I got Covid just before Christmas - and now I have it again in January. How did this happen?
I’m Patient Zero in my house, the one responsible for hijacking our freedom for the second time.
I had Covid in early December and infected the whole house. So how could I possibly have it again?
Last Tuesday morning, I was bouncing around the gym, my heart rate slightly higher than usual and my energy levels slightly lower.
I put it down to a bad night’s sleep.
When I got back to my house, I took an antigen test kit as a precaution.
The plan was to escape to my colleague’s house to work for the day.
The idea of fleeing my bedroom-turned-office was exhilarating.
I did the antigen, boiled the kettle – and got an almighty shock when the two lines popped up: positive.
It had only been six weeks since I last had the virus.
It couldn’t be right, I said to myself.
So off I went again to do another one, also positive. The third one agreed. The subsequent PCR test result made it official. I had Covid – again.
In a panic, I rang my teacher friend who I’d been sweating with in the gym, urging her to do a home test.
Thankfully she hadn’t got into her classroom yet – and she was negative.
I’m the only one so far in my house who has the dreaded thing again.
But how? Am I an anomaly? Or is this more common than we think?
I’m double-vaccinated and was even offered a “Recovered from Covid cert” which would enable me to travel.
I wasn’t due the booster yet, precisely because I’d had Covid so recently. I assumed I’d be protected for months with all this immunity built up. When I got my PCR test done, the nurse said – in her opinion – they don’t know enough yet as to why reinfection is occurring.
I had to find out what was going on, so Professor Luke O’Neill came to the rescue.
He said reinfection is occurring with Omicron.
Professor O’Neill said: “Reinfection is possible because Omicron is so contagious but prior infection and vaccination still protects against severe disease.
“A major reason it happens is differences between us – we all have slightly different immune systems and so some might be more prone to reinfection, but again most will be protected from severe disease.”
The Trinity College biochemistry academic insists our immune systems vary in efficiency at various times too.
He added: “Luck also plays a part –someone might be exposed to a high level of virus during a particular encounter with someone who’s infected, and for whatever reason their immune system isn’t quite so active at that time, and so they get reinfected.”
The weird thing is I’m fine – asymptomatic and feeling healthy, thank God.
I locked us down and now cabin fever is dangerously setting in for a second time in two months.
We’re not designed to live together in the Big Brother house for weeks on end. Families are cracking up under the pressure of multiple quarantine experiences.
Aside from the virus, we’ll all have to mind our mental health.
