Last Saturday, as the day went on, my coworker seemed to droop more and more. I didn't think too much of it. We are all tired by then. Shortly before the end of the shift, I heard her tell another coworker that she was going to go to the doctor after we got off. She thought it was a sinus infection.
She was out Monday and Tuesday, and I wondered if she had the flu or something. I thought no, she's already had the flu this year. I began to wonder if she had COVID, however, Wednesday, she was back, so it couldn't have been that. Shortly after the day started, she left again -- I don't think she was even there an hour.
Yesterday evening, she called me at home, telling me she'd tested positive for the coronavirus. Since I work right beside her, she wanted me to know. I thanked her and told her I hoped she felt better soon. Not quite that bluntly, but I never really know what to say in those situations.
After we hung up, I messaged my supervisor, asking him if I needed to call HR to let them know I'd potentially been exposed. He said not unless I was showing symptoms. Having cleared that up, I figured they'd take care of things the next morning, and went on about my business.
Today, once HR had received a copy of the positive test, they did risk assessments on the two of us who work closest to her. Apparently, they don't automatically quarantine the whole department like they used to. Anyway, the safety guy put our names into the system, asked a bunch of questions about how close our contact with the sick person was, etc., etc.. He kept asking me how I felt.
I said, "I'm tired, and this Sahara dust is killing me, but other than that, I'm good."
Then he asked if I felt like I needed to be quarantined. Now, I'm thinking, if I had contracted the virus, it would have been on Saturday, as I'd had only the briefest contact with the sick person on Wednesday. If I'd already contracted the virus, and was going to get sick, being at home under quarantine isn't going to stop that. If I'd contracted the virus, and fight it off without getting sick, what's the point of losing two weeks pay, especially now that they've decided asymptomatic people can't spread it?
I didn't tell safety guy that, though. I just told him, "Nah, I'm good." I'll just keep a close watch, and if I start showing symptoms, I'll let him know.
I did speak to my supervisor later on, and told him what I didn't tell the safety guy. He responded, "We were in the Navy. Coronavirus is afraid of us."
I don't know about that, but I'm pretty sure I've got a strong immune system.
I've actually done this, so I'm pretty sure I'm going to be fine.
BTW, they decided to go ahead and put the other girl into quarantine, because she'd had much closer contact with the sick person, and has other health issues as well. I'm already low risk, being relatively young and healthy, plus having O+ blood and have been taking Vitamin D supplements for years. And I've always believed your immune system needs exercise, just like every other system, so I've never over-sterilized anything. I've washed my hands in rivers, lakes, and water puddles, drank from garden hoses, eaten blackberries and figs straight off the vine/tree, and ran barefoot most of my life. I even follow the 10 second rule, and I don't think I've ever even used hand sanitizer until all this started. So, yeah, I've got it covered.
Also, it's already been seven days, and I haven't started showing symptoms yet. I've got another week to go before I'm in the clear.
I'll keep you updated.
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