Tested in a Crucible [Part 2 of 2]

For the previous year-enders, you may click on the links below:
2022 - "2022 = Courage" Part 1 & Part 2
2021 - "Anticipating 2022 and Potentially Moving On"
2019 - "惊喜 (Don’t worry. This is an English blog entry.)" Part 1; from old blog & Part 2

For the first part of this blog series, click here.

My COVID-19 rapid antigen
test result in late June 2023.
The second line was bloody red.

GETTING SICK THREE TIMES. Since I started working, I think I can count with my one hand the number of times I felt really ill, the worst of which was in January 2022 when the Omicron variant of SARS-CoV 2 (COVID-19) was prevalent. I cannot go out of my self-imposed isolation in three weeks. Before that was in 2020 after catching flu at the height of the pandemic. That was a long period of sickness, too, that some even suspected of me getting COVID. In both times, thank the Lord, I did not. But still, yikes!

I once believed that my body has a pattern: that I get sick once in every two to three years. That can be true as I almost never called in absent for work, I did not even use up my work leaves.

Now, if the pattern did hold, 2023 should not be a year of sickness for me, but it proved different and even went beyond expectations by testing the integrity of my immune system not once, not twice, but three times, all in just six months!

The pattern was shattered in late June, when I developed flu-like symptoms. By this time, my employer's return-to-office directive (two days work from home or WFH, three days on-site) had been implemented for its second month, so I have to report for work in the flesh.

So on 20 June, the first on-site workday of the week, I felt physically okay getting in the office, but when afternoon came, the office temperature became too cold to bear and I started having headaches and itchy throat. My body temperature read normal, no warning signals yet, so I proceeded to complete the eight-hours work. The headache did not go away so I deviated from my usual evening commute of jeepney and PNR train rides and instead booked a motorcycle to bring me home safely. That evening, the headache became worse that I had difficulty putting myself to sleep; fever also started to set in. I texted my manager, informing her that I would like to be excused from on-site work the next day. She advised me to take a rapid antigen test to see if I have COVID.

The next day I got the test kits. The first trial (the picture displayed in inset) gave a dark red line as result. I cannot believe it; I have to do another test because I was counting on the fine print on the instructions manual saying that results may be inaccurate if the proper procedures in taking a swab sample were not followed (you can tell I was in denial mode). I waited for the second test result to appear... it was still bloody red. The lines in those two test kits were screaming in unison in scarlet red shade, telling me that, hey Joe, there is no doubt, you contracted the COVID virus!

Of course, I had to isolate myself and be extra careful in making physical contact with the peeple inside the house. The symptoms I had were still the same, just headache, fever, and itchy throat. The loss of sense of smell and taste came days later but only for a few hours. I also had nasal congestion but I was not coughing, so to ensure everyone's safety, everything had to be disinfected - the bed, the clothes I wore, the mug, plates and cutlery. I was also given temporary exemption from on-site work because COVID-19 is a contagious disease after all. Since I cannot get out of the house, I had doctor's consultation done over the phone, and my brother-in-Christ, my cell group leader to be exact, who was then on his final year at medical school, gave me instructions on how to deal and live with COVID.

The difficult task for me was not living with COVID but was rather the securing a doctor's clearance declaring I am fit to work. Without this, I cannot return on-site (this might sound good to some who enjoy WFH setup, but if you do this deliberately, you will certainly be in hot seat. I want to keep my working records clean). One of the requirements also was an RT-PCR (molecular laboratory determined) swab test result that says I am COVID-19 free. Unfortunately, the two RT-PCR tests, both done in early July, yielded results that I am still COVID-19 positive: well, somehow expected because the RT-PCR method is highly sensitive that even just a tiny segment of SARS-CoV 2 DNA is detected, you will still test positive despite exhibiting no symptoms (remember the "asymptomatic" cases?).

When I did these RT-PCR tests, I was not showing any symptoms at all and was just waiting to be medically validated and cleared by a doctor. The tests were not free and not covered by my company's health card, so I bled thousands of pesos for getting a credible proof I am free of COVID. I had to negotiate the requirements with my employer and they agreed. I was then required to only obtain the doctor's clearance, which I did after undergoing some x-ray and blood tests. Some might think doctor's clearance is an "easy" paper to get (wink wink), but again, I don't want to have derogatory records. I work for a global company; we're not BPO (wink wink again HAHA).

Then in mid-September, flu-like symptoms came in the second time. I thought it was just a result of me getting exhausted from the events that happened in August, to recall, ended with the passing of our sister April and her cremation. I had to excuse myself again from on-site work and thankfully it was granted.

It was a case of RSV or respiratory syncytial virus. So just like the COVID times, spraying alcohol all over the room and additional disinfection measures took place again.

I hate the feeling of being constrained at home for another long period. I planned to resume my physical exercise immediately after the unfortunate events a month ago, I was already off my biking activities for two months since. My RSV sickness spoiled it further and lasted for up to three weeks, spilling into the first week of October. There was little for me to do other than doing some brief walk time around our community. With yet another prolonged sickness, my immune system apparently was not able to combat RSV very well as a result of me having COVID in June.

I was feeling perfectly fine through November. Apart from the vacation leave I filed to celebrate my mother's birthday, I was present on the days that we are required to work on-site. Unknown to me, another spoiler was about to come without a warning.

December is when everybody starts to execute their plans for the holidays, and I was already in buying gifts mode on 11 December evening when another bout of headache decided to crash my Christmas plans; it was more terrible than what I had with COVID - I felt like parts of my brain were being churned. 38.5 degrees Celsius was my highest body heat reading, so I took the usual medicine to help bring the temperature down. The next morning I felt normal but to be safe, I requested for WFH arrangements. Glad I did because fever came again that evening. For three days, it was a pattern of feeling well at daytime and getting sick at night.

14 December was our team's year-end get-together dinner. I did not want to miss it, so I monitored my health status till afternoon, I was not feverish, my temperature was normal, so off I went. It was inside the jeep when I discovered I had rash all over my arms and chest. I became nervous because body rash is one visible indication of chickenpox, measles or rubella infection, and I was outside commuting! I really felt bad just by the thought of me exposing strangers to these communicable diseases (I later ruled chickenpox out as I am already immune to this by having one myself back in grade school), I had no choice but to excuse myself from the team dinner and go back home as soon as I can. I chose to book a motorcycle (well after several rejections) and tried my best to distance my nose and mouth away from the rider as an additional layer of protection aside from me wearing face mask. To note, measles and rubella are spread through inhaling nasal or throat secretions, not through skin-to-skin contact. Fortunately, I was wearing long sleeves so the rashes were not obvious at first glance.

That night, I looked back at how my entire year went: while not discounting the truth that it started very favorable to me, the middle and closing parts were a complete flip. In my sadness and bewilderment, I talked to God and asked, 2023 and also 2022 have given me very tough challenges to face, then falling sick for the third time in just six months, will there be a better plot twist coming up for me? Seems like my thirtieth year on Earth was not as exciting as I initially anticipated.

The next day, through the persuasion of my girlfriend, of my youngest sister soon-to-be-nurse Lida, and of the nurse I conversed with in my phone consultation, I surrendered my hesitation and went to the Chinese General Hospital to finally have myself checked. Bear in mind I was suspecting of measles and rubella at this point, I was exceedingly anxious about me being a potential virus spreader.

I was instructed to proceed to the hospital's emergency room (ER) because the doctor for my internal medicine case is already out for the day. This sounded okay to me because I was eager to know the cause behind these rashes at the soonest. The resident doctor, while agreeing to my suspicions, also raised the possibility of me getting infected by the dengue virus. There I felt a little "relieved" (weird right?) because if I did contract dengue, I have zero chance of spreading measles and rubella, which are more contagious because one cough or sneeze is needed for it to spread; inhale it and you get it. Dengue, on the other hand, requires the work of mosquitoes in spreading the disease to unsuspecting peeple.

Now back to the ER, it was a long wait from the blood extraction to the results. That time the ER was full, and there were more serious cases that needed urgent attention, so I patiently waited and waited. It was close to nine in the evening when the resident doctor told me the news: he was right, I had dengue. Past tense peeple, *had* dengue.

The doctor was able to conclude such for according to the blood test results, the dengue virus itself is not detected anymore and only the antibodies against that virus remain in the bloodstream.

My December 2023 Blood Test Result for Dengue Virus Detection
(You may click to enlarge)

 

That means that at the time of laboratory results, I was indeed recently infected with dengue but was on my way to recover from the illness.

And for the peeps who had dengue in the past or are knowledgeable about this disease, one item in the complete blood count (CBC) that needs to be paid with extreme attention is the amount of platelet in the blood, as a dangerously low platelet count is nothing short of alarming. The week prior, I participated in the company's annual physical examination; my platelet count then was 395. After dengue infection, my platelet count did dive to low 200s, still within the normal range but nearing the lower limit.

Complete Blood Count Results after my Dengue Infection in December 2023
(You may click to enlarge)

I went home with a better disposition that I am no longer going to infect anyone with anything, and of course, I am no longer sick with dengue fever.

CONCLUSION. I spent the night thanking and praising the Lord because I survived a dengue infection. Considering that I became sick twice preceding this, it may have easily gone the other way, the dangerous and alarming one, but He did not let it happen.

48 hours prior, I was ranting about my life. I was telling God I am getting weary of persevering and persisting through trials, miseries and similarly unfortunate events for many, many years. But the recent dengue experience taught me a very valuable lesson: I do not know everything. Simple example: I thought it was measles or rubella that my family can easily get infected with, but all along it was a mild case of dengue. God revealed to me that the more I dwell on my thoughts, it will only produce fallacies and wrong assumptions, while God's intellect, the very thing we sometimes question, is exponentially more gigantic than all human wisdom combined.

In the final weeks of 2023, I tried my best to make our holidays celebratory; I resumed giving gifts which I did not do in 2022 for the obvious reason that it was the year we crossed the holidays in silence and grief. This time around, we all know our Christmas and New Year as a family, once again, will never be the same, with Papa and April gone, but I think we have now accepted the reality and surrendered their fate into God's hands.

When the midnight rang in the entry of 2024, we gathered at the rooftop of our new home and saw the magical scene of fountain fireworks shooting up and illuminating the skies of the new year. It was a far cry from what we felt when we welcomed 2023. I am certain we all wished Papa and April were there with us enjoying the same colorful treat.

2023 is like having been subjected to intense heat in a crucible. When a metallic substance is placed in one, it is being cleared off of its impurities - 2023 did just that to me. I will be subjected to more challenges and trials, I know that, but I shall all the more put my trust in our Lord because He holds all answers and certainties. I may not know the reasons behind the trials in the past, present and the future, but I am sure that these circumstances will further strengthen my faith; firmly believing that whatever happens, I am in His good hands.

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MINI BLOG PLUG.

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