Since the pandemic began my wife and I and later our baby did really well to avoid covid - although we might ave had it very early on. We lived a fairly locked down life, initially at least in part for personal protection, but also for legal compliance and later when my wife got pregnant and since then to protect our infant son who is too young to be vaccinated and there is no certainty to how protected he is though his mother being vaccinated.

On that note, both she and I have been tripled jabbed and in my case it was three times Pfizer.

Now I am not naive enough to think that it makes me bulletproof. being vaccinated is like wearing a bulletproof vest - you can still get shot in the head.

Nonetheless in late April it was a real shock to find that despite taking precautions Covid finally got me. Fortunately both my wife and our little one had gone to her parents for a few days and while they delayed coming back as a result they managed to avoid it.

Coming back to Covid, there must have been a chink in my armour and it got through - a bit like how the arrow killed Smaug in The Hobbit by hitting the one place that wasn't protected. I don't know what this chink was but it found its way in and at first I didn't believe it.

It started one weekend with what I have since described as "Pfizer Headaches" in that they were similar to a side effect but only much more acute. I remember making the comparison at the time but thought there was no way it could be Covid and it must be a coincidence. These headaches were generally short lived but always came after waking up after the night's sleep or when having a nap and they were the worst headaches I have ever had in my life (and that is not a hyperbole).

By the next Friday my taste had all but disappeared and literally all I could taste was strawberry yoghurt and let me tell you food is disgusting when all you can feel is temperature and texture. I love bananas but for a time they were absolutely the worst.

This prompted me to have a test which came back positive. I called my wife who also didn't believe it and so I had a second test to confirm.

That weekend after confirming, Covid moved into my lungs and that is when it becomes more dangerous. As mentioned above I know somebody who got Covid early on and fortunately he gave me some respiratory exercises also mentioned above to do and once again they really helped. When it comes to Covid the one thing that is paramount is to keep your lungs working. I monitored my Saturation Level regularly and it dropped to 90 which is low enough to be concerned but not quite low enough to call the hospital. Doing the exercises immediately brought it back up to 94

The following Friday - a week after losing taste - another test showed that I was all clear only my taste hadn't returned and my mind was still fogging for sometime. My wife and baby came home the day after my negative test.

And where am I now almost three months later?

Well it seems I am still unwell!

Taste came back steadily and once more I can enjoy a banana, but in the last month the headaches have started again. They are sharp and only last a few minutes at a time and are worse than Pfizer but not as bad as Covid itself. I thought my brain was back in order but according to my wife it lacks its previous sharpness and I lose words and sometimes lose what I am saying all together. My short term memory is struggling but my long term memory is as excellent as ever.

I visited a doctor last Thursday and the preliminary assessment is that it could be long Covid and who knows what the long term consequences are. I went to a clinic today for some tests and the results will come back in time for me to have a follow up visit to a doctor on Thursday and then I should have a definite idea.

And for those among you who are sceptics I can tell you for sure that I have had chest infections and many headaches before in my life and this is notably very very different. I only had similar issues with my lungs once in my life before and that was at the beginning of the pandemic and my wife got the same thing and while it cannot be proven we suspect that while undiagnosed it was probably Covid then too. It was on that occasion that the friend gave us both the respiratory exercises for our lungs and it worked in both cases.

So please, please while the pandemic is officially over it is still out there so stay safe and stay well... and I will keep you posted.