Flu v Covid ?

[d0nnivain]

I have the sniffles.  I generally get sick this time every year but now I'm concerned.  I have been trying to get a test since Thanksgiving to no avail.  I have no other symptoms so I think it's probably just my regular flu.

Thoughts?

[Alpacalia]

20 minutes ago, d0nnivain said:

I have the sniffles.  I generally get sick this time every year but now I'm concerned.  I have been trying to get a test since Thanksgiving to no avail.  I have no other symptoms so I think it's probably just my regular flu.

Thoughts?

What other symptoms do you have besides the sniffles that could be covid related?  I think given all the fear around covid it's common to think that a common symptom could be covid related and if it is, most covid cases are mild.  But I would self-quarantine just to be on the safe side and if the symptoms persist or worsen then definitely get tested.  For what it's worth, a few weeks ago I had a mild fever and chills, scratchy throat, congestion, etc. but it subsided after a few days.  I think I was just run down. 

Hope you feel better!

[FMW]

If that's  your only symptom, I would guess it's not COVID, but obviously that's just an uneducated guess.  

I think it's normal to pay more attention to every little thing now, I take my temperature now any time I feel anything not quite right.  I know that's kind of paranoid, but others have told me they do the same.  It's hard not to be on edge with the way things are. 

47 minutes ago, d0nnivain said:

I have been trying to get a test since Thanksgiving to no avail.

Do you mean a home test?  I'm not sure of their availability where I live, but I know that onsite testing is plentiful, you just might have to wait a day or two for an appointment or wait around for several hours if you don't make an appointment and just walk in. They also have drive-through locations here which keeps you from having to go inside, but I think the wait times for those are also long.  

[Miss Spider]

No way to know. It is more likely to be the flu or other viral illness though. Just speaking of statistically

[BaileyB]

I’m curious, how you have been unable to get a test for a month now Donni? That’s kind of a scary thought. 

[poppyfields]

1 hour ago, BaileyB said:

I’m curious, how you have been unable to get a test for a month now Donni? That’s kind of a scary thought. 

Yeah I'm curious too.  Round here, there are so many places to get tested, with same day results.  One doesn't even need to call their doctor, they just walk in.  Many are outdoors.  Lines are long but you get results same day.

@d0nnivainre your sniffles, try to not stress, as happens every year, lots of various bugs floating around.  

Two of my friends had mild colds, self isolated for a few days and were fine.  I myself had a bad stomach flu for two days, I stayed home till I felt better.  

If your symptoms worsen or you develop a fever or lose your sense of taste or smell, call your doctor or go to the ER or urgent care.

Good luck, hope you're okay!  

 

Edited December 22, 2020 by poppyfields

[Watercolors]

3 hours ago, d0nnivain said:

I have the sniffles.  I generally get sick this time every year but now I'm concerned.  I have been trying to get a test since Thanksgiving to no avail.  I have no other symptoms so I think it's probably just my regular flu.

Thoughts?

I don’t know where you live, but if you live in the U.S., every state has community testing sites, listed on your state’s department of health website. That’s how I got my free Covid saliva test. Also every medical clinic has Covid testing drive-up sites. So, I find it hard to believe that you can’t get a Covid test. 

You can do a virtual doctor visit with your health clinic and ask the doctor to order you a Covid test. And, then you have to drive yourself to the test site. Or, you can go on your state’s dept of health website and find a community testing site. If you don’t want to leave your home, you can also order the saliva test kit from your state’s dept of health website, to be mailed to you. The saliva test is easy. You spit into a vial, then put the blue top on the vial and turn it until the blue solution falls into the saliva. You then put it in the plastic seal bag and mail it. Then you wait up to 1 week for your test results if you do the mail kit. 

My Covid started with the sniffles, watery eyes, sneezing and coughing and a tickly throat. Do the Covid test. 

There are also a slew of websites that list side-by-side symptom comparisons for Covid-Flu-Cold. I’m on Day 12 now and feel like I am around the corner with my symptoms. I still can’t smell or taste anything, still have a sinus infection, weird leg pain, post nasal drip but my energy level is up. 

Do not blow off your symptoms. Get tested. 

[Watercolors]

2 hours ago, FMW said:

If that's  your only symptom, I would guess it's not COVID, but obviously that's just an uneducated guess.  

I think it's normal to pay more attention to every little thing now, I take my temperature now any time I feel anything not quite right.  I know that's kind of paranoid, but others have told me they do the same.  It's hard not to be on edge with the way things are. 

Do you mean a home test?  I'm not sure of their availability where I live, but I know that onsite testing is plentiful, you just might have to wait a day or two for an appointment or wait around for several hours if you don't make an appointment and just walk in. They also have drive-through locations here which keeps you from having to go inside, but I think the wait times for those are also long.  

There aren’t wait times. Drive up test sites are only available to scheduled appointments. You have to have a doctor order yours for a specific date and time. Then you show up at that date and time and drive through an obstacle course of cones until you get to the white tent where nursing staff in PPE will administer the nasal Swab while you sit in your car. I had a nasal test done two months ago when I had the flu and thought it was Covid. That nasal test was negative since it was the flu. But this time I caught Covid and did the community site saliva test that was located 5 minutes from my apartment building that I could drive to. 

Home tests are available to be mailed that can be ordered off the state dept’s health website or different medical clinics. The state dept of health offers the saliva test for free. Other medical websites charge up to $200 for their Covid saliva tests. 

[Watercolors]

Here’s a side by side chart of symptoms. 

https://atriumhealth.org/-/media/chs/files/about-us/coronavirus/ah-symptomcheckerchart.pdf

 

 

 

 

[Wiseman2]

3 hours ago, d0nnivain said:

I have the sniffles.  I generally get sick this time every year but now I'm concerned. 

Do you have indoor allergies or do you have a fever? What does your doctor think?

[ShyViolet]

4 hours ago, d0nnivain said:

I have been trying to get a test since Thanksgiving to no avail.

I don't know what this means.  Aren't there testing sites in your area?  You just need to look up your local testing sites and get tested.

[kismetkismet]

Do you have a fever? It's pretty much impossible to tell without a test because the symptoms are SO variable in different people, but if you don't have a fever or anything it's most likely just a cold. In the fall I got a bad cold and had a fever, cough, stuffed nose and also completely lost my sense of taste and smell (but only for 12 hrs). I was convinced it was COVID, but I got a test and thankfully it wasn't.

I would still quarantine yourself though until things clear up/you find out for sure, because you just never know. You also don't want to spread a cold around, even having a cold can be a bit debilitating in itself these days since many people can't go into work with any symptoms. 

Out of curiosity, why haven't you been able to get a test? I'm not in the US, but here you can just go into walk in clinics at local test sites.

Edited December 22, 2020 by kismetkismet

[Watercolors]

All 50 states community testing sites on this website. Now, you have no excuse not to get tested. As someone recovering from Covid, I can’t tell you how scary the past 12 days have been for me. Covid is not to be taken lightly. Period. 

https://www.hhs.gov/coronavirus/community-based-testing-sites/index.html

[Watercolors]

3 minutes ago, kismetkismet said:

Do you have a fever? It's pretty much impossible to tell without a test because the symptoms are SO variable in different people, but if you don't have a fever or anything it's most likely just a cold. In the fall I got a bad cold and had a fever, cough, stuffed nose and also completely lost my sense of taste and smell (but only for 12 hrs). I was convinced it was COVID, but I got a test and thankfully it wasn't.

I would still quarantine yourself though until things clear up/you find out for sure, because you just never know. You also don't want to spread a cold around, even having a cold can be a bit debilitating in itself these days since many people can't go into work with any symptoms. 

Out of curiosity, why haven't you been able to get a test? I'm not in the US, but here you can just go into walk in clinics at local test sites.

Not true kismet. I didn’t have a fever at all. Sometimes at night my temperature went to 99.5 to 100.1 but that’s not a fever and that didn’t start until 6 days into my Covid symptoms. You can’t make assumptions like “oh it sounds like a cold” and try to pass them off as facts. Doctors don’t even do that. And I tested positive for Covid. 

Edited December 22, 2020 by Watercolors

[ShyViolet]

12 minutes ago, kismetkismet said:

 if you don't have a fever or anything it's most likely just a cold. In the fall I got a bad cold and had a fever, cough, stuffed nose and also completely lost my sense of taste and smell (but only for 12 hrs). I was convinced it was COVID, but I got a test and thankfully it wasn't.

 

You should not be telling people stuff like this.  This is incorrect.

Lots of people who have covid never had a fever.  The symptoms vary widely from person to person, we shouldn't assume anything.  

[poppyfields]

22 minutes ago, kismetkismet said:

Do you have a fever? It's pretty much impossible to tell without a test because the symptoms are SO variable in different people, but if you don't have a fever or anything it's most likely just a cold. In the fall I got a bad cold and had a fever, cough, stuffed nose and also completely lost my sense of taste and smell (but only for 12 hrs). I was convinced it was COVID, but I got a test and thankfully it wasn't.

I would still quarantine yourself though until things clear up/you find out for sure, because you just never know. You also don't want to spread a cold around, even having a cold can be a bit debilitating in itself these days since many people can't go into work with any symptoms. 

Out of curiosity, why haven't you been able to get a test? I'm not in the US, but here you can just go into walk in clinics at local test sites.

This is good advice imo.  Quarantine and get tested, better to know than not.  Self-isolate until you receive results.

As I was walking to work this morn, I passed by an outdoor testing facility. No doctors appt required.

At 9:00 am the line was already a quarter mile long. They have around 5 people conducting the test so I would imagine the line moves quickly.  Same day results, I don't know the cost, but it may be free but that's just a guess. 

In my city, there are numerous facilities just like this.  Indoor and out. 

Again good luck and hope you're okay, keep us posted!  

Edited December 22, 2020 by poppyfields

[Watercolors]

23 minutes ago, Watercolors said:

All 50 states community testing sites on this website. Now, you have no excuse not to get tested. As someone recovering from Covid, I can’t tell you how scary the past 12 days have been for me. Covid is not to be taken lightly. Period. 

https://www.hhs.gov/coronavirus/community-based-testing-sites/index.html

This doesn’t include the state community testing sites either. That is available on your state’s dept of health website. That website also is where you can order mail in saliva Covid test kits. All of those saliva tests are free and they are accurate. 

[d0nnivain]

3 hours ago, BaileyB said:

I’m curious, how you have been unable to get a test for a month now Donni? 

I haven't been trying that hard.  We were out of state for Thanksgiving but only went from our home in the Northeast to our home in Florida.  Still I abided by the quarantine  guidelines when we got back:  10 days or 2 negative tests.  I couldn't even get one.  

You need an appointment or a doctor's note around here.  I'm not standing on some line.  I suppose I could order a home test.  that is a good idea. 

I have no other symptoms.  It's not allergies because it's a different kind of nasal congestion rather that the allergy drip I always have.  

No plans to go anywhere so I'll just ride it out but I'm thinking not Covid.  Feels more like every other year.  

[hajk]

@Watercolors Thank you so much for the link and the info.

Edited December 22, 2020 by hajk
remove link

[hajk]

@Watercolors Thank you so much for the Covid test sites link and the info!

[Minneloa]

Do you have a CVS near you? Some are offering drive-through testing. I had one the other day & it was a breeze. You do need to make an appointment via an app, but no doctor's note needed.

[HiCrunchy]

Alternatively, you can just quarantine for 2 weeks instead if you don't feel that standing in line and getting tested is worth the hassle but wanna keep other around you safe. 

[Marc878]

I got COVID tested at my doctors office in the parking lot. Middle Georgia.

just drove up got tested. Results an hour later.

[QuietRiot]

17 hours ago, poppyfields said:

Yeah I'm curious too.  Round here, there are so many places to get tested, with same day results.  One doesn't even need to call their doctor, they just walk in.  Many are outdoors.  Lines are long but you get results same day.

@d0nnivainre your sniffles, try to not stress, as happens every year, lots of various bugs floating around.  

Two of my friends had mild colds, self isolated for a few days and were fine.  I myself had a bad stomach flu for two days, I stayed home till I felt better.  

If your symptoms worsen or you develop a fever or lose your sense of taste or smell, call your doctor or go to the ER or urgent care.

Good luck, hope you're okay!  

 

There had been a recent situation, don't know of it's an online hoax or not, where someone said they filled out the ppwk, waited in line, then lost patience and went home...and then got positive results in the mail.  That makes no sense.

[d0nnivain]

14 hours ago, Minneloa said:

Do you have a CVS near you? 

I do.  When I filled out the questionnaire the system honestly it said I didn't qualify for a test.   I called my doctor who also said I don't have enough symptoms to qualify for a test & it's probably just my annual sniffles.  I actually feel it dissipating today so I'm less anxious.