My friend is a respiratory therapist currently working in Portland Oregon who has seen multiple Covid-19 deaths today. He directly manages patients on ventilators. He texted me tonight in hurried fashion in between intubations. This is what he said:
“Don’t go out. Sequester yourself. Three week minimum."
If possible, he said, have plenty of Gatorade on hand (for electrolytes). He said a lot of people are having electrolyte imbalance leading to cardiac imbalances which leads to him doing chest compressions. He’s seeing co-morbidity of asthma and COPD.
“It’s all pulmonary,” he said. It’s not just older people; most people are under 60 he’s seeing die and — he just intubated a 12 year-old asthmatic. “Asthma is huge,” he said.
He advised me to do deep breathing exercises. “Open those lungs up. Go running — alone. If you have to go for food, bring bleach wipes to the grocery store and wipe all your grocery packages down and toss your gloves and do it again and then wash your hands again and hold your breath while doing it.”
He said: “Tell your parents to drop money on the doorstep and you buy groceries for them at a 24 hour grocery store at 4 a.m. when no one is around and do not touch your face what so ever when you are there.”
Again, my friend is a respiratory therapist who pulled tubes out of four corpses today. I live on the other side of the country from him.
He said: “100 million masks were returned in Oregon today due to them being infected. Think about that: They are testing the people who test the masks who make the masks.”
He said: "Blow your nose and clear everything out and deep breathe often.”
And he said: “We’re at the point where you have to consider everything in immediate vicinity infected with the virus. Door handles car door handles things you regularly touch faucets anything. Bleach it all.”
So (me talking now): This isn’t the time to be cynical, or tough, or selfish. You might be healthy, and good for you — you might be fine. But the person to whom you pass it on to might not. They might be like my mother, who has multiple health issues. Or me, with asthma. I don’t want to suffocate to death. So don’t listen to anyone who’s downplaying this, or trying to be cheery, or score political points. Listen to the infectious disease experts and the people on the front lines. People like my friend.
In the midst of our texts, my friend sent me a picture of himself and two other RTs and I nearly cried looking at them. Wearing full face shields and protective eye wear because they’re getting coughed and sneezed on and will likely get sick. They are, as someone said, the new rock stars.
Please. Don’t go out.
Sequester yourself.
Three week minimum.
Thank you.