Hi folks. Wanted to give you all a run down of my experience so far getting sick with what is likely COVID-19.
I live in Central Indiana which is seeing some cases spread around right now. Some folks at work recently came down with some respiratory symptoms and were told to stay home.
My wife and I have both developed some mild respiratory symptoms in the past 48 hours, which includes coughing, chest congestion, runny nose, and sore throat. These are very mild, like a light cold right now.
We contacted the Dr office to see if we should be doing anything in regards to testing. There are a lot of steps to take in order to be tested. We are required to first be tested negative for strep and the flu. Then if we are showing more than mild symptoms, we call the 1-800 number and get put on a testing wait list.
I think that if there are some confirmed cases in your city, expect that the actual number of cases are much higher. However, I think putting thresholds on the testing is the right thing to do. The Dr office said people have been panicking and they're really understaffed for the amount of business they're getting right now. Their advice was to just stay home and wait it out, and call back of symptoms get severe (you know, using some common sense).
I want to also add that this really is a very mild illness for my wife and I. We are both in our mid twenties and in good health. We have a 9 month old daughter who does not seem to be showing any symptoms. Still best to take extra precaution for those with health deficiencies or those who are elderly.
Hope all you folks don't get sick, but if you do and it happens to be COVID-19, it's really not that bad. Just use some damn common sense.
My Japanese teacher in to 90s was from Japan. He complained one time that whenever Americans feel even a littke sick, they stay home, even if it means missing an important day. He said in Japan people just tough it out.
I said we stay home so others don't get sick. His mind was blown.
He started taking more sick days after that.
I had a similar experience. Coworker was sick, and I asked why he didn’t stay home. We had a fixed number of sick PTO regardless of why you took off. He said “I don’t want to waste my PTO at home miserable and sick.” I told him “you stay home for OUR good as your coworkers, not YOUR good.”
I have a very similar, if not same, thing at my work. I used all my Protected PTO, then had to either go in to work or let the company slowly eviscerate my next two ~$300 bonuses. No offense to my co-workers, but I need that money to survive. I can only earn 6 days every year, used 4 of last year's, carried two over, figuring I'd get a cold or regular flu like I do every winter. Then this bullshit happens, and it takes a month and a half to earn another day. I'm between a rock and being unable to make rent. It's a shit situation. I'd GLADLY just miss that one day of work, and not make that day's money. But fucking with my bonus, that I count on to help augment my pay... That sucks.