I had to get a Covid-19 test today as part of pre-admission testing before my surgery.  This surgery was supposed to take place in May, but due to “elective” surgery restrictions in my state, it was postponed. Also, trying to save my uterus is apparently elective, who knew? The number of cases in Ohio is much higher now than it was in May, but surgeries are back on, because this is how the US works right now. My own frustration level is “very high” at the moment.

I have no reason to believe I might have Covid-19.  I have no symptoms, and even my seasonal allergies have been very well behaved this year.  I have been socially distancing since March, I’ve been limiting my time in stores to almost none, visiting with family has been done mostly outdoors and always at least a few feet away (which is tough, because I really want to give my nephews hugs).  For the surgery, everyone needs to be tested a set time before the surgery and no fewer than 2 days so results can be in.

This was  a drive-up testing site.  The first stop was instructions and I was handed papers, which are currently in quarantine in the garage.  For the rest, I needed to keep my window 2 inches cracked, keep my mask on, and turn the car off and in park at the next two tents.

The first tent took the longest, and was entirely asking me background information (why was I being tested, who ordered the test, what my insurance is, etc.).  All of this info should have been in the system already because the hospital a.) knows I’m having surgery and b.) requested me to be tested.  Anyway, this part took about 10 minutes.

The second tent, I was handed a tube through the window, and a long swab on a thin plastic stick.  I was then instructed to tilt my head back, and jab this thing 3-4 inches up my nose.  The nurse watched as I did this.  Once in far enough, I was instructed to rotate the stick in my nose for 10 seconds, then pull it out, break the stick so the swab stays in the tube, and hand it all back to the nurse.  This part took about 3 minutes.

I thought the swab in my nose would be uncomfortable.  It was, but not really until the last 1/2 – 1/4 inch, when I’m hitting something deep inside the nasal passages.  I know this is incredibly uncomfortable for many, many people, and please don’t think I’m being condescending.  This was NOTHING compared to have a camera shoved in through my nose and down my throat to look at my larynx before my thyroid surgery, and then after the first surgery, and then a third time after the second thyroid surgery.  That was the absolutely worst part of my whole thyroid saga and I hated it so much.  So this Covid-19 testing, in comparison, was “super easy, barely an inconvenience”.  (In perspective to having a tube jammed through my nose and down my trachea.)

I drove home and took a shower and changed clothes, which is my “go to” anytime I’ve been around other people in a non-outside environment. I realize I was in the car and not really in contact with other people, but I’m trying my best to keep my home as safe as possible. Covid-19 testing done, awaiting results… or so I thought.

3 hours later… this is where the story takes a decidedly negative turn. At 3:54 pm, I receive a call notifying me that the fluid inside the tube had leaked, and that I needed to go back for another test. (The swab was placed in a tube that has fluid at the bottom. A cap is screwed on top. I guess the cap was not screwed on tightly or was off kilter. I do not know if I screwed the cap on or if the person I handed it to did.)  Since they did not realize this until when they were closing up for the day outside (4 pm), and I needed to have this done today so results would be available before my surgery, I would need to go inside to the emergency department, but that they would have everything ready to go in there for me.

I will say here, that I was not thrilled about needing to re-swab, but I know this is a necessary step for the surgery to happen, so I was staying positive and just following directions and went directly back to the testing site.

So… I drive over there (it is a 15-20 minute drive), at 4:10, go inside, get temperature checked (98.3), explain at the front desk why I am there, and immediately I feel that the “vibe” is off with the nurse who is going to swab me.  Clearly, this is an inconvenience for her to have to do this, and I understand.  It is also an inconvenience for me, sometimes it feels like the whole world is ganging up to prevent me from getting this fibroid surgery.  But I was there and ready to do another swab. 

I mentioned to her that the tube leaked and suggested that maybe I didn’t screw the cap on, I was just making small talk.  (I don’t remember being told to screw the cap on, but maybe it was my fault?)  The nurse then tells me that I didn’t get enough sample, despite me knowing for a fact that that is not what happened, she wasn’t at the tents, she was in the emergency department, and clearly does not know.  And, if they could tell I didn’t get enough sample (which, by the way, is not something you can just look at the swab and say “wow, lots of virus there”, that is not how swabs work), then surely they would have had me do another one right there, while I was there the first time. I did not say any of that though. I just kept quiet and waited to be reswabbed.

This time, I was not offered the opportunity to swab myself.  Instead, the nurse shoves the swab in my nostril, and my head must have jerked back, because I was then told “if you move your head back then I have to go digging,” after the swabbing was done.  I apologized for moving my head.  Of course, I have less control over what my head does when things get shoved 3-4 inches up my nose when I’m not the one doing the shoving, and it was honestly “much less painful” when I was doing it myself, even though I was inserting it to the same depth, because I was going much slower. I’ve had cameras shoved down my throat, I’ve many had needles jabbed into my neck, I’ve had numerous IV blood draws, and all of those things involved my head (or arm) resting on a surface where it is impossible to move back, no one has ever yelled at me for flinching until now, and I can’t really control involuntarily movements like that.

I then spent the 15 minute drive home, the wiping down the steering wheel with Lysol sheets, the second shower, and about 20 more minutes after all of that in tears, crying, because I felt awful about this experience.  I think maybe this is bringing up some negative emotions of when I was trying to diagnose my thyroid problem and was told by my doctors that nothing was wrong with my thyroid, that I didn’t have hypothyroidism, and then later that I needed surgery, that I had thyroid cancer, that I needed a second thyroid surgery all in a matter of two months.  My trust of medical professionals is tenuous at times, and so far my experiences in hospitals for surgeries and my experience with my gynecologist who is doing the upcoming surgery have been positive, but in general, it doesn’t take much to set me off.  I have no idea what my hormones are doing and why I’m even crying about this, but this is what happened today (on and then off and now back on Lupron Depot has been a hormonal roller coaster).

My guess is most people getting tested for Covid-19 probably don’t want to be tested, and are just doing their best to keep it together.  A little bit of kindness and maybe a “I’m sorry, I know that hurts,” would have gone a long way today instead of yelling at me for moving my head, which I wasn’t even conscious I was doing.  Also, implying that it might be my fault my first test was screwed up, when the people on the phone explained that the tube leaked the liquid and it was not any wrong doing on my part, wasn’t a great start either.

I realize the nursing staff are under tremendous pressure during these difficult times, but I also am dealing with “a lot”, and somehow still manage to treat people with kindness and respect.

Again, I have zero reason to believe I might have Covid-19.  I am just doing what I am required by the hospital to do to get this surgery.  Surgeries always cause a lot of anxiety leading up to them for me.  The first swab was fine, and I was keeping anxiety in check, and actually feeling good this afternoon.  Now, 3 hours after the second swab, I feel calmed down, but it was such an unpleasant experience.

Hopefully the test will come back negative and my surgery will still happen this week.