COVID-19 survivor shares detailed account of experience

A Filipino man who recovered from the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has lived to tell the very long story of his recovery.?

Rogelio Bueno Jr., who claims to be “Patient No. 358,” wrote a lengthy post Facebook about how a simple fever at home progressed into a terrifying fight for his life in a hospital.

"(My wife) Joanna was telling me, 'baka COVID na yan.' I was in denial, 'malakas katawan ko and ang taba ko, di ako tatablan niyan' was my response."

According to Rogelio, he acquired  37.8 C- fever, took paracetamol, and slept it off. When he awoke in the middle of the night, he had some kimchi "because it seems I had lost my sense of taste."

When he woke up the next day, his fever was at 38.8 C. He had a difficulty in breathing but he attributed it to his wearing a surgical mask. 

He slept it off again and when he woke feeling weak, he decided to go to the hospital, for some blood tests and urinalysis.

While waiting for the results, he went back home and started self-isolating. After a few days of on-off fever and difficulty in breathing, he was brought to the emergency room and got tested for COVID-19.

By then, he couldn't even feel the needles anymore because his main priority was to keep breathing. He was having a difficult time doing so.

That evening, he remembered being so scared. “Ambata pa ni Joanna para maging widow, mamamatay ako na di ko man lang na-enjoy buhay ko, sana may baby kami para at least may remembrance,” he recalled thinking.

What made Rogelio's case worse that he was "asthmatic, diabetic and hypertensive." Rogelio's condition reportedly came to a point where his wife had to tell him to keep fighting for his life.

“I was already giving up and was preparing myself for the worse, my wife was crying but she kept saying, ‘Laban, kaya mo yan!’ She told me to pray together and just concentrate on getting better, telling me to repeat, ‘Gagaling ako, may purpose pa ako’,” he added.

But after enduring several days of medicine, tests, and an immense amount of pain at the hospital, Rogelio said he received “the greatest news” on Day 14:

“I was asymptomatic and for discharge.”

Rogelio said his family members, including his mom, had gone into  a 14-day quarantine “because they were exposed to me.” He also had to take some and precautionary measures after coming home for the sake of his family.

But at the heart of his post, the COVID survivor expressed his gratitude to his wife for being "his rock," his friends, family and "prayer warriors" for the support, and the doctors, nurses, and staff at the hospital for restoring his health.

"Now, I'm just happy to be alive. I will take this opportunity to cherish my family and loved ones more, to be a better person and to live life to the fullest. I'm patient 358, and I'm a COVID-19 survivor."

Department of Health (DOH) said a total 42 people have recovered from COVID-19 in the Philippines as of Sunday.

However, the total number of confirmed cases rose up to 1,418 as of Sunday, as more tests were conducted. At least 71 people have succumbed to the disease.

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