'Is it still around?' Yes, COVID hasn't quite exited the stage yet
It started with a slightly scratchy throat on the Sunday evening.
I had been working extremely hard the few weeks before, getting my new book finished for the printers and a podcast ready to go live. So, I assumed it was just exhaustion or at worst a little cold.
Twenty-four hours later I was – as people in the Western Cape say – proper sick. Body aches, headache, raging fever, nausea, heart racing, swollen glands etc. etc. Since I can’t remember the last time I had a bad flu, I assumed it was just that.
However, after three days and nights of agony, I pulled myself out of bed and went to the doctor. I barely made it into her surgery.
She confirmed that I was really sick and suggested that we test for COVID. I had up to that point not even considered the possibility. “Is it still around?” I asked the doctor. She confirmed that she had recently seen a few cases and that they are also hearing of many people coming down with “flu” - even though that is not common in February.
As she poked the swab into my noise, it felt like the return of a bad nightmare.
On my way home, I stopped for a cooldrink. I was thirsty and had since the previous night a horrible metallic taste in my mouth. I opted for an organic sparkling lemonade on account that it might be a bit healthier. It tasted like water.
At home I tried a cup of coffee – it tasted like warm water. I suddenly realized that I couldn’t taste or smell anything. The penny dropped. I didn’t need the lab results, since it was exactly what happened when I had COVID in 2020.
The test results confirmed a positive result the next day.
Everyone I spoke to subsequently was baffled and asked the same question: “Is it seriously still around?”
Clearly it is and what concerns me is that we are treating it as something of the past. On the bright side, the virus seems to have weakened somewhat – since very few people with COVID need hospitalization.
Worryingly however, very little testing is being done, so we can’t be sure about the extent to which COVID is still circulating. According to the official statistics, which are haphazardly released, the 7-day average is around 200 new cases per day. The problem is that with little testing (my doctor only tested, because I was worried about infecting my 6-month-old grandson), we have no reliable indication of whether the infection rate is climbing again – especially as we near the end of summer.
We know that in Europe the numbers remained worryingly high during their current winter period and there should be no reason why South Africa would be any different – especially since vaccination drives have also dwindled.
It is well worth reminding ourselves that since 2020 COVID has affected 676 million people worldwide and resulted in over 6.7 million deaths. As I discovered this last week, it is not only still around, but it is still no joke.
I felt absolutely horrendous. Today – 8 days after the start of my symptoms - I’m starting to feel a bit better, but I am still exhausted and need to nap every few hours. I’m a healthy, fit person with no comorbidities. So, I shudder to think how even this COVID-lite version can affect vulnerable people.
I know we are all desperate to put COVID behind us. However, we can’t let our guards down. If we get a bad case of “flu” we should ask to be tested and stay clear of others until we are no longer infectious – especially if it turns out to be COVID.
The government should also still encourage vigilance especially as we head into the winter months. None of us want to go through the hell of 2021 or 2022 again. However, the only way to prevent that is to remain vigilant and to not infect others when we get it.