A positive test- my journey so far

[CovidClara]

I have really struggled to find a description of someone with CV19. So here is my story (so far). I received a positive test back this afternoon.

Friday. I went out to the pub with 3 family members from 2 households. This is significant as my adult DD who lives with me also has CV19 and this is the only time that she has left the house for 2 weeks and so it looks like that may be the transmission point. We are in a tier 1 area.

Tuesday. I wake up with a splitting headache. I am prone to sinus problems and I thought it was that. Take ibuprofen during the day which numbs but doesn't remove it. Have a really sore throat start during the day. My DD wakes up with what she describes as a cold.

Wednesday. Slight cough, mostly dry but some mucousy. Headache continues and throat is really sore. DD still has a 'cold' and a very very slight cough. I decide to order a test online- for home testing. We dont really feel ill- this is like a very mild cold.

Thursday. Feel a lot better. Throat hurts, headache continues and light coughing. Sneezing (so it must be a cold) . Regret ordering a test as we are fine. I dont think I have had a fever, had a few moment of feeling hot maybe. DD says she feels a bit hot. We dont have a thermometer to check.

Friday. I wake up with almost no smell. Still got a headache. Throat hurts (but really very mild sore throat). The post comes and no test arrives and so I book drive through test for me and DD. We have to do it ourselves in the car- I am very skeptical that I have managed to swab correctly.

Turns out the home tests had been delivered by amazon and left behind the bin!

Friday evening I feel really cold in bed (but I live in a cold house so not unusual). Still no smell back. Headache has gone

Saturday. Feel a bit tired in the morning. Sore throat has gone. Have a slight cough. Woke up with a bad headache that took hours to go. Saturday pm- feel fine- spend 3 house gardening.

Saturday evening. I receive a text/email with a positive result. 4 hours later my DD gets a positive test result.

Turns out another person who was in the pub with us also developed a 'cold' on Tuesday and is now booked for a test tomorrow. So all 3 people got symptoms on the same day. The 4th person says they may have had a cold last week ??? but they are fine now.

DD symptoms now are: slight irregular cough. Sore throat gone. Can still smell but a bit reduced. Sneezing from time to time. Odd taste in mouth.

My symptoms are now. Low level headache, slight cough, slightly tickly throat. Sneezing from time to time. No smell, reduced taste.

At this point this is like the very mildest of colds. Lets see what happens now.

My oldest DD the one who tested positive has lost her sense of smell and taste this evening a week after her first symptoms

My sister's a nurse and tested positive on a routine swab at work, the only symptom she had throughout was a grotty nose, no snot just bunged up

I really think it's time to update the symptoms list. We must be missing thousands of cases because of this

Well I had my test yesterday at 3pm and got the results at 9:30pm. Positive. Which has surprised me as I’ve started feeling better..

Thanks for this thread. It's interesting and helpful, especially because you can accurately document your incubation period too

covid.joinzoe.com/post/early-covid-signs

“Our data shows (sic) that the most commonly experienced early symptoms are actually headache (82%) and fatigue (72%) - and this is the case for all age groups. Only 9% of COVID-positive adults aged 18 - 65 didn’t experience headache or fatigue. Of course, headache and fatigue commonly occur in other conditions which is why they don’t trigger a test on their own.

In fact, only 1% of people who reported fatigue and/or headache on our app ended up testing positive for COVID. So while headache and fatigue are commonly found in people who have COVID (alongside other symptoms), having either or both of those symptoms alone is unlikely to be indicative of COVID.”

I really think it's time to update the symptoms list. We must be missing thousands of cases because of this

Presumably due to lack of capacity they are currently only allowing you to book a test if you have one of the three classic symptoms (new cough, fever or loss of taste/smell) - or if you lie, of course. So updating the list would be somewhat academic, they must already be missing thousands of cases by not having the capacity to test people with more variable symptoms.

Late to the party but just re track and trace: they want to know who you spent time with in the 48 hours before symptoms started because that's your infectious window. Those people need to isolate (or at least they would in Australia, not sure what the rules are there) in case they have caught covid from you and will spread it in the 48 hours before their symptoms start.

If they wanted to know who you'd caught it from, they would ask you about your contacts in the 14 days before your symptoms began. Sounds like they're more bothered about ongoing spread rather than tracing it backwards.

Dd tested positive last sun. They only wanted to know 48 hrs before. Fortunately she was self isolating after 3 cases at school. Sent home the tues, headache the fri sat, tested the sun. She can only have caught it from school so you're going back more than 48 hrs from first point of contact.

So this is day 7. According to the information online these next 2 days are where breathing difficulties might develop.

I work up and lay in bed trying to work out what symptoms I had.
Slightly sore throat at one side- but that has gone now I have had a drink
metallic taste at the back on my tongue
Sniffle in my nose. Oddly the lining on my nose is bone dry- untypical dry- there is not mucus at all
I am slightly constipated but that may be because I havent drunk enough-as nothing has a smell and almost no taste I have to keep reminding myself to eat and drink

That is it. No headache so far today.
I have a full day of WFH.

My DH has had a positive result today. I urged him to book a test on Friday as he had been feeling off all week, but he developed a mild cough just on the Friday evening. He had a bloated stomach, runny nose and just felt run down, but worked all week as normal (from home). He must be on day 8 now so hoping and he said he’s feeling better than last week. Hoping that he’s on the mend and that the rest of us are as lucky.

In normal times he wouldn’t have though twice about his symptoms but luckily thanks to the test, we now can avoid passing it to my parents and friends.

@CovidClara

So this is day 7. According to the information online these next 2 days are where breathing difficulties might develop.

I work up and lay in bed trying to work out what symptoms I had.
Slightly sore throat at one side- but that has gone now I have had a drink
metallic taste at the back on my tongue
Sniffle in my nose. Oddly the lining on my nose is bone dry- untypical dry- there is not mucus at all
I am slightly constipated but that may be because I havent drunk enough-as nothing has a smell and almost no taste I have to keep reminding myself to eat and drink

That is it. No headache so far today.
I have a full day of WFH.

How do you work out how long you've had it for?

I'm on day 6 of a headache, have a runny/stuffy nose, and reduced taste.

I was swabbed Wednesday (5 days ago) which was positive. When I did my contact tracing they wanted me to go back to the 8th October to see where I could have caught it from.

Person 3 has now tested positive

All 3 of us woke up with cold symptoms last Tuesday. So this is day 7.

My contact tracing only asked where I had been 48 hours before the 1st symptoms.We know exactly when and where it was contacted as that is the only time all 3 of us have been together and the only time DD

Sound exactly like what me and my son had recently. Except we both tested negative.

This is very interesting. A couple of things strike me.

We’re so conditioned to ‘keep going’ with minor illness and this is clearly a huge problem for limiting the spread of Covid.

I think people are really struggling to understand how this illness can be so deadly yet so inconsequential at the same time. I had a cold a few weeks ago. I was very much ‘this can’t be Covid’ and in fairness, I didn’t have the main symptoms, but maybe it was?

If you don't mind me asking, how old are you op

@MamaMiaMama

If you don't mind me asking, how old are you op

I am mid 50s DD is 21 Person 3 is 25

Thank you. I'm 60 and tested positive, no major symptoms just a cough but feeling really anxious

So you weren't distanced from the other households in the pub?

This is how it spreads. You're supposed to be distanced from anyone you don't live or bubble with, even in a restaurant or the pub.

Didn't the pub staff check?

@DameFanny

So you weren't distanced from the other households in the pub?

This is how it spreads. You're supposed to be distanced from anyone you don't live or bubble with, even in a restaurant or the pub.

Didn't the pub staff check?

We were perfectly legal

It was a group of 4 in a pub. The rule of 6 was in place.

As to happensIt was a large table. Each household was opposite themselves and spaced from the other household (by at least a metre)

What should they have checked for?

Thanks for your post.

I've done a test this morning as over the weekend I've had "a cold" as you've said, sneezing, tired (not unusual for me) headache, bit of a sore throat and slight cough (dry at times but can be muscousy) also have a runny nose but feel stuffy so mouth breathing. I went to bed last night and noticed I didn't think I could smell so tested myself by smelling things that are strong and noticed it was a reduced sense of smell. I've woken up this morning and can't smell or taste anything. I'm just glad I could taste my Chinese left overs last night!

Well that you shouldn't have been on the same table from different households - it's only a metre if other measures such as screens and masks are in use, otherwise it's 2. Sorry.

I haven't gone to any pubs because it seems pointless to drink with just my DH and mother - but I'm realising now that people aren't following the regulations at all

www.gov.uk/guidance/working-safely-during-coronavirus-covid-19/restaurants-offering-takeaway-or-delivery

Thank you for this thread OP. Glad you are doing well

DameFanny

Good for you. Well done

Shall we get back to symptom sharing which was the purpose of this thread?

Sorry, just honestly shocked