My Take Tuesday: My Journey Through COVID-19

As many of you know, I was diagnosed with COVID-19 on July 2nd. Fortunately, I have since recovered. Many of you have contacted me directly saying how happy you were that I was better. I cried many times as I read the messages, texts, cards and emails from all of you. I am humbled by your kindness and loyalty.

Many have asked what the course of the illness was like for me. Something that I have learned is that every case is different. The three individuals from my hospital that tested positive all experienced vastly different clinical signs. My first clinical sign was an itchy scalp. This was followed by a sore throat to which I attributed to seasonal allergies. I am allergic to grass, alfalfa, roses, dandelions and a myriad of other plants. June is always a miserable month for me. The symptom that distinguished an actual illness from seasonal allergies was a fever. I was immediately tested once it was apparent that I had symptoms consistent with COVID. The test came back positive. The clinic was closed for the following 12 days as we all recovered from this vicious virus.

As my disease progressed, my most significant symptoms were gastrointestinal. I had tremendous nausea and an unrelenting headache. I quickly lost 12 pounds during the following week. For several days, I experienced severe chest pain. My body’s response to this virus was very different from many of the cases I had read about. I never developed a cough and I did not lose my sense of smell or taste. I developed severe muscle and joint pain. It reminded me of over-doing it at the gym after a long period of not working out. The pain was similar, but 10 times more severe. Every inch of my legs and arms ached. In the beginning, it felt like my spirit just crawled in a hole somewhere and all joy in life temporarily seemed to disappear.

Little by little, day by day I improved. I went from lying in bed all day to sitting on the couch. My energy slowly returned. I feel blessed that I didn’t need to be hospitalized, that I didn’t need to be intubated, that I didn’t suffer any of the horrible complications, and I consider myself lucky that I’m out the other end alive and all in one piece. I realize that although my illness was horrible, it could’ve been much, much worse.

I returned to work two weeks after testing positive. I am still weak, work leaves me pretty wiped out, and I’m ready to be back on the couch at the end of the day. I anticipate it will take a couple of months to fully return to normal.

In the evening of one particular day, I felt strong enough to walk around the house and even felt strong enough to walk out to the back yard. As I stepped outside for the first time in over a week, I gazed towards the west. As I stood on my back porch in Springville, I gazed westward, across Utah Lake and West Mountain. Simultaneously, a fire swirled cinnamon sunset lit up the entire evening sky. A calmness overcame me as I took in the majesty of God’s creation.

Life is full of little moments of joy, so fleeting, that they are often unappreciated. In today’s extremely fast-paced world, our busy lives often keep us from enjoying the simplest of life’s pleasures.

Like you feel just good enough to appreciate a sunset, the smell of freshly cut grass, or the bright amber moon rising in the East above Hobble Creek Canyon.

As yesterdays are gone, and tomorrows are never promised, our challenge is to enjoy these joyful moments that are sprinkled along this journey of life and to hang on to every single one that comes along.

And that is my take!

N. Isaac Bott, DVM