Covid 19/Coronavirus

[High Plains Drifter]

So that was at Walgreens drive-thru as well as at two of the local urgent-care places ( wasn't Urgent Care, but whatever equivalent). Cost ranged from $140-$170. Then we were told of a mobile facility that does saliva as well as nasal/ throat. It was a bit of a drive to get there but yeah, without insurance, we don't have many choices.

So.. my wife just got back from the mobile testing place and they texted her as she was pulling into the driveway. "Detected" so she's positive ( at least for the nasal/ throat test). We tried.. we tried so hard and she's really besides herself atm, feeling defeated. She has been so proactive over the past couple years.. .even when others were laughing at her for her wearing a mask all the time. I feel bad for her and I'm a little scared for myself atm but we'll just see how it goes over the next few days.

The timeline or whatever is that she came home from work yesterday and felt fine. Then last last night she complained of a sore throat and very slight congestion. Her temp at that time was 99. 0. I slept in a spare bedroom and when she woke up this morning, she said that her throat felt worse and that she had developed an on/ off headache overnight. She also was feeling pretty tired... partly due to her not getting very good sleep but also from the virus I assume. This morning when we checked her temp again it was up to 100.1.

She's already gone thru protocol for her job... receiving instructions of what she needs to do before returning and all that. She's taking ibuprofen and drinking lots of water. Appetite seems fine and although she's a bit achy and exhausted now, she's trying to remain in good spirits. She also picked up a test kit ( two tests for $25) at CVS on her way home just for added assurance and they both read positive. As for the saliva test, she'll get that result back tomorrow but that's almost not here nor there at this point. One nasal test and two at home tests are all reading positive.

We're both wearing masks at home now and I'm disinfecting door knobs, light switches, countertops, etc while she takes it easy and rests. We're also trying to distance ourselves from each other which is tough cause that woman needs a hug big time lol. On Monday we'll see where we're both at and go from there.

 

[High Plains Drifter]

and @Drew . Yeah, ordering wasn't really an option. It was but we needed to know very quickly her status so that she could immediately verify with her job, what was going on regarding approval for her absence, scheduling changes, and all of that. Plus the fact that with her running a high temp this morning and feeling worse, we wanted to know immediately what was up.

 

[Drew]

I'm really sorry to hear about your wife, man.

Probably not what you want to hear, but that sounds like "welcome to Texas" and not "welcome to America." I haven't paid a dime for a PCR here in Mass, and half of my rapids have been free as well. :/

 

[wheresthefbomb]

Damn that sucks, I haven't had to pay for any testing either. I hope she feels better soon.

 

[mastapimp]

I'm really sorry to hear about your wife, man.

Probably not what you want to hear, but that sounds like "welcome to Texas" and not "welcome to America." I haven't paid a dime for a PCR here in Mass, and half of my rapids have been free as well. :/

Yes, I've had to deal with a lot of testing recently due to 2 of our nannie's catching it in the last month (luckily, they didn't bring it into the house). The PCRs range from $80-$100 where I'm at if you don't use insurance. $250 is the highest I've heard...especially at a Walgreens or CVS.

@High Plains Drifter, if you think your wife picked it up during a workplace exposure, is it possible you can ask for reimbursement for testing? I was exposed about a year ago to one of my interns that got sick. After testing, I submitted an expense report to my boss w/ a receipt of the covid test and was reimbursed, as was everyone else that tested.

 

[Drew]

Also, again, hate to point out the political overtones here, but... TX and FL were at the forefront of the "this is a matter of personal freedom, reopen at all costs!" movement, and Florida in particular is still one of the highest total cases per capita states. And both of you have to pay hundreds of dollars to get a PCR test. Mass was much more cautious and kept mask mandates in place MUCH longer than FL and TX, and I don't pay a dime for a PCR.

Kind of makes you think a bit. Both states are telling you it's a matter of personal choice if you want to get Covid, but you'd better be rich if you want to find out if you have it.

 

[tedtan]

I can’t speak for Florida, but there are plenty of places that offer free PCR testing in Texas. It sounds like the turnaround time was too long for what HPD’s wife needed, though (I don’t know what typical turnaround time is in Travis County, but in Harris County it can be up to 72 hours, which is the downside).

 

[High Plains Drifter]

I'm really sorry to hear about your wife, man.

Probably not what you want to hear, but that sounds like "welcome to Texas" and not "welcome to America." I haven't paid a dime for a PCR here in Mass, and half of my rapids have been free as well. :/

Thanks much... the support does help. That's partly why I stick around sso. It's surely not for the "what band sucks worse than this other band?" threads.

I still feel as if the federal government had orchestrated a pandemic game-plan that was inclusive nationwide as opposed to forcing state-by-state protocols, mandates, etc that we all would've fared much better throughout this mess. Fortunately we were able to find that mobile testing site as it was the only one even remotely close to us.

Damn that sucks, I haven't had to pay for any testing either. I hope she feels better soon.

Fortunately we were indeed able to get her tested for free but it was out in the middle of nowhere and we really had to dig to even find out it existed. A friend of my wife told her about it thankfully, or we might've wound up out of pocket.

Thank you, bud.

Yes, I've had to deal with a lot of testing recently due to 2 of our nannie's catching it in the last month (luckily, they didn't bring it into the house). The PCRs range from $80-$100 where I'm at if you don't use insurance. $250 is the highest I've heard...especially at a Walgreens or CVS.

@High Plains Drifter, if you think your wife picked it up during a workplace exposure, is it possible you can ask for reimbursement for testing? I was exposed about a year ago to one of my interns that got sick. After testing, I submitted an expense report to my boss w/ a receipt of the covid test and was reimbursed, as was everyone else that tested.

Yep... $240 and $270 were the going rates at the two places that she was going to go to for the PCR test before luckily finding a free mobile testing facility.

Sadly, her employer pays absolutely nothing to it's employees for any testing. We did wind up buying two at-home tests for $25 but that's on us as she had already gotten the free test prior to that. We just wanted a little more assurance that she really was positive ... like a second opinion kind of thing.

You've got a great employer in their willingness/ assumed responsibility to reimburse employees for testing.

Also, again, hate to point out the political overtones here, but... TX and FL were at the forefront of the "this is a matter of personal freedom, reopen at all costs!" movement, and Florida in particular is still one of the highest total cases per capita states. And both of you have to pay hundreds of dollars to get a PCR test. Mass was much more cautious and kept mask mandates in place MUCH longer than FL and TX, and I don't pay a dime for a PCR.

Kind of makes you think a bit. Both states are telling you it's a matter of personal choice if you want to get Covid, but you'd better be rich if you want to find out if you have it.

That's it.. Yep! And don't kid yourself... Mandates were never really a thing here in Texas. Guidelines were always very loosely defined and left up to individual counties and businesses as to how they thought "best" to proceed with safety/ hygiene measures throughout every step of the pandemic.

Update on her- As of right now, she's chugging along... No more sore throat, slight headache on/ off, still congested.... a little more today than yesterday. And she's experiencing some body aches... not severe although she's regularly popping ibuprofen so that's obviously helping. This a.m. her temperature was down to 98.7 but throughout the course of the day it's now back up to 100.3. Kinda weird that it's up and down like this. Most colds/ flues that I've dealt with have generally shown a gradual rise/ peak/ fall. She's in good spirits though and was able to sleep undisturbed last night for about 10 hours.

And I'm playing 'Coco, The Plump Loving House Boy'... waiting on her hand and foot so that she doesn't have to do a thing. Gonna get a French Maids Uniform... Gonna rock that shit.

 

[High Plains Drifter]

I can’t speak for Florida, but there are plenty of places that offer free PCR testing in Texas. It sounds like the turnaround time was too long for what HPD’s wife needed, though (I don’t know what typical turnaround time is in Travis County, but in Harris County it can be up to 72 hours, which is the downside).

We did eventually find a mobile testing facility. Only one and it wasn't close by, but yeah.

EDIT- Also we're outside of Travis county.

 

[Drew]

I still feel as if the federal government had orchestrated a pandemic game-plan that was inclusive nationwide as opposed to forcing state-by-state protocols, mandates, etc that we all would've fared much better throughout this mess. Fortunately we were able to find that mobile testing site as it was the only one even remotely close to us.

I mean, I STRONGLY agree with this. Pretty much from Day 1 Trump kicked the can down to the states, and by the time Biden was in office it was so politicized that even if he'd tried a strong federal response, which he didn't have the balls to risk, I doubt it would have mattered.

There are a lot of things you can fault the Trump administration for, but his total abdication of leadership in the early days of Covid, even going so far as to squabble whether covid cases of Americans on cruise ships off the cost of San Francisco should "count" in US caseloads, was pretty damned mind-numbing.

 

[jaxadam]

Hot damn, again?!?

Biden Tests Positive for Covid Again in ‘Rebound’ Case

The president tested positive on Saturday morning and will once again isolate, though his symptoms have not come back, the White House physician said.

www.nytimes.com

 

[StevenC]

Intermittent health update:

I just drove a car on a public road for the first time since June 6th 2021. I was nearly in tears with excitement but it gave me a headache. I don't know if it's because it was the middle of the night, the excitement, or that it's a bit too much for me at the moment.

Did I mention I absolutely love driving still?

 

[Adieu]

Intermittent health update:

I just drove a car on a public road for the first time since June 6th 2021. I was nearly in tears with excitement but it gave me a headache. I don't know if it's because it was the middle of the night, the excitement, or that it's a bit too much for me at the moment.

Did I mention I absolutely love driving still?

You hadn't driven in over a year? What happened?

 

[StevenC]

You hadn't driven in over a year? What happened?

AZ vaccine gave me a blood clot and caused a seizure, etc.

 

[Drew]

Intermittent health update:

I just drove a car on a public road for the first time since June 6th 2021. I was nearly in tears with excitement but it gave me a headache. I don't know if it's because it was the middle of the night, the excitement, or that it's a bit too much for me at the moment.

Did I mention I absolutely love driving still?

VERY different story, veeeery different situation, very different root causes even if the situational ones were a bit more comparable, but I've been off my road bike for about five weeks now after developing a DVT/bilateral PE on the flight back from my honeymoon, and while I'll still be on blood thinners for another two months, my wife and I did a VERY easy spin on a gravel rail trail near here last night. IT was on one hand the most pathetic ride ever, 8 miles at about 9mph where my HR was barely above resting (not because I can't elevate it, I've been doing trainer workouts, but because my wife just can't ride fast enough to make me work on a bike, and because at the end of the day I WAS supposed to be being careful), and it was still fucking heavenly.

Hope the recovery still continues to go well, man!

 

[StevenC]

VERY different story, veeeery different situation, very different root causes even if the situational ones were a bit more comparable, but I've been off my road bike for about five weeks now after developing a DVT/bilateral PE on the flight back from my honeymoon, and while I'll still be on blood thinners for another two months, my wife and I did a VERY easy spin on a gravel rail trail near here last night. IT was on one hand the most pathetic ride ever, 8 miles at about 9mph where my HR was barely above resting (not because I can't elevate it, I've been doing trainer workouts, but because my wife just can't ride fast enough to make me work on a bike, and because at the end of the day I WAS supposed to be being careful), and it was still fucking heavenly.

Hope the recovery still continues to go well, man!

Thanks Drew! Congrats on getting married! Feel like the last post I saw they were your fiancée.

It's so liberating! The best part for me is I can finally go swimming again whenever I want. Pool is far enough away that by the time I walk there I'll be too gassed to swim, and it's not worth getting a lift or taxi. There's so many things I still can't do, and the driving headaches are definitely just a reality of where I am right now. Taking gradually longer car journeys and experimenting with different levels of music and conversation to figure out what minimises them.

I've not been cycling since my clot and I should probably buy a helmet first. Glad you're getting back to it and recovering.

Also, what happened to the price of diesel? Feels like it was 60p cheaper the last time I bought fuel.

 

[Drew]

Thanks Drew! Congrats on getting married! Feel like the last post I saw they were your fiancée.

It's so liberating! The best part for me is I can finally go swimming again whenever I want. Pool is far enough away that by the time I walk there I'll be too gassed to swim, and it's not worth getting a lift or taxi. There's so many things I still can't do, and the driving headaches are definitely just a reality of where I am right now. Taking gradually longer car journeys and experimenting with different levels of music and conversation to figure out what minimises them.

I've not been cycling since my clot and I should probably buy a helmet first. Glad you're getting back to it and recovering.

Also, what happened to the price of diesel? Feels like it was 60p cheaper the last time I bought fuel.

War in Russia happened.

Definitely get a helmet, I don't ride without one anyway, even in the best of time. That's awesome you can get back into the pool though, and that the headaches are fading gradually. Slow progress, I'm sure, and frustrating, but you're getting there.

Yeah, she and I got engaged at the end of last June, and married mid-June this year. She's awesome.

 

[Glades]

AZ vaccine gave me a blood clot and caused a seizure, etc.

That is terrible!! I'm glad you are ok. I read somewhere that the mortality rate for bloodclots off that vaccine is really high.

I know some people that got vaccinated, but none seamed to have very bad reactions.
I never got Covid, but my wife did and she got over it in 2 days without the vaccine.

 

[Drew]

That is terrible!! I'm glad you are ok. I read somewhere that the mortality rate for bloodclots off that vaccine is really high.

I know some people that got vaccinated, but none seamed to have very bad reactions.
I never got Covid, but my wife did and she got over it in 2 days without the vaccine.

Replying to this because, well, your political biases are VERY clear, and I don't want you to jump to any conclusions.

I also don't want to minimize Steven's situation, which is really shitty, but he himself has also been very clear that his story is an extreme anomaly and not a reason to oppose vaccination.

Astrazeneca, and AstraZeneca ONLY, has shown a slight elevation in formation of blood clots after vaccination, to the tune of perhaps 1-in-10,000 to 1-in-50,000. This is an extremely low rate of "excess" clots, is well below the baseline prevalence in the population (here in the US, prevalence is about 1-in-1,000 to 1-in-2,000 on any given year). This compares to a Covid mortality rate in the ballpark of maybe 1-in-100, where vaccination slashes the liklihood of mortality.v

By the numbers, even the AZ vaccine (with its slightly increased prevalence of clotting) will improve your odds of not dying, even if you assume blood clots are fatal in 100% of circumstances (which they are not - a pulmonary embolism is fatal at a rate of roughly 1-in-3 to 1-in-4, which is something I'm rather glad I only learned after the fact). Vaccines save lives. Full stop.

That said, I'm glad to see empathy and compassion here.

 

[Glades]

Replying to this because, well, your political biases are VERY clear, and I don't want you to jump to any conclusions.

I also don't want to minimize Steven's situation, which is really shitty, but he himself has also been very clear that his story is an extreme anomaly and not a reason to oppose vaccination.

Astrazeneca, and AstraZeneca ONLY, has shown a slight elevation in formation of blood clots after vaccination, to the tune of perhaps 1-in-10,000 to 1-in-50,000. This is an extremely low rate of "excess" clots, is well below the baseline prevalence in the population (here in the US, prevalence is about 1-in-1,000 to 1-in-2,000 on any given year). This compares to a Covid mortality rate in the ballpark of maybe 1-in-100, where vaccination slashes the liklihood of mortality.v

By the numbers, even the AZ vaccine (with its slightly increased prevalence of clotting) will improve your odds of not dying, even if you assume blood clots are fatal in 100% of circumstances (which they are not - a pulmonary embolism is fatal at a rate of roughly 1-in-3 to 1-in-4, which is something I'm rather glad I only learned after the fact). Vaccines save lives. Full stop.

That said, I'm glad to see empathy and compassion here.

My political biases are very clear? I am PRO vaccine!
Can you please stop making assumptions about people that you don't know?