How long before I know I'm ok?!

[ImHavingAnOldFriendForDinner]

I'm way behind with Covid questions because by some miracle I've managed to avoid getting it until now.

Humour me because I have terrible health anxiety (am on medication)!

5 year old tested positive Friday and me last night, at the moment I have a sore throat and a stuffy head. I'm absolutely terrified and my husband is being his usual self and telling me I'm being ridiculous.

My question is how long before I know I'm ok and over the worst? Is it 5 days or can I go downhill still after that? Would yesterday be my day 1?

Apologies again but my anxiety is through the roof this morning.

Forgot to say I'm jabbed and boosted!

I’ve tested positive today for the first time. I feel ropey but I’m so far. I’m CEV so we will see I guess!

Try not to worry. The most prevalent strains are mostly very mild. I caught it from my non vaccinated dh last week. I am still testing positive (need to test for work) but it has really been more of a tiring week than a horrendously ill week. Even dh, with no vaccinations, has only suffered at worst with a very sore throat and phlegmy cough. I don't know that the 5 day turning point thing applies anymore. My only practical advice would be to get in lots of paracetamol and lots of soft, easily eaten foods, like soup and jelly. Oh and rest as much as 6ou can. You'll be fine.

Terrified of what? Getting so sick you have to go to hospital? It's highly unlikely. Unless you have severe symptoms you will be able to manage at home.

@Beefilm thanks so much, it sounds stupid but someone reassuring me like that makes a huge difference to my stupid brain!

@hopeishere just terrified of the whole thing, I have severe health anxiety that I'm on medication for and am currently on a very long waiting list for counselling. Covid has been a nightmare for me mentally and testing positive is the thing that has ruled my life for over 2 years now. I'm terrified of catching it, of getting seriously ill, of needing to go to hospital, of getting long Covid and dying from Covid, just the whole thing and I know I sound completely unhinged 😂

@Feelingsillyandgiddy I hope you have it mildly 🤞

I do think covid has done dreadful damage to peoples mental health. Less than 1% of the population have died
from covid.

You've already smashed one fear - catching it. This time next week you'll have recovered.

@hopeishere thank you ❤️

Sorry to hear you're struggling with health anxiety, OP. 💐

As you're young and (I'm assuming) otherwise healthy, the chances of you becoming seriously ill are very small. And as you're fully vaccinated, you've done everything you can to protect yourself.

I'm on my second round of covid now, and it's been much milder than the first - which wasn't that bad at all, either. Both times I've been better by day five.

I've had some therapy for health anxiety in the past. My therapist recommended an Australian website, that has lots of self-help resources on health anxiety. I'm pretty sure it's this one:

www.cci.health.wa.gov.au/Resources/Looking-After-Yourself/Health-Anxiety

Perhaps you might find some help here while you're still on the waiting list for help?

Hope you're feeling better soon.

I don't have your anxiety but even I had a momentary weep when dh first tested positive (and I was already feeling ill myself). It has been such a mega topic these past 2 and a half years, I have seen virtually everyone I know catch it (and be fine afterwards), there is bound to be a moment of 'oh my god, this is it, here we go!' when you see that positive test.

But hopefully, like me, you won't be too ill (less symptoms than a common cold, in my case, though a bit longer so far with general fatigue) and then you might feel a bit of relief that the thing you have been dreading for so long has finally come to pass and really wasn't all that bad after all.

You're jabbed and boosted. In my experience that seems to work really well at keeping the illness short. Most people I know are over the worst in only about 3 - 5 days now and recovery quickly after that.

It's a huge improvement on pre vaccinated Covid which I unfortunately got to experience.

Rest, relax and look after yourself to further improve your recovery.

ive only had it once but was fully jabbed and boostered. Exposed sat/sun - feeling ropey Wednesday but testing negative, worse on thu (just aches, sore throat and headache but tired) tested positive. Was rough until Sunday but just bad cold symptoms. Then felt much better but did tire easily for around another week. That was months ago and no lingering effects. Just wanted to say it’s normal to be tired a bit after the symptoms go so don’t panic.

I’m on day 6.
I totally understand your panic. I have awful health anxiety too.
I felt flu like on/off for about two days then on/off symptoms since l which are more like head cold symptoms. I do have a strange sense of smell and it’s set my IBS off, both of which is making me anxious but apart from that it’s not too bad.
My 14 yr old dd bounced back after a day.
How are you feeling now op?

I think I’m ok. I was unwell last week with a cough and lost my voice/ I tested all weekend and got stark negatives so I left it. I’ve felt fine since but then a colleague and a patient I’ve been working closely with have tested positive yesterday so I tested too. It’s pretty feint so I’m hoping 🤞🏻That it’s the end of it and I’m negative again tomorrow 😬

Blazing positive today! I feel like I’ve got a cold so probably spend the day on the sofa on the off chance it magics away!

Hi all, sorry I disappeared I've just been trying to be calm about the whole thing and just chill out! Day 4 for me today and my test is SO dark but I'm doing ok, felt like I had a head cold for a couple of days and now have a full blown cold but I can cope with that. Have had a really sore throat but that seems to have eased today so I'm doing ok.

I also have a really dry mouth, feel like I've run out of saliva and all I want to do is eat ice lollies!!

@RedorangeyellowBLACK health anxiety is awful isn't it, I have IBS as well and that's been really up and down since Sunday so Covid is definitely affecting it.

@Feelingsillyandgiddy that's exactly how my test looks today!

Everyone else thanks so much for the reassuring messages if you don't suffer with anxiety you have no idea how much it helps to just have someone say "calm down you're going to be fine" and talk it through with you!

That's great! You're probably over the worse now. Lots of lollies is a great idea.

Day 4 for me too and whilst my test is still very positive, it took a little longer to come up and is slightly feinter…
I still feel tired and dizzy/sick but able to potter about a bit at home today.

Hope everyone else is ok?

Hey OP, so sorry you are struggling emotionally. I have a bit of health anxiety too (but nothing compared to others in my family - can only imagine how much they would panic with a positive test!) And like you I've managed to avoid covid, as far as I know, despite living a fairly normal life since about Jan/Feb.

But now I worry the game is up - my LFTs are negative so far but I wouldn't be surprised if they turned positive. Started feeling unwell yesterday afternoon - sore throat, dizziness, mild fever which got worse overnight. This morning my temperature is back to normal but I'm so tired, somewhat dizzy, and my throat is quite sore. So I'm lying in bed overdosing on political Twitter!

My main worry is not so much me being unwell - I know my chances of serious illness are really small, and even a nasty flu bug type thing I'm not too fussed about.

However, I have a 1 year old DS who is at a particularly rambunctious stage of development, and I am worried about how we will cope if he and DH go down with this (covid or not) while I'm still too ill to get out of bed! Even minding him while DH made me breakfast this morning was a nightmare, he was literally climbing all over me. Luckily he's at nursery today (I would have kept him home if I'd had a positive LFT) so I can properly rest.

Does anyone have any tips for how to cope if all three of us go down with it? I'm starting to think being ill yourself is the hardest part of parenting because you just can't get the rest you need...

Day 6 for me and although I'm feeling a little better, that's given me the headspace to really panic about Covid. My biggest worry is that it'll go on to my chest and I'll have breathing problems so I keep doing massive inhales to check my lung capacity 🤦🏻‍♀️

Still blazingly positive today so doesn't look like im out of the woods yet

How are you today OP?
I got my positive last night and went downhill really quickly afterwards. On Wednesday I had itchy spots all over the inside of my mouth and I thought it was a side effect of my new medication. On Friday I had a bit of a sore throat, by Friday afternoon I felt like I had a hair trapped in my throat and tried to clear it a few times. I felt achey by 7.30pm and tested. My positive came up in about 15 seconds.
By 9pm I felt crap. Hot and cold and just awful!! Coughing a lot.

I went to bed early and woke every couple of hours for meds. Freezing cold then boiling hot. Temperature of 39 even with paracetamol. I didn’t get out of bed until 1pm and I’ve just sat on the sofa since. This isn’t like me at all and usually do 20,000 steps each day.

really bad headache today, cough on and off which is productive and throat feels tickly. My temperature is 37.4 now. It was 38.8 earlier.

I’m hoping you’re feeling better now? And also that this is my worst day