Words from a Colleague
Hello friend!
I hope that you and your family are safe and healthy. Today our meeting is a bit different. I want to share a Facebook post from my colleague Margie Nancy. She is originally from West Warwick, RI but currently lives in Charlotte, NC. I guess the take away here is to be prepared for the unexpected.
Have a wonderful day and stay safe by washing your hands and maintaining a social distance.
“Most of my friends know I recently had an extreme case of Covid and while I’m no expert on the subject – there are a few things I wish I had known/done prior to going into icu.
1. Sign and notarize a DNR if that is your wish and bring with you to the hospital. I had no idea the docs were giving my kids a date they anticipated the ventilator would no longer work for me and the boys had to decide what would be best since Andy (husband) was also sick at the same time and was unaware of many things that week. Our God of miracles woke my lungs up 2 days before that deadline and I was told I was fighting like hell to stay alive. Don’t leave a DNR decision in their hands. Let the docs do their job and let God take over and do His will with you. You’ll never leave your kids with a “what if” situation if you go there prepared.
2. Ask about the “prone” position where they lay you face down. It’s very uncomfortable especially if you are not flat chested like me but they kept telling me this position has been saving lives.
3. Leave a goodbye letter for each family member before you get sick. Covid is known as a lonely disease and it would be rare for any family member to be with you to say goodbye. Be sure to tell them goodbye in either a video message or letter while you are still well.
4. Expect to fall and don’t take it as a failure . Our brain tells us we should know how to walk. Our body tells us we’ve been in a coma for weeks and our muscles have to rebuild. listen to your body and take it slow.
5. Push through the rehab pain. On day one in rehab I could only stand for 15 seconds. Yesterday I used an exercise bike for 15 minutes and had a conversation with my OP while working . Each day push yourself a few minutes longer. It’s very hard to do but recovery goes so much faster when you promise yourself not to give up. I know I’m months away from walking without assistance but I will get there one day.
6. Get tested!!! If you feel tired, have a fever, have unexpected diarrhea, just don’t feel right – get a test. Believe me, a stick up your nose is way better than some of the things they have to do if you get Covid.
7. Don’t waste your time trying to figure out how you got sick. Follow CDC guild lines and protect yourself. Wear a mask – social distance and keep washing your hands. Once you get in the Covid system you will be interviewed and it’s their job to figure out the hot spots. If you go into a restaurant and they are not following guidelines – walk out. There is always someplace else to eat.
8. Update your wills. Ironically Andy and I remade our wills one week before we tested positive. That was no accident. That was the Great One watching out for our family. Get a bank lockbox and leave your wills, DNR letter, goodbye letters, passwords and anything else in the box you want to leave to family and let them know where the key is.
9. Write out your burial wishes or prepay if possible. This cost could be a burden on your children till your estate settles (and no its a big lie that it only take 4 months to settle) and your kids probably don’t even know what you want as final wishes.
10. Try to prevent yourselves from getting on webmd type of articles and reading about long term effects. Covid is new and the reports of long term effects will scare the heck out of you. Just breath and take life one day at a time. Today you are alive and getting stronger. That’s all that matters.
11. Amazon may save your life. While waiting for my test to come back I purchased an oxygen monitor on amazon. The day it came my oxygen was reading 76. (It should always be above 90) we tested Andy and he was 97 so we knew it was working but I wasn’t. We called the teledoc and she told Andy to get me to ER as quickly as possible. They took me immediately the second we hit the door and my journey began.
This post is not here to scare anyone but to think about a few things before life is temporarily out of your control. These are just some things I’ve thought about during my recovery.
As I’ve said before – prayer warriors are the greatest medicine and miracle workers for this illness. I’m so blessed to have had you all with me and know each one of your prayers had a hand in saving my live. Thank you. Love Margie”
