The World as We Know It
If you are like me and the rest of the world you awoke one morning, and all you heard was talk of Coronavirus. People were becoming infected and dying at an alarming rate. It seemed like something straight out of a horror movie and no one was safe. Confusion, fear, and panic swept through every house as we geared up and the world as we knew it shut down.
This virus has been a critical global health crisis, one we haven’t seen in about 100 years. It has touched every continent on the globe except Antarctica. According to the CDC as of 7/20/2020, in Georgia, where I live, there are more than 131,000 confirmed cases of Coronavirus and a total of 3,110 deaths. Of these confirmed cases, Gwinnett county has the highest numbers with well over 13,000 cases. My wife, my youngest daughter, and I are amongst these numbers. What does this mean for us?
Covid-19 Detected
Receiving a positive Covid-19 test was somewhat life altering. The first day was emotional for us all, we were shocked, scared, nervous, all the emotions that you might feel when receiving a death sentence. Because, that is exactly what is happening to people who contract this virus, they are dying. In our minds why should we be exempt. After the initial shock wore off, we made the customary calls. We called our places of employment and people we may have encountered in the last few days. As I was on the phone, I could mentally picture the domino effect this virus was causing in my life. For every call I made it was another row of dominoes that were ignited.
Picture this, after calling my job, everyone that I had come in contact with, that I had a 15 minute or longer conversation with, had to go get tested and quarantine. Now, it is everyone they came in contact with, and so on. Can you picture the domino effect? But that is not the point I am trying to make. The point I want you to see is: who can remember every 15 minute or longer conversation you have had, going back a few days? The lady at the grocery store, the mail person, your favorite neighbor, these people may not come to mind in the emotional aftermath of testing positive. This could mean there are a mass of people that may have been contaminated and do not know it. Thus, leaving gaps in safely containing the virus.
How Covid-19 Affected Us
For the first few days of quarantine it was researching the virus, boning up on tips, ordering supplies, anything that could be done to get in front of the curve. We drank hot tea, had soup, took vitamins, and checked our temperature twice a day. Where I barely displayed any symptoms, my daughter was in bed and felt sick for a few days. On the other hand, my wife was a different story. At first everything seemed to be going well, and then it happened, my wife started to cough. A slight cough here or there, but it started progressing.
According to the CDC (Clinical Questions about COVID-19: Questions and Answers ) about 80% of people will recover from Covid-19 without needing special treatment. However, for the other 20% it can cause serious illness. People with underlying medical conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, respiratory disease or hypertension are among those who are at greater risk. My wife has heart disease, stage 4 kidney disease, hypertension, and she is a diabetic, so the odds were stacked against her.
One day she woke up and could not catch her breath. Simply walking from the bed to the bathroom had become problematic. Despite this, she would not let me take her back to the ER. It was the worst few days I have had since the death of my father. I literally thought I was going to watch my wife die. I spent the next couple of days praying and using every old school remedy from my grandmother I could remember. Finally, she started showing signs of improvement, she still had a small cough, but she was up and moving around. Thanks to the powers that be she started to recover. I am glad to say we survived coronavirus and are getting back into our normal routine.
I wrote this article not to shine light on me personally, but to be transparent in a moment. I have heard several individuals stating that they do not believe that this virus is real. I have personally witnessed its effects, I know several people who it has affected, I have also lost loved ones as well. Please be vigilant in your efforts to stay safe and protect your loved ones. We are in this fight together!
April Jackson-Hunter was born in March of 77, she currently lives in Georgia with her family. She received a Master of Art in Forensic Psychology from Argosy University, and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Herzing University. Her story isn’t different from anyone else’s, she took a portion of her life that wouldn’t be forgotten and harnessed it. After experiencing violence at the hands of someone who was supposed to love her, she battled fear, guilt, and shame until she couldn’t mentally handle it anymore. After seeking help for what she thought were mental instabilities, she received some game changing advice. A counselor suggested that she start a journal in an attempt to help with recurring nightmares and insomnia issues. The journal she started transformed her into the author of her book which She entitled Mercedes’ Closet: Keeping Deadly Secrets. Mrs. Jackson-Hunter is also an advocate, whose passion is to assist victims of domestic/partner violence in the LGBTQ community. Her mission is to help victims of domestic/partner violence understand they are not alone. She feels everyone needs to feel as though there is someone in their corner during a dark time. For this reason, she founded Mercedes’ Closet which is a nonprofit geared to offering support and resources in the LGBTQ community for not only victims of domestic/partner violence but also victims of other violent crimes such as rape, hate crimes, as well as transviolence, which is due to officially launch in the mid of 2020.