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So after a long struggle with Covid-19 in my family and having taken care of my Dad, aged 68 with underlying conditions and my Mom with even more underlying conditions who both have successfully recovered I decided to make a thread on my experience with the disease. Hope it helps
Firstly it is important to note that this is MY experience with it along with the research I have conducted about Covid-19, so if yours differs it doesn't mean one is wrong and the other is right because every instance is different and I know why
Something I came across often when doing the research was the term "Viral load" or "Viral dosage" which is used to represent how much of the virus you take in. This can determine whether your case is severe or mild/moderate. The disease is respiratory and how much of it enters..
your system is important, which is why the form of defence has been masks and social distancing. Somebody who has a low dosage, can only pass on to somebody in an equal/lower dosage. In other words one cannot give "more" of the virus to another if one only has a low load themself
This is why we are seeing people of old age with underlying conditions (Like my parents) still recover because if the dosage is low the damage it can do is restricted. It is worth noting that this can build though. You can contract the virus more than once and it will be worse
E.G. if you contract it at work and don't know, the next day you go to the store and are exposed to it again you will have taken in "more" of the virus, it is not a disease that once you have it, you have it and that's that. Getting exposed further can worsen your case.
Now that we wrapped up dosage let's get into dealing with the disease itself once you/family member has it. The number one thing to keep an eye on is the breathing, this causes MOST of the severe cases. To do this there is a handy device one can use called a Pulse oximeter.
At roughly R600 at clicks/dis-chem, this device can save your life. It reads the oxygen levels in your blood/body, Readings work from 0-100 and a healthy person is between 95-100. A person with Covid is likely to drop between 90-100 but anything below 90 is a concern.
There are ways to improve this. Breathing exercises such as blowing up a balloon (In the least amount of breaths possible) several times and also blowing bubbles into a water bottle with a straw (Seeing how long you can blow the bubbles into it before needing to take a breath)
These help improve the levels of oxygen, and can literally help save a life. So it is important to focus on that a lot. Other symptoms are going to be there and while it should be treated, it is not as vital to your recovery as the breathing is. So headache, nausea, sore throat,
cough, body aches, etc. all will remain and there is medication for these things. But no meds can give you oxygen so that is something you're going to have to do on your own with the breathing exercises which can be googled for more on.
At this stage we are treating symptoms as there is no vaccine/cure. We are not treating the virus, when contracting it, it is the virus versus your body. So boosting your body is all you can do. Important vitamins such as B, C, D & Zinc are the vital ones prescribed by Doctors.
This is highly recommended even for people who haven't gotten it, to boost your immune system as much as you can as a precaution. For people who have got it, the breathing is where I recommend you place your focus. The medications prescribed for positive cases are mostly vitamins
Followed by meds to treat symptoms (Pain meds, flu meds, cough mixtures etc.) and then an asprin (blood thinner) because when fighting the disease your blood will thicken so to avoid clotting they give a thinner.
Staying safe isn't easy but is possible if you're paranoid enough, be conscious of the things you touch and places you go. Sanitize and wash your hands and surfaces regularly and keep your mask on, maintain social distancing rules and you will be safe.
I can personally vouch for that because I managed to take care of both my parents during their struggle and my test was negative even though I was interacting daily with them and for those who know my Mom and her condition she requires close interaction and I still stayed safe.
These measures aren't there to punish us it is keeping us safe, I pray we overcome this disease sooner than expected and that the damage it does is restricted. I will post a picture of the Pulse Oximeter too. Stay safe people, I hope this thread helps.
