Are you Worried when you Cough and Sneeze?

Are you feeling the way I am these days? Every time I sneeze or cough I panic for a second and wonder if I’ve been infected with coronavirus.

How about you? Are you worried when you cough and sneeze?

Coughing

The other night I got into bed and was reading my Kindle and started coughing. The more I coughed, the more concerned I became. Do I have a dry throat or do I have Covid-19? I finally got up, went to the kitchen, and got a mint to suck on.

Which led to another issue? Can I taste this mint? Am I losing my sense of taste and smell? Those are symptoms of coronavirus.

The wintergreen mint has a subtle taste. Maybe next time I should open the bag of Scotch mints!

Anyway the mint did the trick and stopped the coughing.

Sore throat

How about when I wake up in the morning with a little tickle in my throat? That’s another symptom of the coronavirus.

Except it’s not so unusual for me to wake up with a sore throat. When I was younger the doctor wanted to yank out my tonsils, but my mother refused to let him add mine to his collection.

Sometimes I get really bad sore throats. During those times I take throat lozenges and suck back popsicles. My sore throats haven’t been bad enough to keep me home from school or work.

They’re annoying when they happen. I have to head out to the store for mints (which seem to do about the same job as lozenges) and popsicles. As I’ve aged, I don’t get sore throats so much anymore.

Anyway, it’s not unusual for me to wake up with a slight sore throat that goes away after I’ve been moving around or eaten breakfast.

Chills

I’ve got chills! They’re multiplying!

There’s probably a logical explanation.

The chills could be because it’s been cold around here lately, getting down to freezing overnight. It was snowing in another part of town last night!

Seriously! A car in front of me today had two inches of snow/slush on the hood and roof. I’m wondering – where were you? It turns out, only a few minutes away,

When I’m outside and feel chilly, is that a coronavirus symptom? Or do the chills go away when I come inside and turn the furnace on?

What about when I’m driving and get the chills? That might have more to do with the back windows open for my dogs.

In case you’re wondering, no, I’ve never been a hypochondriac. Though it does run in my family.

It’s the anxiety. A year ago I wouldn’t have given it a second thought if I got a slight case of the sniffles, a sore throat, sneezed, coughed, or felt chilly.

Fortunately, all my “symptoms” have been short-lived.

Supplements

Due to past issues with anemia – I had a blood transfusion in 2014 – I take an iron supplement. My doctor said I should take B-50 and Vitamin C with it to help the iron absorb into the blood stream.

I have about a week’s worth of Vitamin C left, and can not find it anywhere. Even Vitamart doesn’t have any Vitamin C in stock. People panicking about the coronavirus are buying up Vitamin C like crazy thinking it will help boost their immune systems and prevent getting coronavirus.

That’s a myth. There are several medical articles saying Vitamin C won’t ward off Covid-19. Here’s one to check out https://www.livescience.com/coronavirus-vitamin-c-myth.html

No supplement will cure or prevent disease. Although research is being done with various supplements, so far no supplement or food can protect us against coronavirus.

I can drink juice or eat an orange when I take my iron and B-50, and that’ll have to do. My blood levels have been good for a few years. Will it make any difference if I go without Vitamin C until it comes back on the shelves?

It’s annoying that I can’t get a product I need for an existing medical condition because people are panic shopping and stockpiling Vitamin C.

Social distancing and hand washing are the best preventative measures. Not Vitamin C!

Weakened immune system?

As the days and weeks creep past, too many people are being diagnosed with Covid-19.

At first I wasn’t too concerned about catching the virus. The statistics suggest most people will not become infected with coronavirus and those that do will only have mild to moderate symptoms. Flu-like symptoms. Which explains why panic shoppers have raided all the grocery and drug stores of cold and cough medicines.

What worries me are the reports of people in good health, in all age brackets, with no existing health conditions, who are dying after being infected with Covid-19.

My blood work tests high for rheumatoid arthritis, an autoimmune disease.

I saw a rheumatologist a couple of times three years ago. She pulled my toes, checked mobility in my joints, and ordered more blood tests, checking for malaria and other ailments that could give a false blood reading for rheumatoid arthritis. Everything came back negative.

I am very aware that one day I may suffer from full blown rheumatoid arthritis.

Even though I don’t have symptoms and I’m not feeling ill from rheumatoid arthritis, I’m concerned because I test high for an autoimmune disease. That puts me in a higher risk category if I get infected with coronavirus.

Staying healthy

Aside from concerns that I might have a weakened immune system – based on bloodwork not actual symptoms – I’m doing good.

I rarely get sick.

My dogs and horse keep me moving and spending time outside. Fresh air is important.

Being a vegetarian keeps me healthy. Or at least that’s my story and I’m sticking with it! I eat a lot of fruit and vegetables.

My biggest fear is the people around me at the grocery store. Are they infected? Have they come in contact with someone who is? There’s no way of knowing. Especially since some people carrying the coronavirus aren’t showing symptoms.

Eat healthy. Get fresh air. Stay a safe distance from other people if you have to go shopping. Wash your hands a lot. That’s some of the advice we hear daily from the experts.

We all have a responsibility to keep ourselves and others safe.

Grocery shopping

I hope you haven’t used your credit cards on a panic shopping spree. There are too many people going crazy stocking up. They’re fearful of missing out.

I was in Walmart two days ago and it was pretty well stocked. A big difference from two weeks ago. The meat department (where a vegetarian does NOT shop!) looked like it had lots of choices. The baking aisle is restocked. Even the pasta aisle was back to normal. There’s still no toilet paper, but I saw Bounty paper towels on the shelf.

The things I could not find that were on my list?

The Jamieson tropical fruit Vitamin C!

There was no barley, applesauce or frozen peas. The bulk food bins were closed down, which might have been the only place in the store for a barley sighting.

Staying financially healthy

Keeping our finances healthy is a huge problem for many of us right now, especially if we are unemployed. There is no income!

Right now my main financial goal is to incur no debt. Yay me! Except for about $60 I spent on Amazon in March, my credit cards have zero balances.

No unnecessary spending!

Yes, I really needed two chocolate bars from Amazon!

Not!

I only ordered them at the last minute because I figured it would be easy to toss two chocolate bars into the box with the rest of my stuff. Amazon had other ideas. Everything was shipped separately – at no extra cost to me. I wouldn’t have bought those chocolate bars if I’d known they’d come in their own little package.

Unfortunately, many people who don’t have emergency funds and are currently unemployed are going to have to turn to their credit cards just to cover basic living expenses.

Sad. My heart goes out to you.

Staying informed

It’s good to be informed about Covid-19 from reliable sources, but it’s a bad idea to binge watch every news report on coronavirus. It’s just not healthy.

Binge watching Baywatch or Laverne & Shirley? That’s a better plan!

The news is depressing and scary. Give yourself a break! Don’t turn into that person who is worried every time when they cough or sneeze that they’re coming down with Covid-19.

Oh wait. That person is me!

If the news is talking about research using medicine or supplements, don’t run out and empty the shelves. People with ongoing medical conditions who have been taking these products need them more than a healthy person who’s trying every fad to avoid being infected with coronavirus.

Just like me and my Jamieson chewable Vitamin C in exotic tropical fruit flavor. If you know where I can score a bottle – leave a comment!

Resources for people in Canada

The Government of Canada and most of the provinces are coming up with relief for citizens. I’m hoping I can get the Canada Emergency Response Benefit of $2,000/month for four months. People like me who don’t qualify for employment insurance may be eligible for this benefit.

Details are still being worked out and we should be able to apply online within the next couple of weeks.

For more information, this article on Money Sense covered a lot of  available for Canadians:

https://www.moneysense.ca/save/where-to-find-and-apply-for-covid-19-financial-relief/

I live in British Columbia and the government is offering a one time payment of $1,000 plus rent assistance. In Vancouver’s high priced housing market $500 isn’t going to go far, but any little bit will help.

These details are still being worked out (as of April 1, 2020) and the signing up process isn’t online yet. If you live in British Columbia and are looking for assistance on your rent and emergency benefits, check out this link: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/employment-business/covid-19-financial-supports

Sorry, I have no information on Covid-19 relief benefits for Americans or citizens of other companies. If you have a link for government benefits for people in your country, please leave a comment!

Movie recommendation on YouTube

And now for the light side.

If you have Internet, it’s free to watch a movie on YouTube.

Just for fun – here’s a movie I watched the other day. April Love is a 1957 musical movie starring Shirley Jones and Pat Boone. Yes, Shirley Jones of Partridge Family fame. Although I watched that TV show and liked the kids, I was never a big fan of the mother – played by Shirley Jones.

However, watching her handle a horse in April Love, my opinion of her has improved! Until I realized there was a stunt double riding the horses in some of the scenes! Ha ha!

Anyway, if you like horses, especially Standardbred horses that are used as harness racers, or if you just liked the Partridge Family, check out April Love.

So, let me ask again: Are you worried every time you cough or sneeze?

My new healthy habit is trying not to think the worst every time I cough or sneeze. These are tough times. That little voice in my head doesn’t need any more encouragement.

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