i was sick when i wrote this :( by Jenny B. '25

It finally happened. I got Covid. Right at the last week of IAP⁠01 Independent Activities Period, which runs throughout most of January when I was just about to prep materials for my spring classes, I got a positive test last Wednesday and had to quarantine in my room.

I feel a lot better compared to the first few days of Covid, but because I’m still feeling weak, I’m gonna just write this post on the spot and then schedule it to get published right after. I usually spend a significant time editing these posts, but I wanna go lie down and watch more Hermitcraft after this, so yeah. This is pretty much the equivalent of posting the rough draft.

I had a close contact with someone on Sunday who tested positive for Covid a few days after. The Saturday night before that, I had went with my friends to Harvard and ran into two freshmen, and we ended up chatting with them until like midnight. My brain is filled with too much snot right now to remember what we talked about, but I remember there’s a whole debate over there about whether El Jefe’s Taqueria or Felipe’s Taqueria is better. Anyway, I was really tired by Sunday, so my immune system had already taken a hit by the time I was exposed to Covid.

Monday was fine. Tuesday was mostly fine, but I developed a slight headache and a sore throat towards the end of the day. I found out about the close contact I met on Sunday. I told my roommate Fatima that it felt sus and that we should probably put on masks.

I got a positive test on Wednesday. Woke up with a raging headache, and my throat was burning. Had slight bodyache, chills, nausea, all of that juicy virus stuff. I was mega bummed out. Fatima and I had been taking a swim class together over IAP so we could complete our swim requirement,⁠02 MIT undergraduates have to fulfill a swim requirement by either passing the MIT Swim Test, or taking a swim class and Wednesday was the very last day of the class. We were actually going to swim in the deep pool! But alas. Covid struck before I got to take one final dip.

After we reached out to Covid support systems on campus, Fatima was able to find a place to stay in Tang Hall, a grad residence right next to Next House. I felt really bad. Kicking my roommate out a week before the semester starts is not a vibe.

Wednesday wasn’t the worst day, though. Thursday and Friday were hell. It was bad and gross and sweaty.

Covid obviously wreaked havoc on my physical state, but I didn’t expect it to make me into a hot emotional mess. My emotional threshold was so low that I cried over some of the dumbest things. Like caterpillars, because of how fragile they are. And I usually think caterpillars are kind of gross.

I watched so much Hermitcraft over the past few days. It’s a series that I started watching way back in my senior year of high school, but I got behind on Season 9 during this past fall semester. It was great to finally catch up on everything that’s been happening. On the worst days of Covid, I literally woke up watching Hermitcraft and went to sleep watching Hermitcraft.

In between, I finally watched Puss in Boots: The Last Wish. Loved the art and loved the story. I didn’t expect such an accurate portrayal of anxiety in an animated movie about a talking cat. I also listened to a bunch of musicals, something that I haven’t done in a while. Stuff like Les Mis, Hadestown, and Groundhog Day.

After the hell combo that was Thursday and Friday, I started feeling a little better. Changing up medication helped. But I could also now walk to the restroom without feeling like I was going to faint in the middle of the hallway. Which is great. My appetite was also coming back again, slowly but surely. But every so often, I’d get these nasty coughing fits that would last whole minutes.

Sunday started off rough because the fire alarm went off at Next House early in the morning. I was weak, distressed, and very pissed off. The rest of the day was fine, though. I definitely felt much better than I have in the past few days.

I still feel pretty crummy because the semester’s about to start, and it looks like I’m going to have to take off at least one day of classes. I also have to finish up a UROP⁠03 Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program proposal that I have to work on with my direct supervisor so I can send it to the UROP office and get funding. I’ll get to all of that once I get over this stinking virus, though.