I'VE TESTED POSITIVE FOR COVID-19... NOW WHAT?
THURSDAY - An officer came by and taped a red piece of paper on the outside of my cell door today. The paper has written on it that I am under quarantine (nothing new, I've been locked in this cell for a month as of this afternoon). There are 2 other cells on this tier that had red paper taped to their door today too. I haven't been officially notified that I'm positive for the COVID-19 virus, but the red paper tells the tale according to the nurse that walked by earlier. I was tested 13 days ago - maybe the results just came in, or, more likely, the results came back days ago and they just decided to put the paper on the doors today.
I asked the nurse - what now? She said they would just watch me. They have been taking my temperature, pulse and blood oxygen levels every day for the past week or so. They also ask how I feel. They don't do that to everyone, just me and a couple other guys on the tier. I bet if I watch, the other guys they check every day will be those with the new red paper taped to their doors, but I'm too tired to stand there at my door and watch.
The nurse said something tonight too that I didn't know. She mentioned off-handedly that taking Ibuprofen (aka, Motrin) would kill you if you are infected with the coronavirus. It causes (or exacerbates) pulmonary edema she said - will put you on a respirator. Who knew? Nobody told me that before. Glad I know now, but since I've been taking Ibuprofen for the past month to quell the debilitating head and body aches associated with laying in a cell, I'm not sure she knows what she's talking about. She does work for Corizon Health after all.
So, what now? Well, I wasn't allowed out of my cell today to take a shower, to make a phone call or access the kiosk. I was told that I might get out to do these things after only after count tonight, but nobody is certain.
FRIDAY - I did watch to see who they checked on today as I happened to see the nurse enter the tier, and I was wrong - they only checked on 1 of the other 2 red-flagged cells on the tier. Guess I'm not that lazy after all. Oh, and I did get out for a shower, call and kiosk last night. Unexpectedly, I was also let out of my cell for the same things today at approximately 11 am.
The nurse I spoke with today (who checked on me) called B.S. on the Thursday nurse saying Ibuprofen complicates symptoms of COVID-19. Today's nurse is the one that has been coming by, asking me how I feel and checking my vitals (sin blood pressure, despite my chronic blood pressure issues). I asked him how one is removed from the quarantine status list. He tells me that I must be symptom free for 2 weeks.
So I asked the nurse, "How do I get official notice that I have the coronavirus?" With a puzzled look, he answered, "You won't, you were tested with a grant from the federal government, so even Corizon doesn't get the results." (Hmmm.) "So," I queried, "How do you know I'm infected with the coronavirus and need to be quarantined?" "You are," he stated as he walked away waving a piece of paper as if God herself dropped it into his hand.
I've felt much better for the past week or so, though I've had a cough for more than a week. The cough was completely gone until I started taking my blood pressure (BP) meds again.The headaches I had were simply associated with coughing so much. I stopped taking my BP and thyroid meds just after we were locked in our cells because I had run out of them until they brought some by more than a week later, but by then I was pretty sick, so I took only vitamins. After I got over being sick, and all my COVID-19 symptoms subsided, I started taking BP meds again, and that's when the side-effects kicked in (again). The BP meds have those same side-effects as some of the coronavirus symptoms, and the thyroid medication is used to combat lethargy. I've been taking those meds for years, but when I stopped taking them for a couple weeks then restarted, all hell broke loose with my body
Is my quarantine status in effect to protect me from others, or is it to protect others from me? Im sure they'd say both. Why can't I get some official document saying I am infected? Is it a state secret? If I could receive documentation from several girls in elementary school in the late 1960s and early '70s that I had the dreaded Cooties, why can I not get a paper from the state or testing agency verifying that I am a victim of the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic?
Don't get me wrong, I'm not being at all mistreated in this - while I don't enjoy being locked down, I've endured much, much worse, but shouldn't I be able to know who tested my sample, and when I was officially declared infected? C'mon, you know the answer to that. If what the nurse says is true, and Corizon is not notified of the results of COVID-19 tests, who is? On who's word am I now quarantined?
Maybe it'll take (another) lawsuit to find out.
I asked the nurse - what now? She said they would just watch me. They have been taking my temperature, pulse and blood oxygen levels every day for the past week or so. They also ask how I feel. They don't do that to everyone, just me and a couple other guys on the tier. I bet if I watch, the other guys they check every day will be those with the new red paper taped to their doors, but I'm too tired to stand there at my door and watch.
The nurse said something tonight too that I didn't know. She mentioned off-handedly that taking Ibuprofen (aka, Motrin) would kill you if you are infected with the coronavirus. It causes (or exacerbates) pulmonary edema she said - will put you on a respirator. Who knew? Nobody told me that before. Glad I know now, but since I've been taking Ibuprofen for the past month to quell the debilitating head and body aches associated with laying in a cell, I'm not sure she knows what she's talking about. She does work for Corizon Health after all.
So, what now? Well, I wasn't allowed out of my cell today to take a shower, to make a phone call or access the kiosk. I was told that I might get out to do these things after only after count tonight, but nobody is certain.
FRIDAY - I did watch to see who they checked on today as I happened to see the nurse enter the tier, and I was wrong - they only checked on 1 of the other 2 red-flagged cells on the tier. Guess I'm not that lazy after all. Oh, and I did get out for a shower, call and kiosk last night. Unexpectedly, I was also let out of my cell for the same things today at approximately 11 am.
The nurse I spoke with today (who checked on me) called B.S. on the Thursday nurse saying Ibuprofen complicates symptoms of COVID-19. Today's nurse is the one that has been coming by, asking me how I feel and checking my vitals (sin blood pressure, despite my chronic blood pressure issues). I asked him how one is removed from the quarantine status list. He tells me that I must be symptom free for 2 weeks.
So I asked the nurse, "How do I get official notice that I have the coronavirus?" With a puzzled look, he answered, "You won't, you were tested with a grant from the federal government, so even Corizon doesn't get the results." (Hmmm.) "So," I queried, "How do you know I'm infected with the coronavirus and need to be quarantined?" "You are," he stated as he walked away waving a piece of paper as if God herself dropped it into his hand.
I've felt much better for the past week or so, though I've had a cough for more than a week. The cough was completely gone until I started taking my blood pressure (BP) meds again.The headaches I had were simply associated with coughing so much. I stopped taking my BP and thyroid meds just after we were locked in our cells because I had run out of them until they brought some by more than a week later, but by then I was pretty sick, so I took only vitamins. After I got over being sick, and all my COVID-19 symptoms subsided, I started taking BP meds again, and that's when the side-effects kicked in (again). The BP meds have those same side-effects as some of the coronavirus symptoms, and the thyroid medication is used to combat lethargy. I've been taking those meds for years, but when I stopped taking them for a couple weeks then restarted, all hell broke loose with my body
Is my quarantine status in effect to protect me from others, or is it to protect others from me? Im sure they'd say both. Why can't I get some official document saying I am infected? Is it a state secret? If I could receive documentation from several girls in elementary school in the late 1960s and early '70s that I had the dreaded Cooties, why can I not get a paper from the state or testing agency verifying that I am a victim of the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic?
Don't get me wrong, I'm not being at all mistreated in this - while I don't enjoy being locked down, I've endured much, much worse, but shouldn't I be able to know who tested my sample, and when I was officially declared infected? C'mon, you know the answer to that. If what the nurse says is true, and Corizon is not notified of the results of COVID-19 tests, who is? On who's word am I now quarantined?
Maybe it'll take (another) lawsuit to find out.