sick

I am now at the stage where the remaining symptoms–occasional coughs spurred by a tickle in the throat–and the like are mostly just annoyances, so I’m going to say I am now officially recovering.

I did opt out of running today. I don’t think my lungs are quite ready yet, but soon™.

Instead of a sad bunny, I present a nonplussed cat:

My watch claims I didn’t get enough REM sleep last night, but I still feel it was the best night of rest since getting sick. I didn’t really cough or sneeze at all.

This morning I am feeling mediocre. I am slightly stuffed up, but I can take a deep breath without coughing. Yay. I may be ready to run tomorrow, a regular run day. We’ll see.

I do have a possible new complication–a sore spot in my abdomen that is subsiding as I type this, but was notable in that I could poke it, and it did not like being poked. I’ve had this before, and it’s been a bladder infection, which would be about right for just getting over being sick to have a new ailment heroically leap in and take over.

But as I said, it seems to be subsiding for now. I will monitor.

Hopefully the last sad bunny, at least for now:

Last night, my sleep score was so-so, but I didn’t have any coughing or sneezing fits. Progress! When I got up this morning, I had a mini coughing fit (<CF), so opted to take at least one more dose of cough medicine/ I generally don’t feel bad, though perhaps a tad worn from all the previous coughing, sneezing and all that.

It is Thanksgiving today and the forecast is kind of lousy, so I think I’ll just have a mellow day and urge my body to mend as I play video games, have a nice bubble bath and eat chicken, my favourite turkey substitute.

One (?) more sad bunny:

Yesterday was a whole lot of sneezing, and the tip of my nose is now sore. I bought a box of tissue and I’m pretty sure I went through half of it. There was increased coughing and by evening, it felt like I was “drying up” and shifting more to a cough.

I woke up around 4 a.m., had a coughing fit for around 15 minutes, then stopped, which allowed me to sleep for about three more hours. The coughing started again, seemed more stubborn, so I just got up to type this. I am now coughing intermittently, but will probably go to the store this morning to buy some kind of cough remedy, because I am already sore and tired from all the coughing, and it is not yet 9 a.m.

Once I am fully recovered, I am never going outside again. I’ll rig up some VR system and experience the world in a germ-free environment, as nature should have intended.

Today’s sad bunny is below.

Yesterday was all about the runny nose and sneezing. Last night was much the same, which made for a less than satisfying sleep.

Today, a new development: Coughing! Not much, but more significantly, when I cough, I can feel the congestion in my chest loosen. This is actually good, because it means the virus/bug/hellspawn/alien is moving through my system relatively quickly.

Also, I feel better sitting up and standing than when I’m laying down, so I guess I’ll rest while in the chair and not the bed.

In all, I’d rather be feeling healthy.

Here is today’s sad bunny:

It’s somewhat ironic that I hardly got sick during the pandemic, but seem to be on a once-per-year pace since then (which admittedly is still less than what I experienced before).

Yesterday, my throat was sore and that was both annoying and exhausting. Today the throat feels better, but the bug has moved into my nose, which alternates between runny and sneezy. It’s also in my chest already, so there’s some coughing for good measure. This seems to be faster than usual, so I’m hoping I’m feeling back to normal relatively soon.

In the meantime, another sad bunny:

Yep, I did indeed have that funny feeling in my throat manifest into a full-on sore throat, and expect it to spread to my sinuses and chest in due time, because it’s never just a sore throat.

I have no idea where I might have caught the virus, because I am pretty anti-people. Maybe I touched something virus-laden, then touched an eyeball or shoved all five fingers into my mouth. Anyway, bleah.

This also means I’ll have to wait to recover to get a flu shot, which scores irony points, if nothing else.

Here is a sad-looking bunny, which I am:

UPDATE, The next morning: Yep, I have a 100% genuine sore throat. I'd like to hope it's just a sore throat, I'll deal with it, recover and move on, but I know the reality is more likely to be:

- Virus moves into sinuses
- Virus moves into chest
- Virus hits hard for 3–4 days, then lingers for a week or two after

I am resigned to my fate. At least my watch gave me a rest day.

Late this afternoon, my nose and throat began feeling funny in that, “You may be coming down with something!” way, despite not going anywhere or near anyone that would presumably get me sick. Viruses are funny things. I’m hoping this is just a passing whatever, and I’ll be back to being A-OK and healthy tomorrow morning.

If not, I will update and probably post a GIF of a cat sneezing or something.

In fact, here’s one now:

Checking my journal, I first wrote I may be suffering from seasonal allergies last Sunday. After a few days, it became clear that this was more of a cold, not allergies. I am still feeling the effects five days later, mainly in terms of coughing (mostly in the evening and early morning) and tightness in the chest, and some intermittent stuffiness. It could be worse.

But this is also only the third time I’ve been sick since January 2020, a period of four and a half years:

• April 2022: I caught the big one, Covid-19, after my partner brought it home from the university. I don’t blame him.
• June 2023: I caught something similar to what I have now, also after my partner presumably brought it home from the university. I still don’t blame him.

This time, my partner is blame-free. Er, I mean, I still don’t blame him, and he hasn’t gotten sick. So now I wonder where I caught this particular virus, since I live a generally hermit-like existence. A summary:

• I first experienced symptoms on Sunday, June 16
• I went birding on June 8, about a week before. This feels like too long a gestation period, but I had exposure to strange people. And birds.
• I rode public transit the same day, June 8, but again, it seems a long gestation period. I don’t remember anyone coughing on me.
• I went to the grocery store multiple times. A possibility, though I’m never up close and personal with anyone there, and the building itself is very spacious and well-ventilated.
• I walked around public parks and trails several times. This seems an unlikely source.
• Maybe it was my partner and he just hasn’t shown any symptoms, so I can blame him!
• Aliens?

In the end, I suppose it doesn’t matter. It just makes me a little paranoid. Mostly, I’m just annoyed because I had just finished my first post-injury 5K run and was looking forward to more exercise this week, not a lot of naps, feeling blah and popping Tylenol. Also, being sick only three times in four and a half years is pretty good. The irony is that of the three times, Covid-19 was actually the mildest. I am not advocating catching Covid-19.