alrighty. So I didn’t want to make this thread until it was more certain.
My grandmother has covid, yes she’s in a high risk age group but she is not considered immune compromised necessarily. She is an alcoholic and has blood pressure issues, and chronic sinus infections for some reason. But that’s about it.
She took a rapid test and tested positive, but I told her to take a PCR to be sure. As the rapid tests can be inaccurate, and she even though it was just a sinus infection it was so mild. I thought the infection may have thrown off the test making it say covid positive, when really it was just, high t-cells causing it to read positive from the other infection.
Anyway, she went and got a PCR the next day, and Tested positive.
The dates:
She came down to visit my entire family, last week. She arrived I on the 6th of November in the evening. She had visited a friend named Ray on the 3rd who did test positive six days after the day of her visit with him (the 9th?) (i believe). she visited a friend on the 5th, who I don’t know if he has tested, but he is a priest. And she visited a friend on the 6th, who tested negative I don’t know when she took her test though. I don’t know which tests were used on the friend and Ray. She also attended church the 3rd, 4th, and 5th.
When she arrived on the 6th, in my opinion she already sounded a bit sick to me. But she chalked it up to allergies or sinus infection. But she was already coughing quite frequently, sounded croaky.
According to the CDC, the highest period of contagion, is two days before the onset of symptoms, and or possibly one day after.
So If she started showing symptoms on the 6th, that leaves the window of the 4th, 5th, 6th, and 7th, to be highest risk. I did not interact with her on any of these days because of how she sounded sick. But we do share the same bathroom, and obviously door handles and other surfaces in the house like the kitchen are a risk point.
If she started showing symptoms earlier than that, then we are closer to being out the window of highest Likelihood of transmission.
On the 7th, she spent the entire day outside, playing with my cousin and his kids- but they remained distant, and the kids and my cousin wore a mask, as did she. Because the kids go to school.
By the end of that day (the 7th) she was really tired And went straight to bed. She was on her feet all day so I assumed it was just the kids playing that wore her out. still never got within 6 feet of her but we are in a contained house. It’s honestly difficult for me to perfectly retrace every step I’ve taken but I kept interaction with her extremely minimal, and distant, because I was weary of her sounding sick. However, my other family members were not as weary, and there were points through out that week where we were in the same room together on multiple occasions though fairly brief.
On the 8th, she woke up complaining of fatigue, and I sat across from her at a bar stool in the kitchen, and she stood on the other side of the counter. We were about 2 feet apart. This interaction was really brief but, she was complaining of feeling really “beat” by the day before and cancelled all her plans for that day to recooperate. I thought, eh, just to be safe let’s take your temperature. Her temperature was normal, I think it was 97.8 or something like that, can’t remember the exact numbers.
But we thought because she did not have a fever there was no cause for concern, and her coughing, cranky ness and sinus clockage, was a result of a sinus infection or just, sinus build up, maybe a cold, maybe allergies. As she does have allergies when she stays here as she sin’t used to the Florida environment nor my home which has lots of dogs.
Anyway, after that point I avoided her the entire week. I was really depressed so I was sleeping all day and then by night she was away in her bedroom with the door closed. She did pop in my room once or twice through out that week asking if I wanted to do something but I said no because of covid, I didn’t want to go anywhere. But she was standing more than 6 feet away from me in my door way, while I was in my bed.
In the middle of the week at some point I don’t know which day, she went to visit my uncle, His wife.
Later in that week, she did sit at the dining room table, and I sat at the bar area, so she was once again 6 feet away from me, I was always trying to maintain this distance, as she was coughing all over the place, all day, and all night. Everywhere. I remember also standing behind her in the kitchen and like reaching to get a plate, and she was coughing. Away from me- but. And then she like, passed by me a few times maybe in the hallway or, coming in and out the door, or like getting in and out of the bathroom, or to her spot in the dining room she passed behind me as I was sitting at the bar stool.
There were these brief moments of closeness.
Through out the week she complained of the pressure in her face, but no difficulty breathing. We chalked this up to sinuses. Despite her constant coughing. And on the day where she sat at the dining table and I was at the bar stool which, if I had to guess was maybe the 10th, 11th, or 12th, she was complaining of her body being achy. Which I found concerning.
Then, on I believe the 13th or the 14th, somewhere around there, maybe it was the 12th I really can’t remember. My dad made her take her temperature again, and it was again, the same standard temperature. I then washed the thermometer with alcohol, and my dad also insisted on using the thermometer to check his- as he was having a moment of hypochondria about a surgery he had recently had and was worried he was developing an infection from it as the pain was so bad during his recovery. I ran the thermometer under hot hot water and then washed it with rubbing alcohol quite thoroughly, really rubbing it to create friction with a paper towel, and also doused it with the alcohol. Before giving it to my dad.
Because of his surgery and a small infection in his mouth, he was on antibiotics the entire week my grandmother was there- only missing his dose one of the days. He was also on antibiotics the entire week before her getting there. I’m not sure which day he finished the antibiotic however.
Then on the 15th, she left in the morning, and I did not get close to her to hug goodbye or anything like that. It was decidely on my part a very socially distanced goodbye.
On the 15th, she returning to her hometown, got a rapid test there, and received her positive results and told us on the 16th. Then around 2:30pm I believe? On the 16th I went to get a PCR test and immediately tested myself.
According to the CDC, 5-7 days after exposure is the most optimal time to get tested. So, if we were exposed on the 6th-9th, we were well outside that at 10 days past initial exposure To recieve accurate test results. If we were exposed on the 10th-11th, We were within the window to recieve accurate test results at the 5th-6th day window. After that point, if we were exposed on the 12th, 13th, 14th, or the 15th in the morning before she left- we would be inside the 1-5 day window where testing accuracy becomes less reliable with every approaching day closer to the day of test.
The after:
As soon as we knew on the 16th, we UV’d the room my grandmother stayed in, as well as the bathroom, and then Lysol’d every door knob and many surfaces, and did a lot of laundry and hand washing. And as a family, such as my sister, my nephew and her husband- and my family, my dad mom and me, did not interact. And we have not since. We also have not interacted with my cousin and his kids, since the day he came over on the 7th. Which was a very socially distanced visit with masks.
My concern though is that they did play with my nephew, most of that day, and they were very much interacting with each other. Pillow fighting and, whatever. I also that day did stand with them very briefly without their masks to watch them for a second while their father and my grandmother were busy doing something. Stood about 1-2 feet from them and we just talked for a minute. But this was very brief.
Anyway, my concern is that, After the 15th when she left, we could have been exposed through surface transmission. I.E, kitchen counter, fridge handles, door handles, toilet flushing, laundry/sink/dishwasher.
I told her immediately after we got her positive result on the 16th From the rapid test, to to a PCR test for accuracy’s sake.
Then, today the 19th, my grandmother recieved another positive result.
My uncle’s wife results came back negative today, from a PCR which must of been taken 3 days ago. So on the 16th.
My cousin’s (the father of the two kids in school) his result came back negative yesterday the 18th, but he did a rapid test not a PCR.
My sister recieved her PCR results 3 days after her test as well
