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Why you should wear a mask.. gardening.. [1]

['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.']

Date: 2023-12-13  

This is a cautionary tale.

Now, I'm normally a reasonably healthy middle aged guy. Not immuno compromised, have my flu shot and covid booster every 6 months, eats well, walks the dog, doesn't smoke...

But last month I got sick. Very very sick. And it came out of nowhere. On Sunday I was happily mowing the lawn, weeding and planting out a summer-crop in the veggie-patch.

Monday I was a bit tired and coughing. Tuesday I was disoriented, running a high fever, and by midnight it reached 40° Celsius (104° Fahrenheit). I was sweating profusely and shaking uncontrollably.

Early Wednesday morning I was semi-unconscious in Emergency.

I can't even begin to recount what it is like to have three IV cannula, a catheter and an oxygen feed hanging off your body, all at once, as you are being pumped full of medication and fluids, and the doctors are debating if they need to intubate you. "Uncomfortable" doesn't do it justice.

PCR tests quickly excluded Covid, Influenza and RSV. A chest X-ray and other tests confirmed Pneumonia and Sepsis.

Thankfully I responded well to IV antibiotics (and whatever else they gave me) and by Thursday afternoon I was feeling somewhat human again. I was still stuck in a hospital bed for another 4 days though.

My first reaction was: How could this happen so fast?

Turns out it is not uncommon for nasty bacteria to live in soil. Really really nasty bacteria like Legionella. My doctor said that had we waited another 24 hours, the mortality rate would be around 30%.

So, next time you decide to pot a plant, rake a veggie-patch or dig a hole: WEAR A MASK! It could save your life.

I should add my appreciation for modern medical science and the fabulous Australian Medicare system. As traumatic as this experience was, I got better real fast and I never had to pay for a thing.

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