Surviving COVID-19 & Having Antibodies

As some of you may already know, I contracted COVID-19 in late April of 2020. Initially, this was my worst fear coming true as I was considered among the higher risk groups for complications with my history of chronic asthma. I felt some of the common symptoms - headache, sinus congestion, and slight fever but it felt more like a cold to me, not a flu so I initially denied that it was actually COVID-19. Within a day I had taken a test via nasal swab for the virus and waited anxiously while trying to get some rest and get over whatever it was I was feeling. The worst symptoms only lasted about 2 days so by the time I had my test result about 3 days later that I was in fact positive, I was genuinely surprised that it had turned out to be the dreaded virus!

I started taking my albuterol inhaler as a preventative measure, thinking that I would rather take that than have to end up on a ventilator. I continued to rest up and started taking a regimen of vitamin C, vitamin D, a multivitamin, and a baby aspirin. As there was then and is still no vaccine or prescribed treatment for COVID-19, this was my healthcare professional's best guess as to what might help me not have complications or a recurrence of severe symptoms. The headache and feelings of a slight fever came back a couple of times over the next week but I was feeling back to normal within a few days. I did feel shortness of breath a couple of times but by taking it easy with physical activity and focusing my mind on other relaxing tasks like reading I was fortunately able to fight off the virus without further complications. I consider myself very lucky and reflecting back, think that I probably was exposed to a rather small viral load - or amount of virus, which allowed my body's immune system to respond quicker and fight off the virus.

To further confirm that I had contracted and then fought off the virus I had an antibody test performed via IV blood draw after about 3 weeks of my initial positive test. However, at that point my body did not seem to have developed a sufficient level of antibodies for the test method used and my antibodies came back low - which meant that I could not say that I had effectively fought off the virus yet. About a week later I was subject to yet another nasal swab COVID test which came back negative, so I had finally fought off the virus to the point that I was no longer contagious. Lastly, about 2 weeks after that I took yet another antibody test and that one finally confirmed that I had COVID-19 antibodies.

While having antibodies to a virus typically makes one immune to further infection, that has not yet been proven for this virus so this seemingly good result comes with a grain of salt. Additionally, it is still not known whether someone with antibodies can still be a carrier for COVID-19 if they are again exposed to it and then come into contact with other people. I have considered donating convalescent plasma with my antibodies to help those hospitalized from COVID-19 as this shows promise as an interim measure for treatment until a vaccine is developed. My main concern is whether I could donate so much of my plasma that my antibody count drops to the point where I could no longer fight off the virus if reinfected. I hope to research and donate within the next 6 weeks or so, please check back for an update.

In conclusion, despite my theoretical immunity, I am still choosing to wear a mask in public and observe social distancing of at least 6 feet not only for my own health but for the health of others. Until we conduct more research on the virus I will not pretend to know more that what I have stated here. And until we have a vaccine - which could be a year or more away still at this point - we should ALL be practicing social distancing, wearing masks, and self-quarantining as per the guidelines of federal and local governments.