opinion

I have all the symptoms of COVID-19. But a month later, I still can't get tested

Last month, my husband and I were vacationing in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, when COVID-19 still seemed something distant and not a concern to most Americans.

All that changed in a matter of days.

We took a day trip to Santo Domingo and had lunch at a popular place for tourists that was filled with tour groups of all languages. Even the ladies’ room had limited moving space, so much that a lady sneezed and coughed on my face as I exited.

Later that night, I felt an upset stomach and body aches. I thought it was the cheese sample our tour guide gave us to try. The next day I felt the same symptoms and a sore throat, so I took Tylenol and rested. Our last evening was cut short, the symptoms continued and I just wanted sleep.

We arrived home on Saturday, and I took over-the-counter cold/flu medicine for my symptoms. Over the next few days I continued feeling sick. It was difficult to get out of bed.

It was probably just the flu, she said

No improvement on Tuesday, so I scheduled a doctor’s appointment for Feb. 19. By this time, COVID-19 was big news but still not a big concern. Some even called it fake news.

I explained my symptoms to the doctor and that they started while I was on vacation. She did a routine ear, throat and nose check and explained that I probably had a combination of strep and the flu, for which I was not swabbed.

I asked about the coronavirus. She told me I was at low risk and that my symptoms looked like a normal flu. She prescribed 10 days of antibiotics and said I’d feel better after taking them.

After almost 10 days with antibiotics and over-the-counter cold medicine, I was still feeling the same, now with a bad cough and it was hard to breathe. It didn’t feel like a normal flu.

Another doctor, more prescriptions

I called another doctor on Feb. 26, told him my symptoms, when they started and what I was taking. He did the same routine check-up, gave me Delsym and a sample of probiotics and ordered lab work. The next morning I got blood tests and went for biomagnetism therapy.

The fever came and went. The body aches were still there, and getting out of bed was hard. My cough came and went. It was worst in the evening. But I’d already had 10 days of antibiotics, over-the-counter cold/flu medicine and two rounds of biomagnetism therapy.

Still not feeling myself, I went back to as normal of a life as I could.

My follow-up blood work was normal on March 11, so I asked the doctor again about my symptoms. He prescribed prednisone, a ventilation inhaler and promethazine-codeine for the cough, among other medication, and ordered an X-ray on my lungs.

This time I asked if I could get tested for the coronavirus. I explained that President Trump had said those that wanted the test could get tested.

The doctor shook his head and explained it was not that easy. He said he was very sorry.

No test, even though I have symptoms

I went for X-rays on March 13, still with body aches, that dry, hurtful cough and shortness of breath. As I walked into the X-ray room, the technician heard my cough and immediately asked me questions. Have you traveled in the last 30 days? Do you have a fever or had a fever? Have you been tested for COVID-19?

I explained that I had asked my doctor, on March 11, but was not able to be tested. The technician refused to do the X-rays and instead told me to go to the emergency room.

I went to the ER, and after a few hours of waiting, a doctor came in and asked me the same questions. He then asked what I thought was the dumbest question: “Have you been around anyone tested positive for the COVID-19?”

“How am I supposed to know if only 128 people have been tested in Arizona?” I replied.

“You’re not,” he said, noting I could have picked up acute bronchitis or a respiratory virus in the Dominican Republic.

I asked if I could get a COVID-19 test to rule it out, but he said he couldn’t give it to me because I didn’t meet all the criteria. I didn’t have a fever at the moment, nor had I been exposed to someone who had it.

“But I had fevers,” I told him.

“I am sorry,” he said, noting he was just following guidelines.

We all want the same things

While I waited for the X-ray results, I received a breathing treatment to help the cough. An hour later, the doctor came back and said my lungs looked good. He gave me another prescription, told me to take my temperature daily and isolate myself from other people if my fever was 101.4 degrees or higher.

I’ve been self-isolating since then, though I have not had any more fevers.

I still don’t know if I have COVID-19. What if I do and I’ve given it to someone with asthma, a low immune system or an elderly person that can get sicker than me?

There are more than seven million people living in Arizona. Yet as of March 20, the state lab has tested 343 people. It’s not clear how many have been tested at private labs.

I don’t blame doctors. I know they are frustrated. They kept saying they were sorry.

I’m sorry, too.

We all just want more testing and resources available as soon as possible. If you need help, reach out to organizations, local and state agencies that are helping.

We are all in this together and will get through these hard times by helping each other, following instructions and keeping each other healthy.

Laura Madrid has dedicated 20 years in Spanish media, 14 as general manager of local Spanish news/talk radio station KNUV.