Of Course I Had To Write About My Covid19 Experience

It all started with a get together in the Swiss alpine resort of Verbier.  Perhaps it started even before then, I will never know.  My closest friends and I from here, there, and everywhere  were assembling for a long ski weekend to celebrate long friendships, longevity and to enjoy some skiing and fondue.

Covid19 had already started to make major news in Europe.  Lockdowns had not come into effect in European cities, but alarm bells began to sound in Italy. Verbier is not far from the Swiss/Italian and French borders and the Milanese are known to spend long weekends in the resort, skiing and enjoying all the social activities involved in the sport.  For the non skiers, this activity in Verbier not only involves a lot of obvious physical exertion in quite challenging terrain, but there is a large amount of post skiing partying and drinking, dinners of fondue in restaurants and even extends to watching live bands and dj's in nightclubs. It is  a very social activity in a very social ski resort.

At this time, there was a confirmed reported case is Sion involving a family, 54.5 km away. Aside from that nothing official in the area.  I was closely watching reported developments.  Then during the long weekend, there were additional rumours of a case in Le Chable, a neighbouring town, and perhaps a chalet with friends of Swedish friends who had returned to London, nobody I knew personally and no one with a confirmed case.  No official statements, no warnings from the tourism office, so not much concern.

In 20/20 hindsight, that was extremely naive.  I guess you rely on authorities to inform you of the goings on but it was only during the actual weekend that the Swiss Federation began to impose the maximum 50 rule and began to immediately close down ski resorts and restaurants.  It was across all the cantons and not specific to Verbier.  So this story starts here.

That weekend, it was an extremely joyous affair.  Seeing old friends, going to packed restaurants and bars, in a very busy town. Then we all said our goodbyes, having had a wonderful time together, and people took trains, planes and automobiles back to where they had come from.

It all started with a cough.  A small, annoying cough, shallow and dry.  I am an asthma sufferer so I just assumed, having asthma, it would naturally involve some sinus issues, a few inhaler puffs, and a few uncomfortable days. Another mistake, underestimating the effect of the Covid19 on an asthmatic,. Plus I've had other issues, high altitude pulmonary oedema at Everest basecamp plus decades of Malboros.

Then the fevers set in, the night sweats, the loss of smell and taste,  the extreme fatigue, classic symptoms.  I continued with my inhaler and just plodded on, resting, taking short walks in the fresh air alone, eating healthily without tasting a thing. At this point, my other weekend friends began to exhibit the same symptoms, those involved in our get together and even those who I had only seen in various restaurants in the resort, not involved in our social activities.

It was a physical struggle but I wasn't too alarmed.  I'm quite a fit person and this was a two week self imposed isolation with a bit of discomfort, a variation of the flu. Then one day I woke up and could hardly breathe.  The inhaler wasn't helping, I felt my windpipe contract and really struggled, feeling like I was slowly being choked, with the strangest non asthmatic sounds coming out of my lungs. I began to feel that dread that I had felt when I had my pulmonary oedema, my bout with MRSA, ectopic pregnancy and burst appendix.  It's quite a strange feeling, knowing that something is terribly wrong and I recognised it.

Fortunately, I have great wonderful friends in the resort. I called Annabel, Sophie, Kato,  friends within running distance.  Annabel and Mark quickly took me to the medical centre in town (having also had exhibited some symptoms, already had self isolated  and was thankfully, unafraid of the disease because of immunity)  and I eventually saw the doctor in full gear, who examined my blood pressure, oxygen saturation and breathing.  He directed me to a hospital in Martigny, since he was concerned about my breathing and wanted my lungs examined. Annabel and Mark drove me.

I arrived at the Martigny hospital, to be greeted by the army who would not let anyone into the hospital area without prior appointment.  I struggled into the reception area, armed with my EEC health card and passport on the my phone, a few forms and few phone calls from my doctor in Verbier, some language struggles and finally I was admitted into emergency.

Emergency rooms in the time of Covid19 are even more stressful affairs because of the sheer numbers needing attention.   Obviously the staff are aware of how infectious the disease is and immediately put you into a section separated by a plastic curtain. Tests for the Covid19 were given immediately (a most uncomfortable nasal experience, but not painful) and tubes/drips  and all sorts of devices are connected to you.I could go into more detail here but it's not for the faint hearted.

Meanwhile, while you are lying in wait for the main doctors, you are constantly listening to people who are obviously in great difficulty, either gasping for air, crying in distress, or outwardly screaming while they struggle to deal with their situation.  As a forced observer, you need to harness your mental and emotional strength to deal with all this, whilst feeling quite helpless. It went on for hours.  I cried non stop and wondered how the medical staff coped with this on a continuous basis. It's also a very lonely experience.  No one not affected is allowed into the covid19 areas, no family, no friends.  Thank God for text messages.  My family and friends helped me cope in real time.

After a while I was no longer in distress in emergency and was breathing a bit laboriously but not with extreme difficulty so was low in the list of needing immediate attention.  This meant waiting the whole day in the emergency room.  One thing you learn as an asthmatic is panic is your enemy.  You need to concentrate on regulating your breathing and calm yourself down. Also, experience from being at very high altitude for weeks teaches you to try not to hyperventilate and do yoga breathing. Experience is helpful.  If I hadn't experienced breathing difficulties before, I would have perhaps gone into full panic with the resulting distress. After a few hours,  they x-rayed my lungs and found pneumonia in both of them.  Now I could be wheeled upstairs into an interim and isolated area to wait for my covid19 test results.  That would take another 24 hours.

The medical staff were amazing.   Every hour they were checking me, changing gowns, masks, gloves, etc making sure the oxygen levels were fine, checking blood pressure.  I wondered about the effectiveness of their gear.  I didn't think those masks were adequate at all, having to intubate people and being coughed on continuously.  By the next day, they had already run out of kit,  reusing gowns and keeping their masks.  I felt for them, knowing it would just be a matter of time before they got infected with the virus. They were all very cheerful, very helpful, and very kind. Such unsung heroes.  They'll have so much work the next few months. You can just hope they keep their health, applaud their efforts and try to help in any way.

After the first night, I finally got my results.  I was moved into a Covid19 only floor (there were three of them).  My roommate was on oxygen, a local woman who spoke only French.  Thank God for Google translate!  We comforted each other, tried to have conversation and smiled a lot at each other.  I believe she thought I cleaned for a living. It was too difficult to explain otherwise and there was nothing wrong with that anyway.  We laughed nervously. When you aren't allowed anyone in the hospital, you turn to each other for support.  The continuous emails and texts from friends were extremely helpful, you feel you have the emotional support of your family and friends, without them being there.

We kept each other company for two days and I asked the doctors if I could leave.  They obviously needed beds, I was doing ok even with the pneumonia or what they kept calling ARDS (fitness, people, helps a lot) and the doctors said yes.  Annabel picked me up from outside the hospital, the army had to escort me out since she wasn't allowed in, and it was like being on Everest again.  Step, breathe, rest.  A struggle to get to the car but I was homebound.  What a relief.  I was very grateful I was leaving and in an ok state. I was lucky.

Upon returning home friends rallied.  Even close acquaintances texted with offers of help.  I received groceries, home made food, meds all left on my doorstep.  Friends waved and conversed from the garden.  How wonderful people are, generous with their time, supportive, putting themselves at my disposal at all times.  They left their phones on at night, in case I needed their help.  It was and is, extremely touching. A very special thanks to Mark and Annabel, Sophie and Luca, Tomas and Kato.

I'm on the slow road to recovery now.  I still haven't seen anyone, afraid to shred and spread this virus everywhere.  It's been 17 days from day 1 of the symptoms and probably day 20/21 from the time I got infected.  A big thank you to the medical community for their courage and help. Big hugs to my family and friends who make me very grateful to know that they are part of my life.

Please self isolate, keep exercising, and eat healthily.