Jason Steed Certified Primal Health Coach
What Happens when a Biohacker Contracts COVID-19?
This morning I tested positive for COVID-19. Before this morning I personally knew 2 people confirmed positive for the virus. Yikes! Here's what I'm doing to try to keep my family and myself safe:
I still don't believe that it's inevitable that we'll all get COVID-19. Although, as somebody who orchestrates a kitchen disinfecting assembly line after each grocery run, I have a high respect for the pervasiveness of this virus. Heather and I have 4 kids, ages 10 to 21, all living at home. This is gonna be tricky!
Turns out I have Strep Throat and COVID-19. Ugh, I'm fighting both bacteria AND virus!
July 3, 2020
COVID, Day 1: What's the same, and what's different? (5:11)
With this pandemic, my mantra is "Get Outside." But my geography just got a lot smaller
My wife Heather and I both got tested this morning for viral and bacteria infections. The process took about an hour and included blood draws (to determine if a high "viral load" justified a COVID-19 test) and throat cultures (to check for Strep Throat). We both tested positive for Strep, but Heather and our oldest daughter tested negative for COVID-19. I was pleased with the overall process and efficiency of the clinic, especially given the skyrocketing daily testing here in Utah. The actual nasal swab test was not a fun experience, feeling a little like our brains were getting poked. Ugh!
Family in Lock-down
Heather has played a pivotal role in setting up some guidelines for our home's traffic patterns. She is so courageous, though she may claim otherwise. For starters, I'm not running on any public trails for the time being. I'm working, reading, blogging, and sleeping in the piano room (hooray, the grand piano is all mine). I wear a mask when entering any other rooms, and I carry with me a disinfectant wipe to cover my handprint tracks.
Feels like it might be a long few weeks! ;-\
How Did I Catch It?
I think I understand so much better how this month's daily soaring case count doesn't definitively correlate with reckless behavior. I have a deep respect for the biological havoc that a rogue virus can cause. Though I'm far from perfect, when out and about I've tried very hard to apply my beltloop hand sanitizer to objects I've touched, or that might've been touched by others. So I've spent the better part of today backtracking my whereabouts over the last week and a half, hoping to glean some insight as to how I caught COVID-19. Moreover, I've been trying to reach out to anybody I came in contact with to be extra vigilant.
So, maybe I picked this virus up at the office, or from a fellow staff member as we have met most evenings in our community service activities. Or maybe I picked up the virus from a random door knob or desk surface or drive-thru bank canister, then brought it into my events. As we were all quite asymptomatic, it's all just speculation.
Today's Immune Boosters
I put a lot of value on having a diverse microbiome. Unfortunately the antibiotics I'm taking for Strep is nuking a lot of that valuable microfloura. So Heather and I are augmenting with probiotics in the form of sauerkraut, kombucha, apple cider vinegar, and supplements such as Garden of Life probiotic sticks and HLC by PharMax.
I also got a dose of natural Vitamin D under noonday sun. Did you know that 10 minutes can give you 10x better Vitamin D than popping pills? This is an essential vitamin for boosted immunity, cellular wellness, and detoxing. Plus you can actually store enough to get you through the winter months.
Today's Symptoms
Today it felt a little constrictive to do nose breathing during an activity. Otherwise I've not felt any peculiar symptoms. I wonder if I'm feeling a bit congested from the actual nasal swap test? I had no idea that my nasal cavity was so deep. Not a particularly fun experience. My moods and emotions are all over the place today. I understand the power of positivity. Sometimes it's okay to be a bit mad and scared though. I feel deeply sorry for putting my household and others in jeopardy. I know though that there's not much good in 2nd guessing and rehashing.
What does Oura think?
My typical HRV score is 65. On Tuesday evening my Oura wearable reported 23. That's 2x lower than my 2nd lowest HRV score. Oura also reported an elevated body temp of 3.2deg. above average. I think I remember feeling a bit chilled in the night, but this overnight report really surprised me.
