Doctor suffering from Covid-19: "You panic"

Luise Heine has been an editor at since 2012. The qualified biologist studied in Regensburg and Brisbane (Australia) and gained experience as a journalist in television, in the Ratgeber-Verlag and in a print magazine. In addition to her work at , she also writes for children, for example for the Stuttgarter Kinderzeitung, and has her own breakfast blog, “Kuchen zum Frühstück”.

More posts by Luise Heine All content is checked by medical journalists.

Family doctors are on the first line of defense in the fight against Covid-19. Elisabeth Hoffmann * is one of them. And she got it too. Not so bad that she had to go to the hospital, but much worse than just a few cold symptoms. The doctor speaks to about her experience as a corona patient.

Miss Dr. Hoffmann, how did you find out that you were infected?

Actually, that was a coincidental finding. In our practice, one test was positive. Then we all did a control test. The next day my colleague called me and said: "Your test is positive."

What happened then?

I was at home anyway because I always have Friday off. From then on I stayed directly in quarantine. The very next day it started pretty suddenly with severe symptoms. I got a fever, always around 38 ° C - 39 ° C degrees. That went on for eight or nine days. I was lying completely flat - I tried to do one lap in the garden every day, but it got more difficult every day.

And then did it get better again?

Unfortunately, no. When the fever went down, the cough came and the associated shortness of breath again and again. Never in such a way that I wanted to go to the hospital, but you panic. Because you don't know what to do next.

Because you were one of the first corona patients in mid-March.

Exactly. There was and is simply not so much empirical values. What is still normal in the course of the disease and what is no longer? Nobody could tell you that. It makes you feel pretty lost and lonely.

Didn't your background as a doctor help you?

Not at all. I was scared to death once in my life and in that situation the fears from then came up again. And then you can no longer think rationally and are trapped in the emotional level. You need someone to get you out of there. And in that case, neither the family doctor nor anyone else could. Because nobody had the experience.

What helped you

In the truest sense of the word: drink tea. Inhale a lot and put something warm on your chest so that this stimulus is released again. And actually wait. My husband has also caught a lot of panic attacks.

Can you compare a corona infection with the flu?

The flu can be bad in the short term, but it only lasts a few days and then it improves again. With Corona, that took forever. Whenever I thought I was getting better, another day came when I felt worse again. Overall, the disease dragged on for me for four weeks.

So you think the lockdown measures are justified?

Absolutely - also because it prevented the hospitals from being flooded as has happened in other countries. And the result shows that it worked. Germany got off relatively lightly. I just hope that even now with the easing, people remain sensible and still keep their distance. If someone does nonsense there, it hits many.

What was the first thing you did when you were allowed out again?

I drove into the forest and caught some fresh air. Take a really deep breath - but only about ten minutes, after that I was sweaty and I'll be back home quickly.

How are you today?

Well! In the meantime, the senses of taste and smell are fully back. The first time I smelled chamomile while walking, it was funny. I don't really like the smell, but I was really happy.

Are you glad you got it over with?

Yes. Very. Before that, it was much more stressful to go to the practice and, for example, hold an infection clinic. In the meantime I received a call asking if I would like to donate antibodies. That's great: When you go through all the crap but can save lives later. That sounds heroic now, but I would have done that immediately. Unfortunately, I am not allowed to do this due to a previous illness.

Are you more relaxed about the rules because you've already had the virus?

No - rather stricter! I always use a breathing mask and disinfect my hands. I also try to keep the doors open for my patients. And you're pretty much calibrated not to have any more physical contact. Although I miss that a lot, I'm the type of guy who loves to hug people.

What advice would you give to other patients with an acute Covid-19 infection?

Try to exchange ideas with other sick people or former sick people! That helped me alot. Because then you feel less lonely and it also calms you down when you hear what other symptoms are. Then you can better assess for yourself what is normal with this disease and what is not.

* Name changed on request

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