The Omicron Journey, A Stark Warning From Inside Out

Terry Taylor, New Zealand Institute of Medical Laboratory Science (NZIMLS) President

This is a real time assessment of living and breathing through Omicron. We are constantly told Omicron is a mild illness, nothing to worry about, most people get mild symptoms, and certainly nothing to get concerned about.

For context I am a fit and healthy 55-year-old man 1.80m tall and weigh 90kg who exercises most days. I work full time as a medical laboratory scientist in a hospital setting. I am double vaxed, boosted and closely follow public health measures to the nth degree.

I was awoken on a Thursday night with an intense sneezing fit that was like nothing I have ever had. To be safe and sure I thought I had better take a RAT test before heading into work at the laboratory on the Friday. The positive test strip appeared within 30 second and confirmed that I was now another positive COVID case. I was shocked as apart from the sneezing fit felt completely fine and had been for two long runs and trained at the gym during the previous few days and most certainly didn’t have an inkling about having COVID. This is clearly one very stealth virus that knows how to spread, prosper, and survive.

The first 24 hours was one of a variety of minor symptoms, the headache coming and going, more sneezing and start of a dry hacking cough. I did still have my taste and smell and no drop in appetite. I was thinking this isn’t all bad, I don’t feel too bad and I have a week at home to catch up on all my overdue tasks. I had a full day Friday of remote meetings and phone calls to keep me busy and was thinking how I was going to fill in my sudden increase in spare time!

Just when things looked rosy, the fever hits overnight, I wake to a soaking T-shirt and sheets and a blinding headache that wasn’t quite like anything I had before. I normally don’t take any medication for anything but took some anti-inflammatory and antihistamines, both recommended by trusted health professionals.

The next part is harder to explain, random joint and bone pain that comes and goes. My headache drops down a level and I try to write and answer a few emails. I find I can’t concentrate at all and I am forgetting names, places, and terminology for no good reason. Even though it is a warm calm day I start to shiver and feel very cold, I put more clothes on but this doesn’t help so I light the fire. My neighbours must have wondered whether I had truly gone mad! And the dam headache is back along with the random bone pain. My dry cough is now constant and every cough makes my head throb more. Luckily I still have taste and an appetite so time for dinner and an early night.

Unfortunately another night of drenching sweats but I wake feeling better than the day before. I take more medication and wonder whether I am ever going to improve more. The lingering dry cough is very annoying and interrupts just about anything I try to do, my nose is dry but I have an ache in the sinus region. I notice that I am strangely fatigued while just moving around. Standing up feels like I have just done a 200kg squat and simply stepping outside sees me huffing and puffing like I had run up a steep hill. My brain is still not functioning right but at least I can remember my colleague’s names today. Surely things will improve, but the random body pains are becoming more debilitating as the day goes on.

Is now Sunday night and am feeling strangely cold again despite the warm day and evening. And that dam headache won’t go away. The muscles in my legs feel tired and I am starting to get random cramps despite eating and drinking normally and not exercising. I take magnesium and zinc supplements after long runs so take some prophylactic tablets before bed. I feel warm in bed but every time I roll over, I get that awful leg cramp feeling and end up drifting off to sleep on my back. Only up to day 4 and already this seems a lingering infection that will be difficult to shake. Every time I medicate to control the attack, I get short time relief and another set of different symptoms kick in. By day 6, I am well and truly over this. I feel weak, shaken and have a dry hacking cough like a pack a day smoker. I do my obligatory RAT, but alas it is still positive but took 5 minutes to become positive this time not 30 seconds so I must be healing. I am finally feeling like I am close to joining the land of the healthy again. Finally on day 8 my RAT is barely detectable, and the remnants of my hacking cough are all but gone.

Omicron for me was not some mild cold or flu, I seldom get ill with anything and can’t remember when I last had more than two days with any illness. My body feels shaken up and know it will take a while to get through and over this. As a scientist I think a lot about symptoms translating to medical findings, it seems realistic to hypothesise that Omicron may stimulate reactions that can cause long term immune activation against our neurologic systems so urge other medical professionals to be mindful of this. By having this virus render my usually fit and active body into a pile of misery has been disconcerting and the ease it promoted immune chaos scientifically worrying. We clearly need to listen to and support those scientists who are chasing the vital diagnostic markers that may hold the key to long term reactivation of lingering symptoms

This has been an experience that I most certainly don’t want others to go through and do urge everyone to use every health measure available to mitigate the risk of this getting into the most vulnerable members of our communities. I don’t wish my experience on anyone.

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