Beyond Exhausted

When I got up out of bed this morning, I only got as far as the kitchen (directly from the bedroom while on the way toward the bathroom) before I told Sheila I was already ready for a nap!  Since then, all I need to do is walk from one room to another before needing to sit down to take a break to restore some energy.  Then I walk another 10-20 feet and I need to sit down to take a rest again.  To say that I am "exhausted" is a gross understatement.  I am what I would consider to be dangerously low on energy.

Since we arrived back home from Manhattan a few days before Christmas, I have spent most of my time either in bed or on the couch.  This has been my view from the couch...  and, for a change of pace, I sometimes sit in that armchair...

Most of the time, I've had a camera or two at my side hence the snapshots here in this blog today.  Below is a photo of my favorite camera, my Sony a7 which is about nine years old at this point.  I shot this using my less-than-favorite Panasonic Lumix GX8 with a Leica lens.  The Leica lens is sharp which is what one should expect from Leica glass so I like this lens.  Actually, I use the Panasonic GX8 mostly as a high-end webcam for medical televisits as well as sometimes for wildlife photography.  That being said, I definitely prefer the images produced by the Sony a7 camera though.  The two are not even close.

Although I am getting a bit winded when I walk from one room to the next and I am so overwhelmingly exhausted, my O2 saturation level has continued to be in the acceptable range.  That is, without a doubt, good news.  An O2 saturation level consistently below 95% would explain my fatigue but my O2 level does not seem to be contributing to my overwhelming fatigue.  I suppose that is good news but I now wonder why I am this fatigued.  Perhaps my fatigue level is so overwhelming because I normally experience overwhelming fatigue on a slightly less severe level due to my primary illness even on a good day.  Perhaps it is as simple as I'm exhausted because of this little cellular war happening, all day, every day, inside my body.  Now we've added this debilitating virus to my body...

This next photo reminds me that I need to do some more laundry.  There are a few stains on my sweatpants which is very unlike me!  I highly doubt that will happen today though.

I have no fever most of the time now but the fever does return every now and then though.  My throat is still a little scratchy.  I have a sinus headache almost all the time but my nose is no longer running... well..  it is still running but I only need to blow my nose about once an hour now...  typically, I never have to blow my nose.  I've already finished my course of antibiotics to clear up the sinus infection but, since I still have a sinus headache and I am still blowing out opaque white and even some green mucus a few times a day, I would not be surprised if the sinus infection doesn't completely clear up without throwing more antibiotics at it.  

Also, I am very uncomfortable.  I have significant bone and joint pain and generally feel as though everything hurts.  And, as I've mentioned already, I am ridiculously exhausted.  

At this point, I really do think this will be yet another very long-lasting, lingering and debilitating COVID infection.

UPDATE:  8pm - We had a decent dinner (penne and meatballs) and now just sitting in the living room before heading to bed for the night.  I was feeling a bit worse so I checked my temperature and found that I have a fever again.  I'm at 99.8 degrees.  

This is very much like the first time I had COVID back in 2020, unfortunately.  My spinal injuries are screaming...  my joints hurt...  and my bones ache.  What is odd is that this is actually the best I've felt today!  

None of this, particularly the pain, is helping my attitude, tolerance and patience in the least.