Covid-19, or Not?

January 25, 2020 from an email I wrote to my sister:

I awoke at 4:30 am this morning feeling as if someone had opened my skull up there on the crown (top left) of my skull and it was a stabbing, sharp pain (called an icepick headache I think….) Do you remember how I described it when I lost my eye? It felt as though someone was stabbing the center of my blind eye with a knife (or icepick) repeatedly and constantly…..it resulted in the photophobia, and in the docs all calling me in to tell me my “good” eye was going to go blind, in sympathy, with my right….you were with me. Well, this morning, I had a very similar experience that woke me and would not stop until I finally got up at 7:45am, took Excedrin and waited. The entire left side of my scalp was tender and hurt, badly.

Because these icepick headaches have been occurring every year or so, but they never last, I arrange to have a CAT scan of my brain every 2-3 years and, so far, it’s all been fine. They are simply weird and random. This morning’s felt different and I am sending you two this email so you have some idea of what’s been going on, in case anything were to happen. I have verbally told Peter, but I think it’s important to have it written.

This morning the ache was persistent and far more palpable – physical if you take my meaning. And it repeated itself every 20 seconds or so, so I could not go back to sleep.  The first thing I thought was maybe…well…could I see? I got up and turned on a light and I could – AND I had no photophobia flashing light patterns in my good eye, so all well on that count….then, I wondered about a stoke, but I feel like my heart is okay…..it’s just my head!

I have been wearing my new hearing aids and they keep cutting off and really are awful, but I had them checked and it must just be me….altho Costco said the company which makes them has been having a tough time with their phone APP, and that affects me.  Headaches can arise from hearing, too.  Anyhow, I wanted you and Peter to have a written-out account of what’s going on with me – I do not believe they will be long lived, but they are different enough, this time, to make me want to write down what’s going on and give the info to you and Peter.

So, there you have it. I took the Excedrin and it left, sort of….there is still a “shadow ache” on that part of my skull and I’m just trying not to focus on it. I put a warm compress on it, this morning, and it helped..

February 2-9^th sick…fatigue, headache off and on, dizziness, no sense of taste/smell, then a weird metallic taste in my mouth one morning.

Third week of February: Slight fever, headache centered between my two eyebrows and felt as if a band were there, being pulled tightly.  Leg aches, sometimes extreme dizziness. Felt as if I had an extreme sinus infection – very runny nose, extreme drainage in back of throat and a continually vicious cough to the point I gagged. Right sinus hurt deeply – deep into that side of my face. Terrible cough. Gagging cough.

February 25^th or so – MRI came back perfectly fine.

Finally called Clinic for antibiotics and told Doc I felt I had a very serious sinus infection – 14 days of AMOX/Clav.  Mid-way through they did not seem to be helping and I developed a more serious fever, accompanied by serious chills – like when I had malaria.  It still did not dawn on me that it could be anything other than a sinus infection.  I peed just a little bit, every time I coughed.  Dizziness worsened and leg cramps.  Hard to breathe, but I’ve had worse, so I lay on my side.  Cough escalating.  The weird metallic taste came back, and I had no sense of taste or smell. I could not sleep, which has been plaguing me since January. 

Mid way through the antibiotics, I had one day when my energy returned and I felt great – had energy for a couple hours, then I crashed and had to go to bed.  I got shaking chills and fell asleep.  Decided not to take Tylenol that day and when I awoke, several hours later, I was laying in a pool of my sweat and I knew the fever had broken.  It took all my energy, but I took a shower – very dizzy and almost fell a couple of times. 

I began holding my breath, several times a day, for 20 seconds just to make sure I still could. The skin on my arms, abdomen neck and face itched so badly, and I scratched at my skin so often, that I thought I might draw blood if I kept it up. I couldn’t stop itching.

I had no more chills, after fever broke but I seemed not to be getting better regarding my extreme fatigue and the cough returned.  Sinus still hurt.  The evening of the day I finished the antibiotics when I urinated it hurt. I believe I had possibly developed a severe UTI.  I had to urinate every minute or so, and with each time it hurt more and more.  It burned and hurt so badly that I couldn’t help but weep.  This went on for about 36 hours and I took 10-20,000 mg of organic vitamin C, ate yogurt, and took probiotics. Whatever it was lingered off and on for a week, then disappeared.

I continued to sleep only every other night and continued to cough, sometimes extremely hard.  I am deeply fatigued and listless, still.  My sense of taste/smell has returned, but I had the metallic taste one night when I arose to go to the bathroom.  My sinuses are still messed up, but not like they were, and I have brief, intermittent headaches, but nothing at all like they were.  I have bladder control.  I have a one-degree fever, sometimes.  I have a productive cough every morning, but it’s pollen season right now and we usually walk each morning.  I am still dizzy, but only off and on.  My lack of energy bothers me the most – I sometimes feel as if my ‘battery’ needs changing.  Deep fatigue, still. Persistent cough, really bad at times.

Other “symptoms”: clogged up ears, can’t hear even with new hearing aids in, excessive mucous, which causes terrible hacking cough, eyes water incessantly and are matted upon awakening, muscle cramps, unlike my normal personality, I have been genuinely fighting depression.  I’ve had bouts of loose stool off and on, but here is a symptom that has persisted, left about ten days ago, then returned (I just emailed a doctor friend about it): ELECTRICAL charges.  

I just realized, a couple days ago that it might be a symptom.  You know how certain things happen and they really don’t so much make an impact as they form a pattern?  That’s what this was/is.  In about mid-February, I noticed that when I sit down, nightly, to watch tv or read.  I needed to have a cover over my legs and feet, every night.  I was getting what felt like a cold electrical current, running up and down my calves, across my ankle, heel, and bottom of my feet and to my toes. But I really don’t know how to describe it.  It felt like when we get a jolt from a socket or a light bulb/lamp except that it’s COLD.  Then, when I went to bed that feeling of a cold electrical charge moved to my lower torso (intestinal area).  Every night. 

At first, I thought maybe it was a hernia, because I’ve lifted heavy stuff all my life.  Maybe indigestion.  Maybe a stroke?!  I couldn’t put my finger on what was happening. It was original and I’d never experienced this kind of feeling in my body, before. 

I was only sleeping every other night, every two nights or when I could take a Benadryl or Alka Seltzer Nighttime capsule. Either of those would knock me out, but I hesitated because I don’t like taking pills….

So, the cold electrical charge happened every night or almost every night for almost five months, then about ten days ago, I realized it had stopped and I started being able to sleep and sleep all through the entire night, which I haven’t done for months.  I have been so grateful to end this feeling of total exhaustion…..but, last night the electrical charge going down my legs began, again as we watched tv.  It did not travel to my intestinal area (it never impacted my bowels etc) but it simply ran up and down my lower calves to my toes intermittently until I finally drifted to sleep around 2am.  It feels as if my legs and feet are suffering isolated “chills” of electricity.  It woke me at 5am and kept me in an agitated state until I arose at 7am.

I don’t know, but I guess that you all are keeping a list of possible COVID symptoms….I do believe this is related to what I had and I DO believe I had the virus and it still impacts certain physical things going on in my body.  I am dizzy again, suffer bouts of complete exhaustion and my body, especially my lower legs, ache off and on.  Cough not as bad as it was, that’s for sure, but headache can stop me in my tracks, then suddenly simply disappear.  But this electrical charge is quite disconcerting, and I won’t know if it’s actually returned until I can detect a pattern.  I will make sure to be aware if it kicks in on a regular basis.

Terrible brain fog, smelling smoke/lemons and other phantom smells which are not real, now I know to call the electricity “Internal Tremors”…I wonder if the arthritis in my hands and now hips and knees is also because of the virus – it’s hit me like gangbusters over the past month.  I just called the ophthalmologist because my good eye developed a floater on Saturday, which was in the exact center of my seeing eye…never had that before.  Temporary loss of vision was a hard one for me as I only see out of my left eye.  I keep remembering things….

Additional symptoms:
Severe headache
Fever/chills
extreme fatigue
dizziness
rash/itching
extreme cough
metallic taste in mouth
no taste/smell
listless, feel as if someone drained my battery
extreme abdominal and urinary pain
achy, unsteady legs
pain in extremities
I had blood drawn on May 5^th by the Boca Grande Health Clinic (FL) and was told the test was made by Abbott and reliable 100% of the time.  Mine came back negative and I couldn’t believe it.  Today, after reading a NY Time and a USA Today news article, where I found your reference, I realize the tests were not accurate.  I know I had it and I know I am still reeling from it.  I want to share my symptoms, in the hope of helping others.  Thank you.

July 27, 2020 Barbara Helvey Hughes

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