A little update on mye experience with CV19 here in Sweden.

As many as you know, I suffered from suspected CV19 for over 3 months. Myself and all of my family got ill with one or more of the symptoms shortly following hosting visitors from both Austria and China in early March.

Our children had symptoms not even recognized as such at the time (eg diarrhea, rash) my wife and I both had the classic cough and other issues.

We all got better, then a week or two later, I got worse. A lot worse.

I was unable to get tested or even any health care. Here in Sweden, if you had suspected CV19 but didn't require hospitalisation, the advice was stay home until you're better.

Even if you weren't getting better.

I, like thousands of others, was on my own.

Well, I own a pulsoximeter and one night SPO2 started to drop quite precipitously, and early May 7, I took this photo.

Yes, I should have gone to the hospital, but as has since been learned, despite the low oxygen you just don't feel quite *that* bad. And well ... men!

Fortunately the next day it began to improve and was backup in the high nineties soon. I remain concerned what damage I may have done to myself with the obstinance.

Still on my own, I devoured the research and found some advice that seemed to help with the symptoms

But it wasn't until the end of July that I actually have started to feel healthy again - albeit with an extreme loss of condition!

The thing is though ... I still don't actually know if I've had covid-19. Maybe we all had something else?

None of us know, we couldn't get tested.

A few weeks ago, when I was still ill, the area I live in Sweden started to offer both PCR testing and anti-body testing. But only if you'd been symptom free for 14 days.

I hadn't been symptom free in months.

Furthermore, you want the test? You had to pay. Not a lot, but I morally objected. The Public Health Authority should *want* to know the spread of the infection. That's literally in their job description. Why, in a country of public health care, should the patient be paying?

The PCR test has since become free, but there's a small fee for the anti-body test. I'm symptom free - assuming (and this is a big assumption) that my ongoing cough is just from my usual seasonal allergies - but it's not yet 14 days.

I also know a little bit about these tests.

If I've had CV19 the odds the PCR test would be positive is pretty much zero. Way too long since I was initially infected. The antibody test? Well, studies show that, particular for people with so-called "mild" symptoms over a long period, it gives a negative a third of the time.

I constantly get asked when I explain my last 4 months "have you been tested?". Most Swedes simply have no clue how hard that actually is - and thus how annoying the question is.

But I know that as I return to normal activities, like training and coaching karate, I'll get asked

And if I say no, I haven't been tested, there'll be more questions. So tonight I bit the bullet. I'll pay the damn fee and take the antibody test. If it comes out -ve, I know that doesn't mean much. If it comes out +ve, then I can just say "yes, and it was positive" and be done

I figure by the time I can get the test, 14 days symptom free will have occurred, so I went to book.

Guess how that went.

"no free times made available"

Sometimes I think it's almost like the Swedish health authorities just don't want to know ....

/end