Covid-19 Crept Up On Our Doorstep This July

We had been out-running it long and hard. An excellent 2.5 year run of negative Covid-19 test results came to a shuddering halt this July. It finally found our address and came knocking at our door. 

To earn one more stripe to my DrMom title, I just had to go through the dreaded Covid phase. One more [un-welcomed] expertise under my belt! Ewan got it. Six days later, I got it. Six days later, Meyer got it!

Three-Fifths of the family had Covid and the rest of the two [Gypsie and Gaye] remained Negative. So…. Never say it’s TOO LATE to isolate. DON’T! 

On the day Ewan had Covid, Meyer polished up his leftover lunch. 

On the day Ewan had Covid, he disappointedly dropped his 刀 [sword] at his Wushu grading and cried tears and mucus into me. 

On the day Ewan had Covid, we rode home as a family of four in the same car with the same air circulating inside for a long while and Faye was exposed. 

We did not turn Positive immediately at all even so. It was in the care-giving that we succumbed.

Isolating early regardless of what you’ve been doing together, helps. Do not assume we know more than the virus because Covid has proven we don’t know it at all.

HOW IT HAPPENED?

Ewan felt feverish at about 3pm on Monday, 11 July. Even though we were told to monitor our healths because we had a close contact in the family, I was confident we wouldn’t contract it. We had several close shaves within our circle before but we were lucky each time to dodge it. I would have thought it would be the same this time. Alas. 

It started with Ewan waking up in the middle of the night complaining about the pain in his arms. He said it was a tingling sensation. We told him it was probably pins and needles. We checked with him the next morning and he said they felt fine. It was probably about mid afternoon did he felt weak and uncomfortable again.

He laid on my bed and shared that he felt feverish. That was when we tested and he was a positive at 37.3 degree Celsius. He had low grade fever which escalated quite quickly to 38.3 with bone aches. Quite quickly meant, in a span of 20 minutes. We gave him paracetamol immediately and it dipped to regular temperature for 6 hours.

HOW WE ISOLATED?

Our isolation protocol was all over the place at first. Then, we discussed and settled for the best possible arrangement we think we could manage. Meyer and I had a different idea. We quarrelled, then we compromised. Oh Wait! Maybe we did not compromise because he said he had to give in to the domineering Health Minister aka Me. *sigh* Like what Faye said, “I wish it was one of the adults who got it and not the children. Because you can take care of yourselves. Now, one of us children is down, we cannot be with each other. And you quarrel so much.” 

We had intended for Ewan to isolate in the master bedroom since he had already rolled and contaminated my bed. It is also the only bedroom with an attached bathroom too. We stayed in that configuration for 3 hours, ventilated the room by opening all windows and kept our masks on, until we realised it looked quite wrong! 

If we were to isolate in Ewan’ bedroom [all three Negative of us], we would need to swap our entire wardrobes! With that, I exchanged the entire bedding including pillows and bolsters of the two bedrooms to prepare the move of our first Covid patient to his own bedroom. He had his own dedicated toilet right outside his door which he needed to get to with his mask on.

It wasn’t a full fledged isolation. I still had to check his temperature through the night and so, I entered the room with a N95 to do just that [which was so tight, so uncomfortable and so painful]. I couldn’t sleep that first night; clocked only 2 hours and parked myself in the living room to avoid waking my husband and daughter from their sleep. I heard many children spiked in temperature without warning when having Covid. True enough, his fever was hard to break and I was worried without Ibuprofen on hand. With Ewan having a history of asthma and febrile seizure, I just couldn't risk but to keep checking him every two hours [or one sometimes]. 

If I were sleeping with him, I’d be able to sleep better I'm sure. Just a touch on his skin and I would know how hot he was getting. But since I've decided to isolate him, it's the start of hard core caregiving work! I did not want to put myself in the face of Covid by sleeping with him so sleepless nights is the sacrifice I would have to take. 

With children, I guess there will have to be give-and-takes in the isolation protocol. It is wise to put only one parent in charge of entering that room to minimise exposure risk. When I was in there, I was rather strict about touch-points. Ewan will have to be solely in charge of temperature taking so that I do not come in contact with his thermometer or his skin at all. Because of that, my poor boy was required to wake up for as many times as I entered his room. Yes, even overnight. He will be roused from his sleep and I felt almost like that annoying but dutiful nurse who comes disturbing you several times a night to take your blood pressure in the hospital. 

I apologised to him in the dead of the night, "Ewan, time to take your temperature. I'm so sorry my dear but we have to do this." He is the sweetest. He would always respond with an "It's okay. I'm sorry you have to do this. I want you here. It's okay." 

Isolation is trying for a child. He felt alone, sad, bored and sick. I could see he was trying his best to hold it all up. Facing the ceiling while he spoke so that his tears did not fall. Looking away or changing subject because he was on the verge of crying. I always knew what to say to help him let his emotions go and I was glad he did his daily crying to release that tension he had in him. 

He truly stepped up. He cleaned up his vomit on his own, he applied Ruyi Oil on his own tummy when he had a stomachache, he took every single temperature on his own, he reminded me which side of his water bottle to hold so that I don't touch the same spots as he did, he was just so very understanding throughout this period. Even when he had a terrible nightmare about our house exploding, he remembered to wear his mask before he ran out of his room wailing in fright. 

He had fever, sore throat and constipation. He is vaccinated.

I was very thankful for the existence of MyFirst Fone [Discount Code still valid for 2022 subscriptions; choose the latest version R1S] as it helped us communicate behind closed doors. He would send me a message first thing in the morning to inform me if he was awake and we would know to start preparing his breakfast. Sometimes, I get random messages with sad emojis depicting his misery and I would send jokes right back at him to lift his spirits. What really touched my heart was that one message asking me, "How are you? Fantastic?" My son actually stopped complaining about himself for a second and thought about how his mommy was feeling! Such empathy. Truly his Centre. 

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We did not take too long to agree that some fresh air in our patio would do him some good. He was allowed to take little trips to the patio to feel the wind in his hair. I would serve a couple of meals to him there with my N95 and he had to, of course, walk to and fro our patio with his mask on. 

TERRIBLE TURN OF EVENTS

Please do not tell me or to anyone else you know, “Why are you trying so hard not to contract Covid. It’s a sooner or later thing. Just face it. Why make life so difficult and how can you not socialise? Life Goes On.” 

Life Goes On is such a loosely used phrase. I’m happy to go on Life the way I want to live it and it may be different from yours. 

Sorry. If I have to go through Covid seeing my children screaming murder from its side effects and there’s no doctor to attend to them immediately because there were too many more serious cases, I swear I will ask you background questions before we meet, “Did you recently have close contacts? Are you feeling under the weather?” 

I Do Not Want to relive this helpless feeling as I shiver and cry at home, not being there to help my son in the hospital[s]. I Do Not want my husband to go through this pain he has to witness from his son’s cries for help. Neither do I want my child to be in this situation. 

Everyone has a different formula to life so please be respectful. I do not judge your decisions so do not judge mine when I say, “Sorry, I think I’ll sit out of this playdate.” It is such a difficult sentence to string by the way from a mom who wants her children to play with yours and from the same mom who still wants her mom circle with you.

I did not enjoy the stress and burden when Ewan had his encounter with Covid. Neither did we anticipate he would end up in 2 ERs in the middle of the night trying to find someone to tell us what is happening as he screamed and cried incessantly for hours outside the hospital because Covid patients aren't allowed to enter the premise. 

We googled and struck out appendicitis because his pain was on his lower left abdominal. I was almost certain after googling for a while that he is suffering from Covid UTI. Well, hopefully that and not anything worse! But with his cries getting louder and asking for help, it got us all more worried when no available doctors could come see him for a second. 

Finally, we found the cause of his pain at the second hospital Meyer had to run to. It turned out to be constipation and it can be extremely painful! Gosh. We had to go to two hospitals to find that out because the first one could not help us at all. Note that many parents have shared their children encountering the same problem during this Covid variant wave. That some of their doctors did not know and had to subject their kids to ultrasounds and X-ray. 

Know now parents! And instead of just stocking up lozenges and Ibuprofen, stock anema, prune juice or Duphalac!

I write to share our experiences so when you encounter something similar, you would know what to do. If the left lower abdominal is causing excruciating pain to your child, it could be constipation. If it’s the right lower abdominal, it could be appendix.

SUSPECT ROOM

By Day Two, Meyer was feeling sick. I insisted we set up a Suspect Room in Faye's playroom to separate the Healthy and Unhealthy amongst those who were Negative. Well, we never know if the ill is harbouring Covid waiting to be exploded in our faces right? Better safe than sorry. While the Sick-Negative can still roam the house, he/she is required to mask up at all times and sleep on their own in the Sus Room. 

Thank goodness my husband felt brand new on Day Three and was released from his predicament. However, I started developing a sore throat. With that, I checked myself into the Sus Room and continued wearing my N95 all day long when I'm in close proximity with the family.

Every day's ART test thereafter showed Negative, Negative Negative. By Day Five of consecutive Negatives, Meyer proclaimed that my sore throat was simply caused by fatigue. Being the skeptic I am, I refuse to return to our Master Bedroom lest I infect him and Faye. 

Day Six. 

I was a Positive. 

It was really nice to be able to hug my son after six gruelling days! As much as I had been trying to ensure the rest of us stay Negative and feeling anxious every morning when I test myself, I accepted my double red line fact with a smile that day. 

Positivity is to find Goodness even in Bad Conditions! 

So here I am. Staying Positive with C-Positive! 

Thank goodness we set up the Sus Room! At the very least, my husband and daughter have came out of this ordeal without contracting Covid!

Moving into the Sus Room to sleep gave me so much comfort that my last two standing members shouldn’t be compromised by me at all. The next time Covid comes knocking, will I still continue to isolate each member? YES! 
 

WHAT HAPPENED AFTER I WAS POSITIVE?

I am super thankful that I felt energetic too with no cough nor fever. Just that nagging sore throat which is still manageable. What did Ewan and I do after I found out I was a Positive? We packed up and left the home to free Meyer and Faye from tip-toeing around us. It really freed them from all the stress and doubts about possible exposure from us. It also freed them from care-giving duties too. 

We went to my in-laws house and checked ourselves into their third floor which had already been closed for a week for Covid family members. It was still in operation and so, it seemed like it was the ideal place to go. 

Right after I left home, Cleanshades came in to disinfect the entire home. I needed this done for peace of mind for the last standing members of our home. Because I requested for them to come immediately, there was a surcharge of $50 on top of the $400 fee to wipe down all high touch points with 90 days antimicrobial coating and fogging of the entire house. The price is calculated by size of house or room and will vary depending on the number of days post-Covid. 

Check their Covid Home Disinfecting rates with them if you are keen, quote “LIANG MAY” to take 10% off [first-timers] and 15% off [returnees]. They are able to do single rooms and toilets too!

WE STAYED AT GRAMPS FOR ONLY TWO DAYS

My family’s first Covid journey cannot be more dramatic than this. I suppose my experiences, your gains! 

These eight days felt like a year to me but what have I learnt from it? Always look on the bright side of life. Ewan was ecstatic to find out he was still Positive because he has fully recovered from his illness and the Recovery part of Covid can actually be quite carefree. Since he has recovered, I've started home-schooling him but his gaming privileges still remained. It was almost like "Weee! HoLiDay!"

I was Day Three when we moved out of Gramps' Isolation Facility and into a MOH designated Isolation Facility on my own. Ewan has gone home! 

What happened!? One of our Covid-mate at Gramps’ Isolation Facility was suspected of Dengue. Meyer picked it up in our family group chat and got edgy. We knew the neighbourhood is on Red Alert before we went over but I chose to trust the power of repellents. At least we are still with family and can watch out for each other! 

However, as the minute passed, the husband got more anxious. He was afraid that I might get bitten by an Aedes. Instead of recovering from C0vid, I might prolong it with Dengue. To top that up, he has an important work trip to Europe in a week’s time and he needed me to be at 100% to take over the house. 

So here I am in an isolation facility! 

The call came for me within the hour after the request. 

MOH: Please note that there is a possibility you might be roomed in with a patient who is already there or during your stay, someone may check in to your room. 

May: Sure. I can make a new friend 

MOH: How are you feeling? Are you sick and need medical care or are you mild?

May: I'm mild and don't need medical care. [They have facilities with medical care on-site for those who are needs medical assistance]

MOH: Two Options. We will send you to XX Hotel but you will have to find a Grab to go there yourself or we pick you up to go to any available isolation facility and we cannot confirm which facility it will be. 

May: I’ll take the hotel and I’ll go by myself. 

MOH: Three meals and ART kits will be provided. You won’t have to pay for the stay. 

May: Take me already! 

What a whirlwind of a C0vid experience! 

Now that I am here looking back at it all, the Isolation Facility provided by MOH is a very good option for families who has two members getting C0vid together. While they are away taken care of by the government, the house is free to move around. Neither parties need to worry for the safety of the other. Most importantly, the ill can recuperate and the healthy won’t get burnt out from caregiving. 

Here’s a consideration for y’all. 

I took Bed 1 and I will take this time to focus on ME.

*To be able to request for an Isolation Facility, you will have to report to MOH via tele-Art, tele-Doc or the GP

JUST WHEN I WAS ABOUT TO GO HOME

Meyer tested Positive at home at Day 6. What was supposed to be his regular sinus issue with nose congestion and ear block turned into Covid. I had him organised and packed up to join me at M Hotel, Room 1522. 

It was a school day that morning he tested negative. 6am. I had this intuition to wake up at 6am that morning just to check my phone. He sent me a message to say he had turned and I took over the house with instructions via the kids' MyFirstFone and had Meyer sent to his bedroom for isolation. 

How wonderful that Ewan and Faye stepped up with just a snap of a finger! They made their own bed, brushed teeth, changed into their uniforms, made their own breakfasts and washed their dishes. Thereafter, I instructed for them to wait for their grandfather to pick them up to school. 

After discussion with the gramps, we decided that they are not the right folks to pull in to babysit Ewan and Faye. Although Ewan has recovered, Faye could be a carrier since she had been close to Meyer all these while. We could not risk a reinfection to any of the four grandparents. 

I asked my cousin Dora for help to staycay over at my place for a 3D2N babysitting job. She had just turned Negative the day before Meyer turned Positive. She's the best candidate for the job and thank goodness, she said "YES!" in a heartbeat. 

With that, Meyer and I had a 3D2N Covidcation at our isolation facility. 

We are filming 《我和Covid有个约会》吗？

Did I make a mistake trying so hard to keep everyone safe because this variant is the Almighty of All Covid! Even if I had stayed away, they would have gotten from somewhere in the streets in their daily commutes?

Still, don’t be disheartened. Continue to isolate.

HOW THE KIDS FELT?

Faye was a wreck when Ewan was confirmed a Covid-positive. She was the one crying and worrying about his condition and isolation. “My poor brother! He will be so lonely! I wish I am the one suffering instead of him. How can I not see him! I want to get Covid so we can be together. Let me go to him please?” She begged in between tears. I said, “No.” She cried and cried. Pulled up a chair right outside my bedroom to keep watch of her brother who was on my bed. She needed him so much and she offered her service to be maid to 哥哥. Faye had her mask on, a book in hand and she felt contented just sitting there waiting for instructions. 

She left so many post-it notes for Ewan and was counting down the days to his discharge. Cutest sight was her standing in a distance with her mask on, holding up a shared iPad for her brother while he brushed his teeth with Sparkly teeth-brushing app. 

WHAT HAVE WE LEARNT?

There were of course friction that arose from all these stress and exhaustion. We, the adults, disagreed over things like medication timing to bedding arrangements, hygiene standards and food intake that we quarrelled overly much. It affected the children who were listening in. Faye asked me if it was better the family only had 哥哥 so that daddy and mommy wouldn't argue over how we should keep her Covid-negative for as long as possible? I had to explain to her that we quarrelled not because of her very existence but because our children mean too much to us, we want only the best for them both. Unfortunately, we have different opinions on how to go about doing it. We argued not only about her but also about the care her brother is to receive from us. It's all Love. 

She smiled, "Now I understand. It's all Love." I took the chance to re-iterate, "Never think it's your fault. It's not. We will do better as parents."

What did we learn from this episode? What can we do better?

- Will I relax Ewan's socialisation rules after this because he is certified a Covid warrior? No. It will be the same or even stricter because I experienced how miserable isolation is for children. Falling ill with Covid isn't a big deal really since we had encountered worst; it's the caregiving in isolation that hurts. 

- So why not do a Family Hustle and get it together? If this was a Once-And-For-All disease, sure... why not. Unfortunately, it isn't and we can all get Covid over and over again. In fact, the reinfection window has been reduced. How many different strains do I want to put in my children? If possible, none at all since we have no studies of the long-term effects. 

- To add to the last point, the least ill family member will be given the baton [whether you like it or not] to care-give for everyone else. He/she cannot rest but have to continue to administer medication or be responsible for the food on the table. I'd rather be a healthy parent responsible for all these. Even being healthy took a toll on me already. How bad would it be if one was sick?

- Husband and wife are supposed to work together and not divide during this period. We will definitely feel we are the more logical party and will not be able see the point of view of the other. Let's agree to disagree! How else to move on, I don't know. Oh! Maybe having a group of gal pals in group chat to rant to would help with sanity. 

- Definitely set a plan before Covid happens. Set up a back-up plan and a back-up back-up plan especially when you have kids.

- Take the Isolation Facility option MOH has to offer if it is difficult to isolate at home. There's nothing to be afraid of. We ware adaptable human beings and we can do this!

*Note that these are my personal views and it belittles no one else's. Let's all respect every family's opinions on how Covid should be handled in their own circle because each family's dynamics are different.

Ewan turned Negative only on Day 10. I am a skeptic so I refused to let him go to school after Day 7 even though the government has assured us that it is no longer contagious after that. He went back on the day he turned Negative. 

Mommy turned Negative on Day 9. 

Daddy turned Negative on Day 13.

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