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My Life is Crap

But is it really a problem?

10/5/2020

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Aside from driving halfway across the country to move back to California, I've walked as much as I've driven!
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Has this been true for everyone else?

Not having to go anywhere is great, however, not driving means my truck has had enough downtime for a rodent to take up residence in it. No damage was found and the tenant has been evicted with preventative measures in place in case our new friend decides to return. But, so far, that's really been the only downside to this whole new walking/driving equilibrium situation.
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2020 isn't SO bad...

7/6/2020

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Awesome things that have happened to me during 2020:
  • Unemployment + stimulus > My actual salary ​
  • I got to see what it was like to be a stay at home dog mom and it was AWESOME!​
  • I started a year long wellness program and 10 weeks in I have lost 14 lbs, I'm down 3 inches in my waist, and I already have less pain.​
  • The manuscript that is the culmination of my PhD was accepted in a high impact journal! (coming soon...)​
  • Got my DREAM JOB: Research Coordinator in Conservation Genetics at the San Diego Zoo Institute for Conservation Research​
  • I'm moving back to San Diego!
While plenty of not so great things have happened (i.e. being furloughed, riots outside my door, A PANDEMIC), I am choosing to focus on these AMAZING accomplishments and be thankful I have some pretty great things to look forward to.
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And the Results are In

4/11/2020

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On Monday I was tested for COVID-19.

​I had a physical so while I was there I asked about the antibody test. I was told the antibody test wasn’t available but I could get tested for the virus as it may be detectable by swab test for a time after symptoms have stopped (due to something called viral shedding).
​
​The swab was used for:
  • a full respiratory viral panel by PCR (testing for 17 different infections)
  • SARS-CoV-2RNA qualitative real-time RT-PCR (testing for COVID-19)
The results were negative. But, the news was bittersweet because, to be honest, I would have rather had the immunity. 
​I got really sick and got better. It would have been nice if that was it!
But here’s the kicker, the comment says “Negative results do not preclude respiratory virus infection.” Meaning, just because this test was negative, doesn’t mean I didn’t have an infection, just that the sample they took didn’t. And, the coronavirus test has been reported to have a false-negative rate as high as 30 percent!
​
​Coronavirus lives in the nasopharynx, where the nose meets the top of the throat, WAY in the back, and is difficult to sample (right). So, if the concentration of the virus is low (mild or post-infection) and/or the swab doesn’t get all the way into the nasopharynx, the cells with the viral genetic material could be missed and the test comes back negative.
​
So, since I had all the right symptoms but it had been well over a week since I’d had a fever, and false-negative results are possible with these tests, I still plan on getting the antibody test when it becomes more readily available in Nebraska.

​But until then, I plan to...
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Schrodinger’s Virus

4/3/2020

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I go to a whole person healthcare clinic here in Nebraska. As a precaution during the pandemic, as you enter, they take your temperature and ask you a few questions.

On March 18, 2020, I went to the doctor to see the podiatrist for a follow-up about my most recent stress fracture and I failed the coronavirus screening to get into the building.

I had been having issues with inflammation, so I thought I was just having an RA flair. This usually includes having a sore throat and feeling completely worn down, so I thought nothing of it. But, turns out, I also had a low-grade fever.

They ruled out a bacterial infection and influenza and I was "diagnosed" with viral bronchitis. They said the flair was likely a result of the virus and the medications I was taking to help with the flair were probably keeping my fever mild.
​

This was only days after social restrictions were put into place here in Nebraska, so I was unable to get tested for the virus because there were only a handful of tests available, only at hospitals. But I was told to assume it was COVID-19 and to isolate until I don't have a fever or cough for at least 5 days. Over the next couple of weeks I got a bit worse but now I feel pretty good.
​
​Here lies the paradox. Did I or did I not have COVID-19? And why does that matter?

​If I had COVID-19, getting tested for it now would be pointless, because I no longer have an active infection (YAY). 

​ 
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But knowing whether or not you have had an infection not only gives you peace of mind and allows you to gauge just how neurotic you should be, but people who have already been exposed to the virus are crucial for finding a treatment and managing spread of the disease!
​
So what I need is a serological antibody blood test which detects proteins your body produces to fight off infection. ​Yesterday, the F.D.A. approved the use of a coronavirus antibody test in the U.S. and I plan on figuring out how to get tested!
Antibody tests can tell us how many people ACTUALLY have been infected (symptomatic or asymptomatic).
​

​Only testing severe cases isn’t providing accurate information on how the virus is spreading or your potential for exposure. Experts say knowing how many people have recovered will allow us to start moving forward. We can get a better idea of when it will be safe to end lockdowns, relax social distancing restrictions, reopen schools, etc.

​2/3 of the population needs to have been infected for there to be herd immunity
. How will we know when we hit that threshold if people aren’t getting tested?
Antibodies from the blood of recovered patients can be used in convalescent plasma therapy to help treat current patients.

​I’m willing to part with some of my plasma if it means saving some lives!
 
Knowing how different people reacted to being infected can help with predictions for if it comes back!

Learning the true range of symptoms and severity of getting the virus starts with knowing who's been infected!
Plus, long-term, repeated antibody testing can tell us how long immunity might last.

This is a novel virus. We have NO IDEA right now!
I want to know if I have immunity and if that immunity might be able to help!
​

I’ll keep you posted!
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Pandemic 2020

3/12/2020

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It's official. The World Health Organization has declaired COVID-19, the novel coronavirus, a pandemic! Here are some graphics floating around the interwebs to explain why this is a big deal...
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From www.technologynetworks.com/immunology/articles/epidemic-vs-pandemic-323471
Epidemic = widespread occurrence of an infectious disease in a community at a particular time.
​
Pandemic = a disease epidemic that has spread across a large region
You may have heard the phrase "flatten the curve". This is the idea that taking preventative measures reduces the peak of the outbreak by lowering the number of daily cases which won't inundate the healthcare system. It also gives us more time to do things like create new therapies and medications or even develop a vaccine. So, while by the end there may not be much of a reduction in total cases and the duration of the pandemic is extended, everyone who needs to be treated can be treated reducing the number of deaths making for a better overall outcome.

Epidemics, the local occurrence within the pandemic, happen in three parts: containment, community transmission, and control (read all about it here). 

Currently, the US is in the containment phase and containment is when we can start taking action to flatten the curve. This is rather exciting for introverts because one of the best ways to battle the pandemic right now is to prevent community spread. That means canceling events, self-quarantine, and working from home. This is called social distancing, something us introverts do on a regular basis anyway. Just doing what we can for the cause.

A pandemic is over when the disease is either brought under control or there is no one left to infect. While a majority of cases are mild and there's a good chance YOU would recover, for those who are more susceptible to serious  infection (see inforgraphic to the right), lets try for the "under control" option and be hermits for public health.

Our #FlattenTheCurve graphic is now up on @Wikipedia with proper attribution & a CC-BY-SA licence. Please share far & wide and translate it into any language you can! Details in the thread below. #Covid_19 #COVID2019 #COVID19 #coronavirus Thanks to @XTOTL & @TheSpinoffTV pic.twitter.com/BQop7yWu1Q

— Dr Siouxsie Wiles (@SiouxsieW) March 10, 2020
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Go to infection2020.com to find out many cases are near you.
​
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