Hi, I have heard today that my father, aged 78, who lives in Gauteng in S Africa, has tested positive after having a cough and feeling tired for about ten days. He has a heart condition (had a CABG about twenty years ago and a stent recently). My mother, 77, took a PCR test today and is awaiting the result. She says she had a sore throat and felt tired about fourteeen days ago but is fine now. She wonders whether she gave Covid to dad. They were both double vaxxed in September. They are usually pretty active people.
Obviously I am hugely worried, and me and my two brothers (we all live on different continents) have spent the afternoon in communication. My Dad has now stopped coughing, is up and pottering around, and his oxygen sats have gone from 87 yesterday to 97 today. (My mum's is 99). Dad has been given a cocktail of many different meds. What I wondered was, how long does symptomatic illness usually last in people's experience? And is the fact that he seems to be getting better a hopeful sign? And as regards my mother, if her PCR is negative, does that tell us whether she had it and then recovered, or never had it at all? Would she still go for a booster?
I would be grateful for people's experience on these matters.