Take It In The Ass: Staying Healthy In A COVID World

Let me start by saying we are 100% aware that you don't get a vaccine in the ass. They put it in your arm. However, if we titled this "Take It In The Arm" you probably wouldn't be reading right now.  

Since you're here. You might as well keep reading. I actually started writing this post weeks ago and everyday I've had to go back and edit it.

“I can’t breathe….I don’t want to die.”

This was a message I received from my mother 35 days ago. 

My mother was admitted to the hospital with COVID-19 on August 25th. 

She was 72 years old. She lived a sedentary life, had severe seasonal allergies and asthma.  No other medical issues.

My step-father is 63 years old. He works at a steel mill, is in pretty good shape, and has no underlying health conditions.

He was admitted to the hospital on August 30th with COVID-19, 5 days after my mother.

Both of them presented with COVID viral pneumonia and extremely high fevers. 

I won't go into the treatments and medications they received while in the hospital or the hospital protocols.  And I certainly won’t entertain all of the crazy COVID tips, tricks, and potions people sent me.

I will say this, I believe that the doctors and nurses have done and continue to do everything they can to help my mom and dad.  

The doctors and nurses are overwhelmed. The hospital currently has 80 COVID-19 patients. For almost 30 days, my parents were in the Pulmonary Critical Care unit.  Each nurse had 8 critical patients to care for. They were over-worked and exhausted and yet they took the time to call me every single day and answer every question and concern.

They had both been on the BiPap for over 20 days to force adequate oxygen into their lungs. The COVID viral pneumonia caused severe damage to their lungs. Everyday we were told they were both at high risk of being ventilated. 

Hospital policy doesn’t allow visitors for COVID-19 patients.  Even though we didn't like the policy, we understand it. We are in the middle of a pandemic. COVID is extremely contagious.

We respect the hospital staff and are thankful that they made concessions for my brothers and I to visit with my parent three different times.

Seeing them both gasping for every breath and seeing the fear in their eyes is by far the most horrific and heartbreaking thing I’ve ever experienced.

Our hope was that the short time we visited would give them the will to keep fighting.

I’m sharing this to bring awareness to those who refuse to get vaccinated.

I respect your right to choose. My parents had that right. They chose not to get vaccinated. 

Right now, if they could go back in time, they would have gotten the vaccine.

I know this because on one of the visits my mother held her hand up and mimicked giving someone a shot. She pleaded with my unvaccinated brothers to get vaccinated. 

I’ve spoke with the hospital administrator and the chief medical officer at the hospital. They don’t have a single patient that is there because of the vaccine.

They have one patient in the COVID unit who was vaccinated and that patient had an autoimmune disease and other co-morbidities.

I don’t need to watch the news or read reports, I’ve seen what COVID-19 can do first hand. It’s horrifying. 

8 days ago, on Sept 21st, my mother was emergency intubated and put on the ventilator. My father followed two days later.

4 days ago, on Sept 25th, the Doctor and the pulmonologist called me to the hospital and told me she had very little chance of recovery. Her organs were starting to shut down.

They allowed me to stay with my mom for 4 hrs as I called each of my 4 brothers and her 7 siblings and held the phone to her ear so they could tell her they love her.  I don't know if she could hear or not. 

I spoke with the ICU Nurse caring for my mom. She told me, “This is what COVID does. This new variant is more aggressive than the last. There is no rhyme or reason to who it affects. We have all age groups from teens to the elderly up here on ventilators. All but 1 of them is unvaccinated.” 

She’s been working in the COVID ICU for two years. 

2 days ago, on Sept 27th, I held my mother's hand and at 3:26AM she took her last gasping breath.

My father is still on a ventilator in the ICU.  The ICU is full with COVID-19 patients. There are currently 3 ventilated patients in overflow rooms waiting on an ICU bed.

Please, get vaccinated.

If you won’t get vaccinated, then I beg you to wear a mask and take every precaution you can to boost your immune health.

I have no agenda here. This isn’t political. This comes from a place of love and care.

Here are 5 Things You Can Do To Boost Your Immune Health:

1. Exercise

Activity greatly increases your immune system and your body’s ability to fight off attacks. We recommend no less than 30mins of activity 3-4 times a week. Our Naughty Gym online programming is perfect for that, however, any activity that elevates your heart rate and gets you a good sweat will do.

2. Eat Well: Consume More Fruits And Veggies

Most people are not getting the micronutrients they need, ie., folic acid, vitamins A, B6, C and E, iron, zinc etc., from their daily diet.  Increasing your consumption of fruits and vegetables can help.  Try to eat a variety of different fruits and vegetables.  I like to make a game of it and eat the colors of the rainbow everyday.

This helps prevent me from eating the same thing every single day and missing out on the yummy micronutrients in different foods.  Though most of us will still need a daily multivitamin. 

3. Get Quality Sleep

Poor sleep quality is linked to increased risk of sickness. When you enter the REM stage of sleep it allows your body to shut-down and recharge. This is when it repairs and restores itself. 

If you have trouble sleeping, try limiting your screen time an hour before bed or try one of the many meditation apps to help you quiet your mind and slow your breathing. Set a goal to get 6+ hours of sleep a night.

4. Hydrate

While drinking water won’t inherently boost your immune system, the process of staying hydrated will.

Water helps carry oxygen to your body cells, which helps your body function properly. It also helps to remove toxins from your body. So drinking more water can help prevent toxins from building up and having a negative impact on your immune system.

5. Limit Alcohol and Tobacco

Our lungs are extremely vulnerable and an easy target for respiratory viruses. Smoking damages your lungs, undermines basic immune defenses, and raises the risk of bronchitis, pneumonia, and more.

Excessive alcohol consumption impairs the immune system and makes your body more susceptible to infections because most of the body’s energy is being expended on flushing out your system. 

You're an adult. No one needs to tell you that it's important to eat your veggies or to quit smoking. We are here to help if you need extra accountability or don't feel like you can do it on your own.  You're not alone.  

We understand that even with the vaccine you can still get COVID. Please, vaccinated or not, take every precaution within your control to guard yourself and your loved ones. It's a small price to pay to maximize the time you have left with those you love.