I am a living long-term consequence of a virus
Seems like everyone is the United States is now an expert for our society, the economy, and our individual health decisions due to COVID-19. Wear a mask, do not wear a mask, social distance, use hand sanitizer, wash your hands… STOP CRITICIZING ME KAREN! Just like in politics, lurkers on social media form their opinion(s), dig their feet in, rarely admit to being wrong when their opinion(s) (their hypothesis) are proven inaccurate, and then they do nothing but argue. This accomplishes NOTHING and most often leaves most posters looking like idiots. Much of what is on the inter-webs relating to COVID-19 (coronavirus) is pseudo-science and/or an unproven hypothesis. What happens to the body after they recover from COVID-19? Will there be any long-term complications? Lung damage? Neurological issues? The truth is, we just do not know enough yet about COVID to draw many causations just yet. Regardless of the viral type, I am a living, breathing, long-term consequence of a viral contraction. How does this influence your decision on how to interact with COVID? Does it change anything?
Researchers believe that viral infections may be associated with the onset of the disease (Type 1 Diabetes).
TYPE 1 DIABETES: a brief intro
For the reader that is just discovering My Common Sense, here is a brief explanation of Type 1 Diabetes courtesy of the CDC. If you already know what Type 1 is, skip this section.
Type 1 Diabetes: People of all ages can develop type 1 diabetes.
If you have type 1 diabetes, your pancreas does not make insulin or makes very little insulin. Insulin is a hormone that helps blood sugar enter the cells in your body where it can be used for energy. Without insulin, blood sugar cannot get into cells and builds up in the bloodstream. High blood sugar is damaging to the body and causes many of the symptoms and complications of diabetes.
Type 1 diabetes (previously called insulin-dependent or juvenile diabetes) is usually diagnosed in children, teens, and young adults, but it can develop at any age.
Type 1 diabetes is less common than type 2—approximately 5-10% of people with diabetes have type 1. Currently, no one knows how to prevent type 1 diabetes, but it can be managed by following your doctor’s recommendations for living a healthy lifestyle, managing your blood sugar, getting regular health checkups, and getting diabetes self-management education and support.
Background
Around age 1-2yrs old, I began running a high fever, was admitted to the hospital, and was diagnosed with a virus; I never learned what type, etc. I was too young to recall anything about this event and only heard about it from my parents and the other family members that were around during my brief but impactful stay in the hospital. I was told that I received treatment, got better, was discharged, and had no visible complications days, weeks, or months, after recovering.
Less than 5-6 years later (in 1988), I was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes without any family history on either side of my family for at least 5 generations. You can read more about my diagnosis, history, etc. via other blog posts, here are a few links:
Ascending Diabetes: Trial, Error And Keeping It Simple
You're A Prick....Away From Having Diabetes
If you Google Causes of Type 1 Diabetes, this is the first article that comes up from the JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation): Causes of Type 1 Diabetes
Checkout the 2nd paragraph under the section entitled, T1D onset factors and triggers:
Viral infections: Researchers believe there can be triggers, such as viral infections, that may be associated with the onset of the disease. For this reason, developing a viral vaccine may be one way to prevent T1D.
You can also find other links here with similar information:
… and there are MANY more…
It was not until my teenage years that I began to learn more about why I was diagnosed with Type 1. When we moved to Charleston, SC in 1994, I began to see Dr. Lyndon Key (endocrinologist). Dr. Key was a research physician and specialized in growth hormone disorders, but also saw diabetic patients as well. (You can insert your own short joke here…)
Dr. Key was the first physician to suggest that my diabetes may have been triggered by the virus I had earlier in life. He also entered me into a medical study based on my history. Unfortunately, I cannot locate the paper that is associated with that study. Once I learned where my diabetes possibly came from, I better understood the phrase “shit happens.”
While I will never be able to prove a direct causation between this virus and my diabetes, there is enough of a correlation for me to be mostly confident that this virus caused my Type 1 Diabetes. When I contracted this virus, it likely triggered some type of Autoimmune reaction to occur inside of my body, it may have also altered my DNA (turning receptors on or off). After that change took effect, it took several years for symptoms of this reaction to appear. Think about a very wet sponge that is being squeezed slowly until ceases to drip. Essentially, that is what happened to my pancreas. It slowly continued to drip insulin until the beta cell faucet was slowly turned down, then off completely.
Long Term from COVID-19
Now that researchers, scientists, doctors, etc. have had several months to play with the coronavirus under a microscope, there are several initial studies that are showing that COVID-19 may have some long-term side effects for some patients.
Neurological
Here are a few links for you to review:
There are many others you can read and review.
Does this mean that everyone that gets COVID will have some type of neurological side effect, no, but since COVID is not yet fully understood, nothing is certain?
Respiratory
Why your health may never be the same after Covid-19 – The BBC
What Long-Term Effects Could COVID-19 Have on Your Lungs? – Banner Health
Again, there is not enough research at this time to show exactly what percentage of people will have long term respiratory side effects from COVID-19.
The uncertainty of the future for COVID-19 survivors is why several long-term studies (that study genetic and environmental factors in large groups) have been redirected to study the physical consequences of the pandemic.
There may be hundreds or even thousands of potential side effects that we do not yet know about that could pop up weeks, months, or even years after recovery. There also maybe many complicating factors for those that are experiencing longer than normal side effects. We just do not know enough yet….
My Common Sense and how I respond to COVID-19
I know what life could look like after a virus causes a life altering side effect. Given my immunocompromised state as a Type 1 diabetic and my ability to think for myself after researching what I believe to be mostly accurate information, I have chosen to react to COVID-19 with varying degrees of questioning and concern.
First consideration, you cannot live life in a bubble. We are humans and all humans are social creatures. We want to, need to, and must have social interaction to maintain good long-term health (HINT: social media is not healthy social interaction). Being lonely and without social interaction for an extended period may be just as bad as smoking.
Second consideration, the government will never make a policy that is good for everyone, maybe anyone. As a Libertarian, I am NOT a fan of big government, especially the Federal version, telling me to do or not to do anything. I am more inclined to listen to state and local government advice, but even that can be tricky. In most cases, I believe citizens that follow the federal government’s recommendations for good health during COVID-19 are likely to cause more harm to themselves and those around them than those that do not since those bipolar recommendations shift from one day to the next.
Third consideration, information is widely available albeit very misleading, but everyone has the information. Everyone knows that masks reduce your chances of contraction along with hand washing, hand sanitizer, social distancing, etc. Since everyone has the information, everyone can make their own decision as to how they will and should interact with the world around them. Some choose not to wear a mask in indoor public places as sign of protest or freedom. I think those people are idiots, but I will not challenge their right to make that decision for themselves. I only hope that they are not an a-symptomatic carrier. Either way, if you venture out in public, you are choosing to accept the increased probability of contracting coronavirus and the consequences that entails.
Final Consideration, I will not live in fear, but I will proceed with caution. The novel-coronavius is not going to end our species, it is also not fake news. It is somewhere in the middle. It is killing people, but not likely as bad as the media portrays. Its origination is also looking to be human influenced meaning, that humans played some role in creating the virus. We may never know where it came from, but it's here, and somehow, someway, life must go on. Our family is proceeding with caution, we are not locking down, and not roaming around like nothing has changed since the beginning of 2020. Normally the middle is the best place to be when information is not fully available.
If I had the opportunity to go back to 1982 and somehow had the self-awareness as a 1yr old to put a mask on to protect myself from an unforeseen viral intruder, would I do it? I am not sure… If I had chosen to put on a mask, I likely would have worn one for most of my life. If the decision were wearing a mask for your life or get Type 1 diabetes, I would choose Type 1 Diabetes 9 times out of 10. However, that 10th time might be the one that diabetic complications cause my death.
If you want to have a constructive conversation about this or anything else, message me, and let's grab coffee or a beer.
Have a good one,
Dan