I recovered from Covid after 3 weeks. Here’s what helped.

[Turin]

I hope I can help in some ways as I recovered from the awful virus. I had it for three weeks and believe I caught it from colleagues/students at school who presented mild symptoms. The virus attacked me very slowly (headaches and fatigue very normal with teachers) and the aggressively- coughing and flu like symptoms. I was in bed for weeks after.

It was so bad at one point I gave my DS (single parent) the “if Mummy dies” talk. Breaks my heart that he had to hear those words.

So I just want to share what helped me in case anything can alleviate your pain:

1. Plenty of fluids despite making me vomit. The emptying of my stomachs helped clear mucus in my lungs/throat and helped me breathe. The only food I could graze on was flat breads or fruit.

1. Antibiotics- the GP said this was to treat a secondary bacterial infection on my lungs in the second week which helped me breath. It did.

1. Paracetamol x2 every four hours. Some days I was so weak it would take me two hours at 4am to take these. During the day DS was trying to nurse me the best he could.

1. Lucozade. I could not eat and my sugar levels were desperately low. Some days/hours I had no idea where DS was (big garden) as I was so lethargic and fatigued. The lucozade gave me the sugar rush I needed to gradually get up and try and be a parent to him. He is 9.

1. Steaming. My friend recommended doing this with whole cloves as this is used for colds in her culture. Again helped massively when I had the energy to boil the water and place in a bowl.

1. Turn of sky news if you have it! The sight of the giant red virus cell as their background was nauseating! Turn off the news in general. It doesn’t help morale hearing about death rates.

1. Have a heated pad or hot water bottle on stand by if you do get the chills. I had a microwaveable heat pad used for pets.

1. Don’t be afraid to call nhs for advice if you think you are getting worse. At one point, my son called 999 and said “my mum can’t breath”. He was told “unless her lips are blue and her head has gone floppy we won’t be coming out we are too busy”. My poor love having to listen to that.

However, It helped me focus on getting better massively as I understood the nhs was on its knees and my recovery was going to be better at home even though I was gasping for breath.

1. As my course of antibiotics finished and the steaming was helping, I started to do things like clean up and wash clothes. Don’t. Stop. They will exhaust you. Baby steps for at least a week as you will get a false sense of confidence thinking you are better and then relapse. This happened to me 3 times.

Hope this helps someone who needed hope that the chances of you getting better are higher than if you don’t.

Feel free to ask me any questions.

X

the words they apparently used that is an issue

Yes, I would be surprised if they aren't trained to use age appropriate language.

At least a paramedic did call though, the Op remembered that when prompted.

This and the empty hospital thread seem at odds with each other.

Unless the back log is all around 111 / ambulances.

It may be ambulances?
Sayung thst if I was told no in that state, I'd have got Dd to call back and say I had blue lips.
Thats me though, and its an odd thing for me to say as Im in and out of hospital a lot and still dodge it.

Me too.

They did have to deep clean them, not sure if still are, but slowed them down.

I can only speak from what my DD tells me, who works in ITU at a major hospital. She has contact with colleagues on the Covid wards. There's capacity on the Covid wards and in ITU, there always has been And they are admitting patients with far less severe symptoms than the OP describes on here.
Perhaps it's regional? Her hospital was busier a week ago, but they have never not admitted patients who need treatment.
The ambulance service are aware of hospital capacity.
Perhaps when the OP's son called at that time the hospital was full. Although I doubt it, based on the expansion of bed space.

Another one surprised by the ambulance response to the call.

The trouble with 111 is that clinical advisors are few and far between, it is very much a case of following the flowchart and not applying other factors into decision making. I don't mean to criticise those who take the calls, they work within their ways of working etc. Also the papers have repeatedly said they will only admit you if x, y or z, but it would be interesting to know what the actual truth is.

A paramedic called back though.

The flow chart thing is a pain, when I've had to call for myself they go through so many irrelevant questions when its very clear Im struggling to speak/breathe.

Thank you op xx
Im now worried as ive launched straight back into work after covid. Maybe i should have eased myself back in.

Glad to hear you're doing better OP. Like others I'm shocked at 111 response to your djn when many hospitals have empty beds. Something for you and he to talk about, when you're totally recovered though. Best wishes to you both

your *son

loveliesbleeding yes of course it's completely different, and the doctor on the phone checked first to make sure I had an adult with me who could drive.

I'm not criticising the OP at all, i have no idea how she has coped as a LP. I was adding my story because others have been sceptical that the ambulance wouldn't come.

The flow chart thing is a pain, when I've had to call for myself they go through so many irrelevant questions when its very clear Im struggling to speak/breathe.

999 use it as well, I know they have to as part of their ways of working, but it is frustrating as you say. And yes it is good a paramedic called back, but seen as OP didn't want to risk infecting others in a hospital anyway it seems like a waste of resources.

Sorry my jaw just hit the floor when the 999 call operator told your 9 year old son they wouldn't be coming out unless you were basically dead.

Thanks for the tips but if i were you i'd be putting in a formal complaint. No child should have to go through that and neither should you.

Once its been established I cant bloody breathe, they generally send out the first responder car with a back up ambulance.
Sometimes to A&E majors if they have got me fairly stable, other times, straight into resuss.
Its weird, I hate it, avoid it like the plague, but at the same time I know sometimes it has to happen and Im used to it.
Its been my life for 10 years, and now Dd's for 18 months, but it will be her life too.

And yes, i'm another one who keeps hearing doctors and politicians bragging about empty beds. Are they unaware that ambulance crews are refusing to attend until it's likely too late?!

Hi OP,

I just wanted to say that some people on this thread are trying to hijack it with nasty and unnecessary comments. They are picking apart every single post and twisting it to suit themselves, shame on them.
You started this thread wanting to help others and I thank you for that.

Please take heart from all the lovely positive comments you have received.
IMO all your posts show that you are a lovely person and a kind, caring and loving Mum who has been very poorly. Your son sounds absolutely wonderful and is a credit to you. When you said that your son didn't want his uncle to come into the house in case he and his baby catch CV I could have cried. To think of others first at a time like that is truly amazing.
You are both heroes!

I am so glad you are recovering well.
I wish both you and your son all the very best for the future x

Great thread, thanks fir sharing & wishing you good health

your poor son glad you are recovering

Turin, what a most exceptional ordeal for you and your son. I'm so glad you are through it. And your son has done amazingly - he is an absolute credit to you and himself, and we are going to clap for him too.

Thank you, also, for detailing everything in such a clear way, and no doubt helping any of us who may face this.

I am also living alone with my child and have hardly dared thing what kind of situation might arise if one or both of us were taken ill with it. We are just being very careful. What else can we do?

I think the hospital response seems to depend very much on area. We are very lucky here in a hospital-rich environment with seemingly not high numbers of cases. They have even been sending ambulance teams to other areas to help.

Take no notice of the ubiquitous Parenting Police. Of course you had to talk to your son. We all euphemise and skirt the issue, but you were genuinely facing death and spoke up. Your only mistake was probably putting that out into the ether here!! 🙂

The very best of wishes for the swiftest full recovery now. Your son and you are lucky to have each other, and this experience has only shown what a great pair you are. He doesn't need to be lifelong traumatised by this. And you couldn't shield him from the reality of it. Yes it will have had an effect on his thinking. But sometimes we can't hide life from children. And he will very most likely be all the more mature and useful to others in life because of it.

I meant it lightly/not really that it was a mistake to tell the full truth here. This is a place where you can do that. It's a vital release-valve. But you just have to put your umbrella up for the flack from some quarters.