Hey Ian,
I wish your wife and yourself all the best for the coming weeks - if she (and thus unavoidably also you) do get it, then that it takes a mild course. Such a bummer when front-line carers are treated in such a cavalier way.
And best wishes for health, or more specifically just a mild course of illness, for all other guys here and their families.
.........................
Actually I had something over the last 3 weeks which I am pretty certain was just a mild dose of flu and NOT "our little friend". I got it from my 14-year-old daughter (exact same symptoms), who had it another 2 or 3 weeks even further back, at a time when the virus was certainly not doing the rounds in her school or indeed almost anywhere in Berlin. No dry cough for me, only slight fever for 24 hours but
really tired for quite a few days, plus a more 'productive' cough for a couple of weeks, slowly tailing off. But no breathing difficulties as such. I was still able to slip into my standard 2.5 to 3 breaths a minute when at rest, which was a good sign. Pretty much back to strength now. As said, I felt pretty sure it was 'only' flu - although there were/are no testing possibilities, so I can't be totally sure - but over the last couple of weeks I had felt more nervous about catching Covid-19 while still dealing with another (pulmonary) viral infection, as that would be a double whammy. I'm 57 (but naturally amazingly fit and athletic for my age
), so I'm in a kind of secondary risk group. Now I'm 95% healthy again so pretty much back to normal, which of course still means taking all the normal precautions.
Living in a big city, also under normal circumstances using public transport every few days, I'm sure that it's only a matter of time before I do get it. All the reduced contact stuff is not about never getting infected, just flattening the wave over a longer period. Not losing any sleep about the prospect (literally) but it's still a strange feeling. Probably to very probably just a mild course of illness, but still some chance of ending up in hospital, and a more than totally negligible chance of dying from it. Same for all of us who are aged over 55, I guess. Not really worried about myself so much but most definitely want to stick around longer for my daughter and for my wife (who is younger than me). That's my main concern.
