Editor’s Note: Elle Kehres submitted this piece while quarantining at her residence. She has not been into the 97.9 The Hill and Chapelboro offices since late June, weeks prior to her infection of COVID-19. Staff at 97.9 The Hill and Chapelboro are taking numerous measures and precautions to protect the safety of each other and our visitors to the station.


My name is Elle. I’m one of your local reporters here at 97.9 The Hill & Chapelboro.com — and I tested positive for COVID-19 on Thursday.

To say that we are living through a weird time would be an understatement. Over the past few months, I have had the privilege of sharing our community’s stories of struggle and telling  of our triumphs in the face of a crisis unlike anything I’ve ever seen. It really has been an honor, and I am so proud to be a part of this community. Despite the everyday stressors that have become our new normal, it is you, the Chapelboro community, that continues to inspire me.

I am a 24-year-old, healthy woman. I exercise regularly, get an ample amount of sleep and try to eat a balanced diet – save for the bagels and Nutella. Despite all of that, despite seeing myself as a fundamentally healthy person, this disease has swept me off my feet.

Even before I contracted the coronavirus, I stressed and worried for our community. I spoke with countless doctors, nurses, frontline workers and infectious disease experts. I spoke with business owners, craft breweries, eating disorder clinics, financial analysts, and food banks. I knew the impact and risks that COVID-19 had on our community. I knew the financial setbacks it had on our economy. I knew the fear it instilled in our at-risk populations. It was my job to research and report on these things, to know and to tell.

I didn’t know anything until my roommates and I all contracted the virus.

Being so up close and personal with the pandemic, I had a hard time understanding how people could see the coronavirus as this very distant, almost fairytale-like threat. Over the past few months, I’ve heard so many people talk and act as if they’re immune, invincible.

I took every precaution I could, I’m under thirty, and I am infected. Moreover, this is not an easy burden to bear.

As I type this, an elephant is sitting on my chest. I cannot take a full breath. I am having to take a break from my radio duties, as I simply do not have it in me to speak for long periods of time. I can barely cook myself a meal without falling to exhaustion. I am now prescribed an inhaler to help with my shallow breathing. I have had a headache for five days straight and am congested like nobody’s business. My equilibrium is off, and I get lightheaded when standing up.

Pretty picture right?

I had already known that everyone reacts differently to the virus. An infectious disease expert told me one of the scariest things about COVID-19 is that it’s a spectrum. You don’t know whether or not you will be asymptomatic, end up in the hospital or land somewhere in-between until you actually contract the virus. Even people of the same age, health and gender can react extremely differently.

Both my roommates and I contracted COVID-19. We are all 24, active and living in the same environment. As the first of us began to get sick we tried to take precautions, but with how infectious this virus is, it was realistically only a matter of time before we all were infected.

We all felt the weight. I was the last to get sick. My roommate Erin was the first.

What we are slowly realizing is that symptoms for the coronavirus look different for everyone. For Erin, it started with restless nights and fatigue – but that could be normal – maybe just some anxiety? Well, one day she woke up and had lost her sense of smell and taste. That was a common reported symptom, our wake-up call.

Erin tried to immediately get tested but was turned away as she didn’t have a fever, blue lips or extreme difficulty breathing. She called the UNC 24-hour helpline for a second opinion. At her doctor’s visit, they told her it was a standard respiratory virus, not COVID.

She mentioned that she had been in proximity to her stepmom, who was now symptomatic and getting tested herself, but still the doctor said it wasn’t necessary for Erin to be tested. Erin was prescribed Benzonatate – a common cold and cough prescription – and sent on her way.

In the days following, Erin wore a mask around the house just to be safe.

Without presenting these “classic” COVID symptoms or being able to say she was exposed to a confirmed case of COVID, Erin was running into problems trying to get tested.

My other roommate, Teresa, woke up with a sore throat and a cough – but it was a productive rather than dry cough, so we thought maybe it could be allergies. After all – COVID coughs have to be dry right? The next day she felt feverish and had the chills, although, just like Erin, she never actually developed a fever.

A week had come and gone and I still hadn’t presented any concerning symptoms. If all this was in fact COVID, we thought I was in the clear. Then the headaches started – but headaches are pretty normal for me, and not a widely broadcasted COVID symptom – so no biggie right?

Well, after three days of persistent headaches, the congestion and difficulty breathing began.

Then came the confirmation that we needed – I woke up with a low-grade fever and the news that one of our friends had tested positive. These symptoms and case confirmation granted myself and Teresa the ability to get tested at UNC.

Within 24 hours we had our results. Positive and positive. It took me 15 minutes to get through UNC’s drive-through service. Ten minutes after I was notified of my results, I had my first virtual doctor’s visit. The efficiency was outstanding – but I know not everyone has been granted the same experience.

Erin, who ended up having to get tested at CVS, only just received her results. It’s been six days and two infected roommates later. Over a week after losing her sense of taste and smell, she is just now beginning to regain those senses – as she receives her official diagnosis.

There is so much I could say about my experience watching my roommates go through this process and then experiencing it myself. I suppose, if anything, I want to emphasize that this virus affects everyone differently. It’s a roll of the dice – and it’s a gamble you shouldn’t be willing to make.

I am the only one that had a fever and was prescribed an inhaler, Teresa is the only one with a persistent cough and Erin is the only one that lost her sense of taste and smell.

Yet, all of us can tell you that recovery from this virus is not linear – the fatigue and respiratory after-effects hits you in waves. What we call the “brain fog” is very apparent. If by some stroke of luck this article is coherent, I have amazed myself. It is challenging to carry a conversation, let alone write something worth reading.

At the end of the day, please take this pandemic seriously. Even if you are not a part of the “at-risk” demographic, believe me when I tell you that this is still not a fun time. Trust me when I say that it is something you should be concerned about.

If anything – even if your luck of the draw proves you to be one of the lucky asymptomatic ones – the guilt at having potentially put family, friends and co-workers at risk is not pleasant.

So be cautious, wear a mask and do your part to keep yourself and the ones you love safe. To keep everyone you can safe.

I hope that I will be back at work telling your stories again very soon – after my quarantine, of course. Until then, stay safe.

 

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