It started in my chest. First a tickle. Then a little pain.
Was that my heart? Nope, all looks good there…
A cough. Uh oh.
That night, I wheeze going to sleep.
I wake up to a full chest cold. These are rare. Usually my colds start in my head and go down. Rarely do they start in my chest and go up…
Do I have COVID?
I think over the preceding days travelling with my partner. Flights. A wedding. Venturing on the LA Metro for the first time. Plenty of opportunity to get it. My partner seems ok though.
My son back home gets sick and starts throwing up. My wife is worried. I am too. Should I go home if I have COVID?
My cough gets worse. My son gets better. I take a COVID test… negative.
That evening my nose starts running and doesn’t stop. Cold chills bring shivers and I’m afraid to move under my blankets. I’m supposed to fly home tomorrow.
I wake up and can barely breathe. I’m supposed to pack, but still have chills and fatigue. I talk with my wife and reschedule my flight.
I’m on a medication regimen now… something for the mucus, something for allergies, something for fever… I spend most of the day sleeping. My partner takes care of me, making sure I’m covered with blankets and checking in.
I take a second COVID test… negative again. I feel thankful at least it’s not that I might take home with me.
My wife gets sick, the same bug our son had. She’s throwing up, which she hates more than anything else. She wants me back home. I want to be back home, but I’m not feeling well either, and I’d either take what I have there or get what they had too.
The sleeping through the day helps. By evening I’m not shivering. I go to sleep feeling a bit better and breathing well.
This morning I wake up. I cough a bit to clear out my lungs, but my wheezing isn’t so bad. My sniffles are waning. A round of meds should help. I feel well enough to pack and get ready to head home.
The flight leaves in a few hours. It’s a short one, less than a couple of hours. My partner is going to drive me to LAX.
My wife feels much better. My son has to stay home from day care though, and she’ll be with him today.
Looking back, I think this is allergies. The mucus meds helped the symptoms, but the med that helped the most was the allergy medication. It seems to make me more sleepy when it’s really doing something.
Time to pack. Time to fly. Time to say goodbye to my partner for another month. Long distance goodbyes are sad.
I’m just thankful it wasn’t COVID.
You Should Write a Book... 