I tested positive for Covid on 18.04.21. The symptoms started on 14.04.21 evening. I had fever, constipation & diarrhea, upper respiratory tract symptoms, and extreme body ache for five days. Then body ache subsided, but fever continued for two more days. Constipation & diarrhea, and upper respiratory tract symptoms continued. On the seventh day, the fever subsided, I felt pretty normal and thought it's all over. However, on the night of the seventh day, I had feeling of breathlessness, which continued till next afternoon. However, SpO2 was always fine. On the seventh day, I had given blood sample for CRP test, more out of curiosity than medical need. The CRP value was reported as 32.08. The HRCT scan done on the eighth day showed mild pneumonia with CT score of 3/25. Earlier, I had consulted a pulmonologist on the fourth day. He advised me to get admitted in a hospital in consideration of my comorbidities of IBD (Crohn's Disease), sinus and bronchitis. Though I do have these comorbidities, they had not created major problems for me. After completing the course of corticosteriods in January, I had more or less returned to normal life. I am a jogger and was jogging 6.5 KMs twice a week before Covid struck. So, though I tried getting admitted in a hospital on the fifth day, but when I found it was next to impossible to convince any hospital of my need for hospital care, I didn't try too hard. However, I finally got admitted in a hospital on the eighth day. They followed their protocol and conducted all neccessary tests on admission. The CRP had fallen to 9 and other test results were also not troubling. I actually wanted to take discharge the very next day on seeing the test results and also because my insurance company had denied cashless insurance claim on the premise that I didn't have fever or low SpO2 at the time of admission, but, thankfully, the doctor on duty denied the discharge. One of the consulting doctors later told me that I should stay there for atleast 6 days and complete the course of Remedesivir. Even then I got discharged on the fourth day as an asyptomatic patient without completing the course of Remedesivir. The HRCT Chest CT Score was still 3/25 only at the time of discharge. Then started the real problem. My IBD worsened: lymphocytes fell and neutrophils rose raising the NLR to 12+; intestinal bleeding started; weight fell by 6 KGs from pre-covid levels; heart rate rose upto 140; liver enzymes got elevated. RTPCR test kept coming positive after discharge till yesterday. Now I am covid negative in both RTPCR and Antigen tests.
Thankfully, I consulted a Gastroenterologist online, who prescribed me some anti-inflamatory medicines and IBD is now under control. I do continue to have some upper respiratory tract symptoms and breathlessness even now, but now that Corona is out, these things can be controlled. The message is that Covid is completely upredictable. If you have admitted yourself to a hospital, complete the treatment. Unfortunately, because of so many pneumonia related deaths, other Covid symptoms like gastrointestinal symptoms, upper respiratory tracts symptoms, heart rate, and even breathlessness sans fall in SpO2 and fever, are not being considered as Covid symptoms, both by patients and doctors. Hospital admission is available only if you have SpO2 below 94. I was lucky to get admitted with normal SpO2 at the time of admission, courtesy the prescription of the pulmonologist I had consulted earlier and some push from the influential quarters. However, there is no doubt I was a fit case for hospital admission with comorbidities, gastrointestinal symptoms, and high CRP a day before admission. I do have bronchitis and when this mild pneumonia would have become severe, would have not even been noticed. If not admitted in hospital, IBD symptoms might have flared up much earlier making the life hell. My SpO2 may or may not have fallen given I am a semi-athelete, albeit with comorbidities, but no, never consider yourself too fit. Understand your comorbidities and start taking corticosteriods and blood thinners on time. Remedesivir may or may not be necessary, but, from whatever I learn from the internet, Remidisivir works better in mild and moderate cases only -- all that AIIMS director has been speaking both about Remidisivir and CT Scans is more an opinion in politics than medicine.
I hear that widespread Covid in second wave is because of 5G testing. Those who claim so are not saying that Covid spreads through radio waves but that the radio waves supress immunity. I don't want to get into speculation, but, being a targeted individual, I know that these radio waves can indeed be used to wake you up from sleep. 5G testing may also be doing so. Less sleep is a disaster recipe for Covid because it reduces your immunity. However, Covid deaths generally happen because of over stimulated immune system leading to cytokine storm. How and why it happens is not known to me. The only recourse against over stmulated immune system is steroids, which actually suppresses your immunity. Covid is a double edge sword. Initially you require immunity to throw the virus out of body as soon as possible, but if your immune system fails to do so within the initial period of say seven days, you need to check your markers espcially CRP. High CRP on seventh day generally hints towards Covid pnuemonia and you need to get admitted in a hospital if you also have comorbidities or even otherwise and start the course of steriods and blood thinners. DON'T WAIT FOR SPO2 TO FALL BELOW 94.
P. S. I am writing after a long time. Actually, I didn't feel like writing while being ill, which I have been on and off for last 9 months now. I don't know how these YouTubers share all details of their personal lives on YouTube including the death in the family. I can never do it. I don't think I want to do social media anymore. I have already closed my Facebook account; Twitter account has been made private (Twitter is the most caustic place; you end up writing whatever abuses there; I will, henceforth, moderate myself even when my tweets are private); Instagram and YouTube accounts are non-functional; LinkedIn is entirely professional. I can't stop writing; so, I will continue to write here and on other platforms, but no public opinions on social media platforms anymore.
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Thankfully, I consulted a Gastroenterologist online, who prescribed me some anti-inflamatory medicines and IBD is now under control. I do continue to have some upper respiratory tract symptoms and breathlessness even now, but now that Corona is out, these things can be controlled. The message is that Covid is completely upredictable. If you have admitted yourself to a hospital, complete the treatment. Unfortunately, because of so many pneumonia related deaths, other Covid symptoms like gastrointestinal symptoms, upper respiratory tracts symptoms, heart rate, and even breathlessness sans fall in SpO2 and fever, are not being considered as Covid symptoms, both by patients and doctors. Hospital admission is available only if you have SpO2 below 94. I was lucky to get admitted with normal SpO2 at the time of admission, courtesy the prescription of the pulmonologist I had consulted earlier and some push from the influential quarters. However, there is no doubt I was a fit case for hospital admission with comorbidities, gastrointestinal symptoms, and high CRP a day before admission. I do have bronchitis and when this mild pneumonia would have become severe, would have not even been noticed. If not admitted in hospital, IBD symptoms might have flared up much earlier making the life hell. My SpO2 may or may not have fallen given I am a semi-athelete, albeit with comorbidities, but no, never consider yourself too fit. Understand your comorbidities and start taking corticosteriods and blood thinners on time. Remedesivir may or may not be necessary, but, from whatever I learn from the internet, Remidisivir works better in mild and moderate cases only -- all that AIIMS director has been speaking both about Remidisivir and CT Scans is more an opinion in politics than medicine.
I hear that widespread Covid in second wave is because of 5G testing. Those who claim so are not saying that Covid spreads through radio waves but that the radio waves supress immunity. I don't want to get into speculation, but, being a targeted individual, I know that these radio waves can indeed be used to wake you up from sleep. 5G testing may also be doing so. Less sleep is a disaster recipe for Covid because it reduces your immunity. However, Covid deaths generally happen because of over stimulated immune system leading to cytokine storm. How and why it happens is not known to me. The only recourse against over stmulated immune system is steroids, which actually suppresses your immunity. Covid is a double edge sword. Initially you require immunity to throw the virus out of body as soon as possible, but if your immune system fails to do so within the initial period of say seven days, you need to check your markers espcially CRP. High CRP on seventh day generally hints towards Covid pnuemonia and you need to get admitted in a hospital if you also have comorbidities or even otherwise and start the course of steriods and blood thinners. DON'T WAIT FOR SPO2 TO FALL BELOW 94.
P. S. I am writing after a long time. Actually, I didn't feel like writing while being ill, which I have been on and off for last 9 months now. I don't know how these YouTubers share all details of their personal lives on YouTube including the death in the family. I can never do it. I don't think I want to do social media anymore. I have already closed my Facebook account; Twitter account has been made private (Twitter is the most caustic place; you end up writing whatever abuses there; I will, henceforth, moderate myself even when my tweets are private); Instagram and YouTube accounts are non-functional; LinkedIn is entirely professional. I can't stop writing; so, I will continue to write here and on other platforms, but no public opinions on social media platforms anymore.
Read the full article
