It's been quite a while since I have written a diary. Partially because life has gotten busy and partially because I just wasn’t feeling the desire. Something happened a month ago that made me realize I need to start writing diaries again. Follow me below for the story, but first a word from our sponsor:
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Some of you may know that I suffer from a rare genetic disorder in which my body doesn’t make a very specific enzyme that is supposed breakdown waste material in my cells. This causes a whole host of medical complications too numerous to go into in this diary. About 20 years ago, I began receiving an experimental enzyme replacement treatment to give me back the enzyme I am missing. I now receive weekly infusions from a nurse that comes to my house. This is where the story begins.
With COVID running rampant in downstate NY, I wasn’t exactly thrilled that I had to keep having the nurse come into the house once a week, but the infusions are what keeps the progression of the disease at bay. I figured, being a nurse, he would be taking the proper precautions and stop seeing patients if he was ever possibly exposed to the virus. Boy was I wrong.
The first time, back in mid-March, the nurse, after putting on his gloves to remove my IV, proceeded to touch both his face and the IV pump before taking out my IV. I got really angry with him that he did that. He asked me if I didn’t want him to come anymore. I said, “No, I just want you to not touch anything while wearing your gloves before you take my IV out.” I should have listened to the little voice in my head and said yes and changed nurses.
Two weeks later (a month ago), he came into the house now wearing an N95 mask. During the visit he coughed a few times and took the mask down to wipe his mouth because he was sweating. I asked him if he was sure he wasn’t sick and both he and my sister (not a medical professional) said it was the mask causing both things. I didn’t really believe this because he didn’t look well, but I have never worn an N95 mask. As I do every time I get an infusion, I immediately washed my hands and using a disinfecting wipe to clean the table and chairs.
The next afternoon, I received a call from the nursing service telling my nurse was not feeling well and was being tested for COVID because he had been exposed to the virus. At that point, that was all they told me. I was able to get my doctor to approve my sister and me to get a test and went off to the site. In the most frustrating thing ever, the doctor there said the only reason I would be allowed to be tested was because my parents had diabetes. Apparently a chronic terminal illness isn’t good enough. My sister, OTOH, wasn’t asked about our parents (we were in separate rooms) and didn’t get tested.
That night I realized I needed more information about how he was exposed, so I called the nursing service back. I found out his wife, who is also a nurse, had been exposed at her work by her boss who was positive. She had been waiting for the results from her test but was asymptomatic. I was also told they had been isolating from each other, but I wasn’t told when the isolation began. This is when the rage began to set in.
As a nurse who sees multiple patients a day with chronic illnesses, he should know to take all precautions, including ceasing seeing patients if there was any chance he had been exposed to the virus. Instead he kept working and could have potentially caused the deaths of numerous people.
Because of this, I spent about a week having multiple panic attacks a day, getting little sleep, having numerous nightmares and needing to take extra medicine to keep my heart rate under control. It didn’t help when I called my cardiologist’s office to alert them to what happened and the PA who assists my doctor implied that I was almost assuredly positive for the virus. It wasn’t until I spoke to a friend who explained how an N95 mask works that I was even able to reduce some anxiety.
5 days after I got tested, my results came back negative which was a relief, but being that I got tested within 24hrs of seeing the nurse, I wasn’t completely sure it was a true negative. Thankfully, the next week and a half passed and I never developed any symptoms.
While I now have a new nurse coming to the house, I always get a bit of anxiety the day before she comes. I don’t know when the rage about what happen will go away completely, but I know the fear won’t subside until this is completely gone. Hearing that New Zealand has stopped community spread makes me wish I could move there. And I promise my next diary will be a positive one.
Diarist reserves all rights to his original writing only. Community material is not covered by this ©
And Now onto the comments and pics who won the day!
Thanks to brillig for helping with the formatting!
TOP COMMENTS from April 29, 2020
Thanks to tonight's Top Comments contributors! Let us hear from YOU when you find that proficient comment.
From elenacarlena:
I nominate ruscle's hot dog parody. Funny if gross! Gross if funny! From sphy’s Trump finally invokes Defense of Production Act for…
Two from Zen Trainer:
From your rage filled diarist:
This response by sizzzzlerz to a comment from jhecht regarding waiting to spend your meager COVID relief check provided a little comedy is a frustrating time. Comes from Joan McCarter’s diary on the growing anger over the lack of federal stimulus funds to the 99%.
This thread started by RepublicanKos about a potential COVID Karen in Kentucky includes three comments all with excellent snark using the words locked and loaded.
TOP MOJO from April 28, 2020
(excluding Tip Jars and first comments) *Got mik!*
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TOP PHOTOS from April 28, 2020
Enjoy jotter's wonderful *PictureQuilt™* below. Just click on the picture and it will magically take you to the comment that features that photo. Have fun, Kossacks!
Thank you jotter for the awesome image magic!
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Image permissions don’t allow us to use it in Picture Quilt
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