Covid

I thought I was invincible. Actually, I thought I was a medical miracle with immunity the CDC would want to research and replicate. No offense, but I was pretty sure I was the next Henrietta Lacks. (IYKYK)

For three years, everyone around me succumbed to Covid. I have friends who have actually had Covid multiple times. Not me. I took every vaccine and booster available and remained bullet-proof. (My friends took every vaccine and booster too, and still got Covid, but I didn’t let that deter me from thinking I was the exception to the rule.) I will, however, admit to taking countless tests over the years. A random cold, headache, or hangnail would necessitate a test, but nada, they were always false alarms. Until February 26, 2023.

I came home from a trip and immediately became sicker than I’ve been in a long, long time. Ironically, I didn’t even think to test for Covid; I was pretty sure I had typhoid fever or malaria. For about 36 hours, I thought I might not survive (slight exaggeration). The details are boring but the illness was not. There didn’t seem to be a single part of my body that wasn’t affected. The fact that I did not check for Covid was, no doubt, due to my delirium. Finally, the thought dawned on me, “I wonder if this is Covid?” And just like that, my reign as Queen of the Strongest Immune System Known to Womankind had come to an end.

PSA: “Research shows nearly 100% of planes have Covid in their wastewater after any given flight, which means at least one person on the plane is Covid-positive.”