Items

• 2020-12-01

  I've Taken the COVID-19 Test Twice in as Many Months

  I have always gotten sick during the fall semester; it's just how my immune system has always been with my allergies and all of the normal sicknesses that go around this time of year. This year the fall semester and my normal sicknesses during it have been a source of stress for me on top of my classes. I am currently attending Florida Gulf Coast University and we have to fill out a daily health screening app that puts case investigators in contact with us if we report any symptom that might be related to COVID-19. This semester I have been in contact with case investigators twice. The first time was sometime around October 26 when I got my first COVID-19 test. I had a cough, a sore throat, and was experiencing fatigue but no fever. Just to be sure, I scheduled a test at a local CVS. The test at CVS you have to administer yourself and was unpleasant to say the least. My results came back negative on October 29, I told my case investigator, and returned to class. I missed my zoom class that Monday as well as my on-campus class that Tuesday. The following month, I developed a fever that reached 103.8 at its highest but I had no other symptoms except a cough after my fever passed. I tested on November 17 at another local CVS. It was the same self-administered test. I attended my class the Monday before, my temperature during which was between 102.8 and 103. I missed my class that Tuesday and got my results on November 20. It was once again negative, and I was able to return to my on-campus classes once my cough stopped. Like many other students, this pandemic has interrupted my normal school life and has added stress to an already stressful semester. In addition to this, not being able to attend class while I was waiting on my test results like has impacted my grades though I would not have attended those classes anyway if I were allowed to while waiting on my results.