My 2023 Covid Story: What Worked, What Didn't
So there I was, in the emergency room at 4 am with a sore, swollen throat. It didn't make any sense. The staff were confused. At first they said they were going to treat for strep without doing a test. They worried about false negatives. Then they tested anyway. It came back negative.
"Maybe you have thrush," one of them said. "That's weird."
"We can test you for HIV."
"Or diabetes."
They didn't explain how they would confirm thrush. They didn't offer to run the strep test again. I don't know if you've ever gone from strep to diabetes to HIV in 30 minutes, but it doesn't put you in a very good mood. Plus, nobody was wearing masks.
So I left.
How did I get here?
A few days before, my mother-in-law had called to let us know she'd tested positive for Covid. She most likely picked it up from our daughter when she visited our new little house. (Yes, we're moving.) My daughter and I were already feeling sick. They thought I was overreacting when I chose to isolate, and they decided to spend …