By DENISE MAYCOCK

Tribune Freeport Reporter

dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

A Grand Bahama resident who has COVID-19 but did not experience any of the severe symptoms associated with the disease, says people should not panic if they too test positive because it is not “a death sentence”.

“I am not telling people to go out there and try to get COVID – that would be stupid; they should do all the necessary things (to prevent) getting it, but do not panic if you get this dreaded disease and cause yourself (more harm),” said the resident, who asked to have his identity withheld due to his profession.

The resident is scheduled for retesting on Friday. All of his symptoms have gone away and he is confident that he has fully recovered from the novel coronavirus, which has resulted in some 14 deaths in the Bahamas to date.

The resident was tested on July 23 and got the results back on July 30. A week before being tested, he had some discomfort in his nostrils/sinus but did not think anything of it.

“On July 12, I had awakened with a funny feeling in my nostrils. I am plagued with sinus, so I assumed it was a sinus issue and did a saline flush. But, not like before with the flush, I still had the same feeling. I did several other things to see if I could get rid of the feeling, but it did not help. I looked at all the COVID-19 symptoms, but I didn’t have all the symptoms,” he recalled.

The next day, he did not feel well and called his employer.

“I let them know that I was not feeling up to it,” he said.

As the days went by, the resident started experiencing other symptoms: losing his sense of taste and smell, dizziness, and feeling “feverish.”

“You could imagine trying to eat and you can’t even taste. So, it was pretty rough,” he said.

After getting his results back on July 30, he said that his symptoms had gone away. His taste and smell had returned, and the dizziness and fever were gone too.

The resident was never given any medication and was advised by hospital officials to isolate and quarantine. He also indicated that officials had called to check on him, but rarely.

Compared to others who have tested positive for the disease, he said that his symptoms were not as severe. He did not have a sore throat, pain in the chest, or difficulty breathing, or body aches.

The resident—who is in his mid-50s and fairly healthy—said the only discomfort was in his head/sinus area.

“This morning I was able to walk three miles around my yard. I feel confident, and would be surprised if I still have it,” he said. “I was able to come through this because of the blessings of God.”

He believes when he is retested on Friday, August 7, the results will be negative.

The resident is concerned about the results on the Ministry of Health’s dashboard, regarding the number of recovered cases, which remains at 91.

“If you look at the daily COVID dashboard, the recovered cases appear to lag in terms of those persons that have recovered. Before the second wave. . .it was 91 recovered and it has never moved from that number. So, they need to look into that. When you look at other countries they highlight the recovered cases. We are at some 600 (active cases) now, and only 91 has recovered?”

The dashboard’s recovered cases tab has remained at 91 since July 13. The country has 644 active cases and 751 cases overall, according to official data.

The resident is urging people to be very careful, to wear masks, wash their hands, and practice social distancing. He said people should not let their guard down.

“I was really careful…I wore my masks and was preaching to others to wear their masks. I attended a dinner somewhere with a couple of persons and I suspect that’s when it could have happened,” he said.

In addition to the required protocols, the resident encouraged residents to eat healthy, exercise, and build up their immune system.

“Trust in God, that is what I think helped me,” he added.

who has COVID-19 but did not experience any of the severe symptoms associated with the disease, says people should not panic if they too test positive because it is not “a death sentence”.

“I am not telling people to go out there and try to get COVID – that would be stupid; they should do all the necessary things (to prevent) getting it, but do not panic if you get this dreaded disease and cause yourself (more harm),” said the resident, who asked to have his identity withheld due to his profession.

The resident is scheduled for retesting on Friday. All of his symptoms have gone away and he is confident that he has fully recovered from the novel coronavirus, which has resulted in some 14 deaths in the Bahamas to date.

The resident was tested on July 23 and got the results back on July 30. A week before being tested, he had some discomfort in his nostrils/sinus but did not think anything of it.

“On July 12, I had awakened with a funny feeling in my nostrils. I am plagued with sinus, so I assumed it was a sinus issue and did a saline flush. But, not like before with the flush, I still had the same feeling. I did several other things to see if I could get rid of the feeling, but it did not help. I looked at all the COVID-19 symptoms, but I didn’t have all the symptoms,” he recalled.

The next day, he did not feel well and called his employer.

“I let them know that I was not feeling up to it,” he said.

As the days went by, the resident started experiencing other symptoms: losing his sense of taste and smell, dizziness, and feeling “feverish”.

“You could imagine trying to eat and you can’t even taste. So, it was pretty rough,” he said.

After getting his results back on July 30, he said that his symptoms had gone away. His taste and smell had returned, and the dizziness and fever were gone too.

The resident was never given any medication and was advised by hospital officials to isolate and quarantine. He also indicated that officials had called to check on him, but rarely.

Compared to others who have tested positive for the disease, he said that his symptoms were not as severe. He did not have a sore throat, pain in the chest, or difficulty breathing, or body aches.

The resident—who is in his mid-50s and fairly healthy—said the only discomfort was in his head/sinus area.

“This morning I was able to walk three miles around my yard. I feel confident, and would be surprised if I still have it,” he said. “I was able to come through this because of the blessings of God.”

He believes when he is retested on Friday, August 7, the results will be negative.

The resident is concerned about the results on the Ministry of Health’s dashboard, regarding the number of recovered cases, which remains at 91.

“If you look at the daily COVID dashboard, the recovered cases appear to lag in terms of those persons that have recovered. Before the second wave. . .it was 91 recovered and it has never moved from that number. So, they need to look into that. When you look at other countries they highlight the recovered cases. We are at some 600 (active cases) now, and only 91 has recovered?”

The dashboard’s recovered cases tab has remained at 91 since July 13. The country has 644 active cases and 751 cases overall, according to official data.

The resident is urging people to be very careful, to wear masks, wash their hands, and practice social distancing. He said people should not let their guard down.

“I was really careful…I wore my masks and was preaching to others to wear their masks. I attended a dinner somewhere with a couple of persons and I suspect that’s when it could have happened,” he said.

In addition to the required protocols, the resident encouraged residents to eat healthy, exercise, and build up their immune system.

“Trust in God, that is what I think helped me,” he added.