Okay, it's been two weeks. I'm certain I've had, or continue to endure, some mild strain of COVID. I'm lucky the only symptom is an enduring chest pain, like I stayed up all night smoking cigarettes, but all the time.

I thought it might be seasonal allergies, but, nah, it ain't.

Will it last another 2 weeks? Possibly. Probably.

Is there a "solution?" No. Except hoping it doesn't get worse. I sat at my table attempting better posture this morning, frightened as the pain grew worse.

In time, it improved. But it comes and goes. Again, I am lucky.

But, to wit, why is this acceptable? I live in one of the most celebrated meccas of medicine in the world. I haven't bothered to look up whether I could even ~*get tested*~ for this.

Instead, I've been pinging the unemployment office and chasing down every possible job.

EPILOGUE:

I called an Urgent Care to see if I could get tested. As if I'd failed a Bridge Troll's riddle, the nice nurse told me I didn't meet the qualifications to receive a test.

*However*, she also told me there's basically no way to have COVID without a fever.

EPILOGUE Chapter 2:

Today, I called a different Urgent Care in a different network and said I *should not come in* but should do a telemedicine visit to figure if I have some non-COVID affliction.

So is 90% of doctoring just shoulder-shrugs and prescriptions for antibiotics?

If 90% of doctoring is shoulder-shrugging and prescriptions, I guess the other 10% is saying you'll email a patient a video link in 10 minutes and then, like, *not* sending any email to speak of after more than an hour.

Heckuva a medical infrastructure we got here, 2020.

PS: Nice people on telemedicine. Let's hope it's:

a) some other virus
b) doesn't get worse
c) gnarly seasonal allergies
d) responds to prescribed inhaler

PPS: Getting checked at a respiratory clinic now after a difficult night. Dizzying shortness of breath comes in waves.

Okay, got COVID tested. Yes, they jam a 6-inch cotton swab up your nose and into parts of your skull you didn't know existed.

Ideally, this is viral bronchitis and the various inhalers will alleviate the symptoms. Good news, it isn't some untreated bacteria, based on x-rays.

The speed at which I got into the respiratory clinic was likely a once-in-a-lifetime miracle.

COVID is supposedly only symptom-intensive for 2 weeks, and I've had 3 weeks of tough breathing.

Lung cells already take a very long time to heal in ideal circumstances.

The pain comes in waves. I can't tell what causes it. Right now, it hurts. At lunchtime, I felt nothing abnormal.

Conclusions: actively using my lungs keeps them expanded, reducing pain. Also, improving posture helps.

Also, my Covid test came back negative, so, yay, I guess. I have *just* some casual everyday lung illness.

Now on my third straight nights of *not* waking up at 3AM, thinking I will suffocate and die on the spot.

Happy to say that yesterday evening, I felt Perfectly Healthy for the first time in about a month. Today was less comfortable. Being immobile and stuck indoors because of the east coast's torrential downpour is bad for the lungs.

I can stay that things don't so much *hurt* anymore as much they're just *sore* like a muscle. A tired muscle.

I know I can make myself more comfortable if I sit properly, or go for a walk, or exercise.

Also, unemployment won't respond to me or fix the errors on my claim.

tfw you've only been taking a half-dose of your meds for the past ~5 days and wonder why you aren't recovering faster

god god darnit darnit

Okay, how long has it been? ~4 days of using the *actual* dose of meds. Starting to feel better. Not *all* better, but goddarnit, some improvement is better than plateauing.

Today marks approximately 1 month and 1 day of, "man, something's up with my lungs."

I think things are nearly healed. I can summon a gnarly cough if I want to. The lungs work again and feel tough and chewy in the morning as they re-inflate.

While there's still some weirdness and it's not *right* I want to believe the worst is over.

Hmm. Weird relapse of symptoms in the past 24 hours after trying to go off the main prescription inhaler. That kinda... blows.

Not catastrophic, but I never like being on meds, I don't like dependencies, and I want my body to be strong enough on its own.

:-/

Persisting symptoms. Raspy cough, but voluntary. Dry lungs. Dunno what to take for this besides water / electrolytes / calories.

~*~*45 Days Later*~*~

Hey, I don't feel crushing pain when I breathe. Instead, my lungs feel like a stiff muscle recovering from a stab wound.

Look, it's pretty likely this was The Rona, so if you're interested what it's like, it's like ~3 months of hating air itself.

Well, I got to feel basically normal for about 2 weeks before being blindsided by symptoms again.

Heaviness and pain while breathing. A hoarse, ripping cough that can't clear anything from my lungs.

If you're looking for a good time, ya'll, I recommend Respiratory Illness.

This shit came back for the best possible reason: No Good Reason.

It just rolled up on me like a fart. So maybe it'll disappear just as suddenly?

Ugh, I want to go to bed for a fucking year.

It's Oct. 25 and I'm definitely *not* All Better.

I can breathe normally for 2 days sometimes, then it'll just be pain in my upper body, chest, upper back, etc. That'll usually last a week.

The optimist in me wants to say, "I'm better than I *was*" but I'd like to be *normal*.

I'm still coughing up nothing. I imagine half of my lungs are leathery with scar tissue at this point. I've been off regular inhaler drugs since mid-August because I felt strong after an agonizing weaning-off process.

I don't want this to be how I slowly die.

Is this the world's longest case of bronchitis?

Is it the wreckage of COVID just blowing donuts in my lungs with snow-chains on its tires?

I don't know, but 6 months of sitting alone in an apartment with one's own illness *will* make you angry, scared, and fucking insane.

BTW, this thread stretches back to April 21, exactly three weeks *after* I'd been laid off, and two weeks before I told myself, "This will probably clear up soon."

I wish someone could just tell me to keep taking drugs and expect only the tiniest improvement each month.