A COVID Start to the New Year

Well, 2022 is certainly off to a memorable start for me! . . . I tested positive for COVID-19 yesterday.

I’m not sure which variant of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, I have, but if it’s the Delta variant than I’m sure I have the COVID vaccine and booster shot to thank for my symptoms being so mild. It’s like I have the flu or a bad head cold. No shortness of breath and no loss of taste or smell; just a headache and overall body aches, which over-the-counter cold & flu tablets are helping relieve.

If, on the other and, it’s the new Omicron variant, then it’s effects are known to be not as severe as the Delta variant, though it’s way more contagious. Given that Omicron is currently spreading at “lightning speed” throughout the U.S., I’m thinking it’s the variant I have.

Regardless of which variant I’ve contracted, I’ll be quarantining and away from work for the next 10 days. I intend to make the most of it: reading books I’ve long been meaning to read, doing some exercise, cleaning and tidying my attic apartment, maybe starting to journal again. My friends who live downstairs have been wonderful, bringing me soup and offering to get groceries. Many others have made similar offers.

Overall, I feel very fortunate and very well taken care of. I wish everyone who contracts COVID could have it so easy in terms of symptoms. Sadly, from my work in the hospital setting, I know first-hand that this is not the case. I also know that the global COVID-19 (or coronavirus) pandemic is still very much ongoing.

So, my friends, mask up, get the vaccine if it’s available to you, and help reduce the spread.


Related Off-site Links:
Omicron Is Spreading at Lightning Speed. Scientists Are Trying to Figure Out Why – Will Stone (MPR News, December 31, 2021).
New Year's Eve Muted by Omicron; Many Hoping for Better 2022 – Associated Press via MPR News (December 31, 2021).
Health Experts Warn of "Unprecedented Number of Social Disruptions" Amid Omicron Surge – Kenny Stancil (Common Dreams, January 2, 2022).

UPDATES: Latest on COVID-19 in Minnesota: New, Active Case Counts Climbing Again – MPR News (January 3, 2022).
Omicron COVID-19 Is Spreading Around the World Like Wildfire, But Some Countries Are More Worried Than Others – ABC News (January 3, 2022).
What the Numbers Tell Us, Or Don't Tell Us, About the Omicron Surge – Mary Louise Kelly, Megan Lim and Christopher Intagliata (NPR News, January 3, 2022).
Omicron Surge Poses Political Peril for Democrats – Julia Manchester (The Hill, January 3, 2022).
Latest on COVID-19 in Minnesota: New Cases Spike as Omicron Surges – MPR News (January 4, 2022).
These Are the Numbers Health Officials Are Watching At This Point in the Pandemic – Mary Louise Kelly, Megan Lim and Christopher Intagliata (NPR News, January 4, 2022).
More Than One Million Americans Were Diagnosed With COVID Over the Long Holiday Weekend – Rachel Treisman (NPR News, January 4, 2022).
U.S. Tops One Million New Daily COVID-19 Cases – A Global Record – Aljazeera (January 4, 2022).
Why Are So Many Vaccinated People Getting COVID-19 Lately? – The Associated Press via NPR News (January 4, 2022).
As Active Cases Leap in Minnesota; Hospitals “Literally Full” – MPR News (January 7, 2022).
Minnesota Hospitals Report Hundreds of Staff Out with COVID – Catharine Richert (MPR News, January 9, 2022).

See also the previous Wild Reed posts:
• Renae Gage: Quote of the Day – November 30, 2021
• COVID Observations From a General Surgeon
• Richard LaFortune: Quote of the Day – August 20, 2021
• Something to Lament
• A Pandemic Year
• Out and About – Spring 2020
• A Prayer in Times of a Pandemic
• The Calm Before the Storm
• Hope and Beauty in the Midst of the Global Coronavirus Pandemic
• Marianne Williamson: In the Midst of This “Heartbreaking” Pandemic, It’s Okay to Be Heartbroken
• Sonya Renee Taylor: Quote of the Day – April 18, 2020
• Examining the Link Between Destruction of Biodiversity and Emerging Infectious Diseases
• The Lancet Weighs-in on the Trump Administration’s “Incoherent” Response to the Coronavirus Pandemic
• Memes of the Times

Image: Michael J. Bayly.