Hypervigilance
Mar. 27th, 2020 04:49 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
tealinLast night and most of today I've had what I would call a 'tight throat.' I have an unusually prominent Adam's apple for someone anatomically female, and it's the feeling I get when something presses on it too long, like a new turtleneck or if I've fallen asleep face-down. It's sort of like the feeling you get just before you cry, only less acute.
Ordinarily I'd think nothing of it, but of course one of the first symptoms of Covid-19 is a sore throat, so ever since it turned up I've been paying excessive attention to it and trying to find a possible explanation. I didn't sleep on my face, and I haven't been wearing a turtleneck, but I did eat a whole bowl of MSG last night and forgot to refill my water bottle so maybe it's dehydration? And it's not exactly sore – I've had enough strep throats in my life to know the difference – it's just kind of tight. Usually my first sign of dehydration is a dry cough, something I learned very early in this whole adventure; that, I have not had, but is it different when it's chemical dehydration? Could it be the type of herbal tea I made this morning? But I didn't have that tea last night. Is it because I'm trying to sit up straighter so my jaw is putting pressure on my throat? And on, and on. I even decided to try hitting 'I'm not feeling quite right' in the symptom tracker app, but there was nowhere to report a sore throat – a surprising omission given that's a frequently cited first indication.
Anyway, it's gone now, so whatever it was (my money's on the MSG) it's out of my system. Doubtless there will be some new biological quirk to obsess over tomorrow. Isn't this fun.
19:31 GMT
Well, it's back, coincidentally(?) now I'm working at my desk again, rather than propped up in bed where I was most of the afternoon. That suggests it's something to do with this 'sitting up straight' thing that I'm trying out, rather than the old vulture posture. I suppose if I wake up with a cough tomorrow morning we'll know for sure.
Ordinarily I'd think nothing of it, but of course one of the first symptoms of Covid-19 is a sore throat, so ever since it turned up I've been paying excessive attention to it and trying to find a possible explanation. I didn't sleep on my face, and I haven't been wearing a turtleneck, but I did eat a whole bowl of MSG last night and forgot to refill my water bottle so maybe it's dehydration? And it's not exactly sore – I've had enough strep throats in my life to know the difference – it's just kind of tight. Usually my first sign of dehydration is a dry cough, something I learned very early in this whole adventure; that, I have not had, but is it different when it's chemical dehydration? Could it be the type of herbal tea I made this morning? But I didn't have that tea last night. Is it because I'm trying to sit up straighter so my jaw is putting pressure on my throat? And on, and on. I even decided to try hitting 'I'm not feeling quite right' in the symptom tracker app, but there was nowhere to report a sore throat – a surprising omission given that's a frequently cited first indication.
Anyway, it's gone now, so whatever it was (my money's on the MSG) it's out of my system. Doubtless there will be some new biological quirk to obsess over tomorrow. Isn't this fun.
19:31 GMT
Well, it's back, coincidentally(?) now I'm working at my desk again, rather than propped up in bed where I was most of the afternoon. That suggests it's something to do with this 'sitting up straight' thing that I'm trying out, rather than the old vulture posture. I suppose if I wake up with a cough tomorrow morning we'll know for sure.
