Under the weather

[white_hart]

Yesterday evening, T commented that I seemed to have been coughing a lot, and I realised that I did seem to have a slight tickly cough. Shortly after, I started feeling distinctly not-quite-well, though not really any particular kind of not-well. I'd done a lateral flow test a few hours earlier, which was negative, but I thought it would probably be better to think about working from home today rather than risking taking germs into the office where I have staff who are vulnerable, or who live with vulnerable people.

This morning I woke up still with a tickly cough and a tightness in my chest, and thought that as well as working from home I should probably book a PCR test. I toddled off to the local testing centre at 8am, got home and started working from home half an hour later, and by quarter to ten had decided that actually, I might be better off just going back to bed. Which I did, and stayed there until one o'clock when I got up, had some lunch and logged on to this afternoon's committee meeting.

I am still feeling off-colour but not terrible. No idea if this is mild breakthrough COVID (I can still smell and taste things, though I'm not sure they smell and taste quite the same as normal, but I may be imagining that) or one of the other bugs that are happily circulating now people are mixing with each other again; I'll be working from home tomorrow anyway, as I don't expect I'll get the PCR result in time to get into the office, and having encouraged my team to work remotely rather than bringing their germs to work I should probably do the same thing even though I much prefer being in the office.

Comments

[sally_maria]

I hope it is just a cold and that you feel better soon.

[white_hart]

Thank you!

[hilarita]

Fingers crossed it's just a cold, and good for modelling behaviour you'd like to see - viz. not spreading germs around the office.

[white_hart]

PCR was negative, so presumably just a cold, at least.

[jesuswasbatman]

I suspect it's not COVID, but I hope that this pandemic will lead to a cultural change regarding people dragging themselves into work when they're ill and infecting their colleagues.

[white_hart]

The PCR was negative at least. I think that having the ability to say "I've got a cold so I'll work from home" really helps in terms of keeping people's germs out of the office, though there is also the worry that people will feel that they have to try to work from home when they should really be taking sick leave...

[fencesitting]

Loss of taste and smell seems to be a later-appearing symptom so isn't necessarily a good early indicator. I hope you stay reasonably well either way!

[white_hart]

The PCR was negative, so probably not covid?

[strange_complex]

Crossing fingers for you that it is just a cold, and either way that you're feeling better soon. Definitely a good move to stay home tomorrow, anyway.

[white_hart]

Thanks - the PCR was negative, and I managed a full day working from home today, anyway.

[strange_complex]

Oh, that's good news all round. I hope whatever it is effs off soon.

[nineveh_uk]

I hope you wake up tomorrow feeling much brighter and with a negative test result.

[white_hart]

I had a negative test result at least, and have been feeling brighter as the day has gone on!

[nineveh_uk]

What a relief! There's so much going round at the moment, and a lot of overlapping symptoms, it really doesn't help. But while you don't want a cold either, it's definitely the better option I think!

[white_hart]

Part of me feels like it's inevitable and in some ways it would be a relief just to get it over with, but then I think of the person in my team who's been off since mid-September and think it's definitely better to avoid it if I can.

I messaged L yesterday morning to say I was feeling off-colour and going back to bed and she said I was the third person with similar symptoms (and a negative LFD) that morning, so it clearly is doing the rounds.

[girlyswot]

Whether it is Covid or something else, please take time off if you are ill. Not just working from home time, but actually not working.

[white_hart]

I didn't feel that I could miss yesterday's committee meeting, but today I've been feeling a bit grotty but definitely not too ill to work, so I have been working from home all day.

[muninnhuginn]

Get well soon. And fingers crossed it's not Covid.

[white_hart]

Thanks - not covid, at least!

[kotturinn]

Fingers crossed it's a cold. Thankyou, as a member of the more vulnerable to infection population, for not going in to the office.

[white_hart]

I have a team member who was diagnosed with stage 4 ovarian cancer two years ago; while she's finished chemo now she may still be more vulnerable than most of us, having been immunosuppressed when she had her first and second vaccines, and it does make us all quite mindful of the need to minimise infection. (I also have a team member who got covid despite being double-vaccinated and has been off since mid-September, and none of us want that either!)

[anna_wing]

I hope it's just a cold and you get better soon. Any respiratory illness affects your sense of smell and taste, so it needn't be COVID.

We're all still in masks outside the home here, and for the future, my office is going to the Japanese rule, and anyone who has a sniffle will wear one. This is Asia, so no-one sane is going to be stupid about it.

[white_hart]

Yes, this is the UK where many people are less sensible. Most of my team are pretty good about face coverings still but that's not universal.

[antisoppist]

I hope you feel better soon. And your test result comes back soon so you know either way.

[white_hart]

Thank you. The test was negative, and I am feeling quite a bit better though still not 100%.

[occasionalhope]

I had Covid a few weeks ago and the cough was my first symptom, then slight temperature and extreme tiredness. The loss of taste came a few days in. But it seems to affect people in different ways.

Best of luck avoiding it.

[white_hart]

Yes, everything I hear suggests that the symptoms of breakthrough infections are quite variable, which does mean that pretty much any symptoms at all can be quite worrying!

[occasionalhope]

Pleased to see you were negative!