Deja Flu: What It's Like Getting COVID-19 a Second Time.

Yes, I caught it again. Two years after my first COVID-19 infection, the virus has found its way back to me. I’m now seven days into this round of symptoms, and I have to say, this time feels different.

During the first week of my initial infection, I was completely wiped out: relentless fevers that came and went, overwhelming exhaustion, and shortness of breath that made it feel like I’d been hit by a bus. All I could do was lie in bed, mostly sleeping through the days.

Though I still feel fatigued now, I was well enough this morning to make a trip to the supermarket to get some groceries - something I couldn’t have imagined doing during the first week of the first infection.

How my second bout of Covid-19 began.

My second encounter with COVID began quietly about a week ago - a faint scratch in my throat and an annoying itch in my nose. At first, it felt like the onset of a typical cold. But by the next morning, the scratch had deepened into a persistent, raw soreness, and my nose felt increasingly congested. I braced myself for a rough cold or maybe the flu. Then things escalated when I woke up the following morning. The soreness in my throat turned sharp, making every swallow feel like sandpaper being rubbed on my throat, and my nose seemed to be in a state of confusion: completely blocked yet constantly twitching from that itch, like it couldn’t decide whether to sneeze or stay sealed shut. And any sneeze that I had would set my throat on fire. Although massively uncomfortable, the thing that made me sit-up and take notice of this cold, was the fatigue and body aches that I was now having.

'This was how I felt when I had covid! Could this be Covid again??!!' I thought to myself.

I quickly reached for one of our old antigen test kits to check for COVID (thankfully, we had kept about a dozen sets of test kits and masks from the pandemic). The kit I grabbed was already around three years old, and I had no idea if it still worked, but I had no choice, I still had to use it and hope that it was still working. And so, I went through the familiar steps again; I inserted the swab into my left nostril, swirled it a few times, then repeated the process on the right. After that, I dipped the swab into the small vial of solution, gave it a good swirl, waited five minutes, and placed three drops onto the test strip.

This process brought back memories of the pandemic.

The whole process felt eerily familiar - classic déjà vu. During the pandemic, Macau had to follow China’s strict “Zero-COVID” policy. One of the daily routines was self-testing and then uploading the results to the local government’s app. I don’t remember exactly when it stopped, but I do remember the early days: if you tested positive, especially in the first year or two, you were picked up by ambulance and taken to a centralized isolation facility.

Those were grim times. Imagine already feeling unwell and then being separated from your home and loved ones, only to be placed in an unfamiliar location with other sick strangers. It was isolating in every sense of the word.

Anyway, back to the covid antigen test that I just did - my wife, daughter, and I all stared at the test strip, watching it like it was about to tell us our fate. After about a minute, a faint line appeared - right at the "C" mark, the control line. That was a good sign in a way; it meant the test was working properly. With that line in place, all we could do now was wait to see if a second line would show up. If it did, that would mean a positive result.

Five minutes went by. Still nothing. I started to feel a tiny bit hopeful. Maybe this isn’t COVID after all? I thought - Maybe it’s just a nasty cold or the flu? But right as I finished that thought, a faint second line began to appear.

I was positive for COVID-19, again.

This time around, though, I wasn’t really upset or worried about having COVID. I’d been through it before, and while it definitely takes a toll, both mentally and physically - I knew what to expect. It wasn’t fun, but it wasn’t unfamiliar either. All the symptoms I was dealing with, as rough as they felt, were things I’d already faced once. I knew I could get through it.

I quickly got changed and headed to the local hospital to pick up some medication to help with the symptoms. Thankfully, COVID is now treated more like a common cold, no more mandatory isolation or hospital stays. You’re allowed to rest and recover at home, which is a huge relief.

So, it’s been a week since the symptoms from my second round of COVID-19 showed up. What’s different this time?

Well, quite a few things actually. Here’s how this bout compares to my first:

• Milder fevers: The first time I had COVID, my fever shot past 38°C and was stubbornly hard to bring down. Paracetamol would lower it for a couple of hours, but as soon as it wore off, the fever came right back, this continued for a week. This time, the fever has been much less intense and easier to manage.
• Less crushing fatigue: During my first infection, I was completely wiped out. I spent the first seven days basically glued to my bed, too tired to do anything. This time around, I actually managed to leave the house by day five—still tired, but at least semi-functional.
• Shorter sore throat: The sore throat during my first bout stuck around for a full week. This time, it was already easing up by day six. Huge win.
• Body aches didn’t overstay their welcome: Last time, my whole body ached for an entire week. This time, the aches cleared up by day four. Progress!

Just a quick reminder that this is only my personal experience. Everyone’s journey with COVID-19 is different. For some, it might hit harder; for others, it could be a lot milder.

As for me, I think I’ll need at least a few more days before I’m back to feeling 100%, but honestly, I’m just really thankful now, grateful to God that this second round has been easier to deal with.

Thanks for reading all the way through, I really appreciate it.

As of today, there’s a new variant, NB.1.8.1, circulating in 22 countries. So it’s still a good idea to stay cautious and look out for yourself and others.

Take care!!