Day 4 - COVID19: Uncertainty and Phone Calls

Uncertainty and Making Phone Calls

DAY 4: You know that feeling of anxiety I mentioned in the previous post? It was building itself up on Thursday and has kept on going with different flows and ebbs since then.

I can't even remember the morning routine on this day because it was different from our normal work week ones.  There was this feeling of "what the heck" as our morning started. I also had to call my primary care provider and see if there was any chance they could see me.

In the previous post I also didn't mention that when the principal called and asked me not to come into work, she also asked me to be cleared by a doctor before I could return. You're thinking, yeah, okay, so do it. I was thinking the same thing. No problem there. Quick visit, you're fine, you're healthy, go to work.

It didn't turn out exactly that way.

What happened this day is more about what I went through and the information I was able to gain for me and for T.J.

T.J. was at home reading up on the news. He was trying to figure what symptoms to look out for. He's stressed and on top of everything, still dealing with jet lag. The man looked exhausted.

In the mean time I'm calling the doctor's office. The front desk assistant said I could come by later that morning. T.J. had me call again and make sure to explain what was going on. I felt uncomfortable having to explain "a possibility story" again and why I needed to get cleared. The assistant said it wouldn't be a problem. Two things were happening here: one, my place of work was asking me to get cleared and two, my primary doctor was treating it like a regular visit.

Here's what I encountered: when I made it to the doctor's office I was treated like I had the cooties. That image probably makes us chuckle as we remember our elementary school days when we would wait in line and poke our classmate while laughing and yelling a variation of "you've got the cooties!" It would be better to say that the interaction confirmed what I already knew, that in our society individuals by no fault of theirs can be unjustly treated and ostracized. Yet, I don't blame the staff at the doctor's office. They were trying to figure out what to do. If they're not informed how can they provide the medical attention needed. They're out in the wild hearing all the news just like we are. I want to go on a rambling paragraph about how the dissemination of information, or lack thereof from governmental institutions and their officials (from local, to State, and Federal level) about the coronavirus left much to be desired. However, I can't because it's a lot more complex than just rambling and there are plenty of articles out there analyzing one way or another this issue. In any case, for everyone, this is an unprecedented moment. What I can tell you is that at the doctor's office I was given a mask, the phone number to the Health Department, and asked to reschedule. They wanted me gone. Did I get cleared to go back to work? Not at all. Was I taken aback in their interaction with me? Most definitely. I was shocked into silence and into unbelievable smiles and thank yous.

I get home and I call the Health Department immediately. I have T.J. call the Health Department as well. The doctor's office calls me not long after I arrived home to make sure I call the Health Department. Joseph is running around the house with his monster trucks. We didn't take him to daycare for obvious reasons. I'm in one room talking on the phone and T.J.'s in another room doing the same. The Health Department was directing us to our doctor. You see where this is going? The running in circles that the situation demanded, because why not?

The news is telling people to call and visit their primary doctors. The primary doctors have no information and are asking people to call the Health Department. The Health Department can't give individual medical advice. Doctor offices can't help out either because they don't exactly have a protocol in place for coronavirus patients. This is all new for everyone in our community and we were just the start.

A few hours later, the Health Department is calling me back. The doctor's office had called them. This office was freaking out! They wanted to make sure I had called the Health Department. Both T.J. and I had called, no worries there, we were more concerned than anyone else at this moment, believe us on this point. We wanted information too. We wanted to figure out what steps to take beyond self-quarantining. How to get tested, how to get cleared. We were taking as much action as possible. Before the general public was being asked to actively practice social distancing, to heed the message of protecting your loved ones and members of your community, we were already in quarantine.

The Health Department did tell T.J. he didn't need to get tested because it was just a possibility. Plus, he hadn't traveled to a high risk region.

T.J. hadn't heard back from Jeff yet.

The principal called me again that evening. Since we still didn't know anything, she asked me to not come in to work the next day (Friday) or the following week (the last week before Spring Break). I could return once we knew Jeff's results were negative or I had been cleared by a doctor. I'm sure some of you are probably thinking, vacation time! Not so much as many of you have by now experienced.

However, it was still all a possibility by the end of Thursday. We did learn that the Health Department was still trying to figure everything out. I learned that because I resided in one county but was a teacher in another county the other Health Department also had to be involved. I learned that primary care doctors couldn't help you because it's a big unknown for them if you come with the possibility of the coronavirus. I learned that by this time the community at large was just waiting for public schools to be cancelled. Universities across Florida had already started cancelling classes.

So here were, quarantined at home, with no definite answers and an unknown.