eat right, either, in those circumstances.
I felt better for about 4 days, and then when I went to a store to get bread, this guy sneezed twice at the door… I hadn’t slept more than a few hours, andwhenI wake up at 4am, I feel like I have the flu anyway (body aches, chills, fatigue, irritability). The next day, it was back. But usually when I get the flu, it is a while before I get it again, and its usually around winter or cold weather in general.
From everything I’ve heard, even if I do have it, they would tell me to go home. I don’t live with anyone. But if I don’t have it, and I do go to the ER (or a clinic, etc), there is a chance to catch it there.
For me I think I’m recovering for a few days and then - bam! - the next day I’m feeling as bad as ever. This is apparently quite common with COVID-19. I spoke to a hospital consultant and even though I don’t have breathlessness or a cough she thought it was probable that I had the virus (although she was also taking into account my contact with others who had it). The bad days usually happen if I’ve not had a great night’s sleep.
And for those that say it could be hay fever, I do already take regular medication for it so it’s definitely not that (plus I’m familiar with the symptoms).
MortSahlFan, I think we’re in very similar places (apart from geographically). Although your symptoms seem more classical for the virus. Just keep looking after yourself but be careful you don’t catch something else at the same time. You’ll be feeling much more cheery once the symptoms ebb away - but it can take some time…
MortSahlFan, my community hospital is doing telehealth COVID-19 assessments for free. It’s part of the Franciscan network and I read early on that all Franciscan hospitals will be doing the same thing. You might look for something similar in the hospitals near you. You don’t have to go in, you’ll just talk on the phone or via the webcam on your computer.
Thanks everyone for the replies. I hope you all feel better or maintain your health.
If I have COVID-19, they would tell me to do what I’m already doing… But I’ve actually been sleeping well, which is usually the case when I’m sick… Of course, if I can’t breathe, etc., I would call 911. I have a tendency to have long flus, like the one I had in November/December (about 2 weeks).
