Lauren O’Malley, Blogs Editor
@lomalleycourant
A couple weeks ago, I experienced a normal cold with symptoms like congestion, a cough, chills, and a sore throat. While colds like these happen on a yearly basis, due to the coronavirus pandemic, everyone seems to think that everything is COVID. Because of my symptoms, I felt like I needed to do my part and stay home. But, even after testing negative and returning to school, people still gave me weird stares when I would cough.
The weekend before I was out of school, I started to feel like I was coming down with something. My family immediately decided to socially distance from me, not letting me sit near them, cleaning rooms that I’ve been in, and most of all not allowing me to go to school. And while I knew this was the right call, I still felt like people were overreacting to a cold. On the CDC website they say that symptoms for coronavirus are fever, chills, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, fatigue, muscle or body aches, headache, New loss of taste or smell, Sore throat, Congestion or runny nose, Nausea or vomiting, and so much more. With that being said, COVID and the common cold have very similar symptoms which means that the two can get mixed up.
From the get go, my family and I were pretty sure it was just a cold but I stayed home that week. For me, the zoom calls made me feel uncomfortable, some teachers asking how I was feeling in front of the class. It was embarrassing, when I turned on my microphone and couldn’t talk, it felt like everyone knew what was going on. I didn’t want to spark fear in my classmates, them thinking when was the last time they were around me, and when I told my friends, they said they really didn’t want to be put into quarantine.
Towards the middle of the week, by the middle of the week, with my symptoms getting worse, my family’s concern increasing, and friends convincing me I have COVID, I decided to get tested. In the minutes leading up to my testing, I was worried at what a positive test could mean, I didn’t want to be the one to put people into quarantine. With many complaining about being stuck at home I just didn’t want to be that person.
After months of being in lockdown, schools and other facilities are reopening causing a surge in coronavirus cases. Photo provided by cdc.gov
Finally after two days of waiting for results, I tested negative but, I still had a cold. Going back to school that Monday was weird. I felt obliged to tell everyone that was near me that I tested negative. Nowadays, a whole stigma surrounded the common cold because people are so scared that you’re going to give COVID to them. I felt like everyone was uncomfortable to be around me despite the fact that I tested negative. Just because the symptoms of COVID and colds are virtually the same, one should not be put out just because of an illness, especially if they just tested negative for the coronavirus. People cannot help contracting a cold, they aren’t purposely trying to give someone an illness, and it’s embarrassing to have people judging you for something you can’t control. Although, I made sure to continue to socially distance and keep my mask on to keep everyone safe.
If you are feeling ill, please make sure to stay home, monitor your symptoms, separate yourself from others, and contact your doctor if you continue to have symptoms. If you want more information on what COVID is, how to prevent the spread, and so much more, please visit the cdc.gov.
