Ricky and Sally

Ricky and Sally’s household became affected by Covid in 2021 when Sally tested positive. Despite also feeling unwell, Ricky continuously tested negative. However, Ricky now experiences a distortion to his taste and smell. Ricky and Sally were interviewed in October 2021.

Ricky and Sally are a married couple whose household was affected by Covid in 2021. Sally became aware that she had Covid when she began to experience cold symptoms and decided to test as a precaution before her aunt who had an upcoming surgery visited. The lateral flow test confirmed that Sally was positive for Covid.

Her symptoms included losing her sense of smell which she has thankfully now regained. Despite also feeling unwell Ricky continuously tested negative for Covid. The couple decided to not get PCR tests due to how difficult it would be to get their family of six (two adults and four children) to the testing centre. They had previously found it difficult when they had to get their 2-year old tested. Therefore, the family decided to isolate without getting PCR tests.

Although Ricky tested negative using lateral flow tests, 2-3 weeks after initially feeling unwell he began to experience a distortion in his sense of smell and taste. Even though Ricky does not smoke nor like the smell of cigarettes he now gets the overwhelming smell and taste of smoke and cigarettes. Ricky now uses Vicks to help distract his brain from the smell. At the time of interview, this symptom was still ongoing.

The couple also had trouble getting doctors’ appointments for their children during the pandemic. Sally and Ricky recount having to manage their daughter’s sporadic fever and rash at home as she would often get better before they could get an appointment. Their daughter’s fever and rash began at the same time as Sally’s Covid infection, yet the couple acknowledges they are unsure if it is related and what is causing these episodes.

While Ricky and Sally stopped attending play barns and other group areas for young children because of the spread of germs they have now decided to return, saying “we started doing that again because I just think the detrimental effect on little ones and not be able to, like we went back to toddler groups for the first time this week.”

Sally and Ricky’s two-and-half-year-old daughter has a ‘non-specific’ rash that comes and goes. They weren’t sure whether this was related to Covid, and neither was their GP.

Age at interview 40

Sally: He was really sort of unconcerned. Not in a kind of dismissive way, but just in a kind of, it could be anything kind of [laughs]. And bless her, she did have a little chest infection, so we was more focused on you know, and he was really positive about the fact that I had managed to get her into seeing him and have an appointment and he said, “Well done for persevering,” because they understand how hard it is, but she really did need antibiotics. And it was amazing because within hours of her having the first dose, she went from, you know, crying continuously to, you know, more her sunny side. So, but no, he didn't have a lot to say on it, bless him. But he wasn’t sort of dismissive, just I mentioned that we had had Covid and could it be something to do with, you know, because she’s had it. It predated the chest infection that she had. And he just kind of just shrugged a bit. I don't know. Nobody knows do they, so what can you say with any definitive, kind of. 
 
Ricky: The thing with it, it’s not just a rash, is it? On her skin, she’s got sort of like, they’re not blisters. You wouldn't describe them as blisters, but they’re like little bumps and they’re the bits that flare-up and it’s still on her skin now. You can see it. If you look closely at her face, she’s got like raised, almost like teenage spots, but they’re not because they’re not visible until they flare-up.
 
Sally: And when she gets hot and stuff and then suddenly it’s like, wow.
 
Ricky: She never, in fairness, she never had that prior and—
 
Sally: It’s not slapped cheek either by the way. She’s had that, it’s a different crazy red cheek thing that she gets.
 
Ricky: But it’s, the timing of the rash and sort of the bumpiness on her face, it sort of fits with when Sally was poorly, really. It never, it didn't really predate that. And Rosabell [oldest daughter] when she was—
 
Sally: Because at the time we wondered whether that was a sign that she’d—
 
Ricky: Yeah, well, you start thinking about, is it teething? Is it all of that. Is she allergic to strawberries or tomatoes? Because often those sort of things are issues. But, even when we’ve cut those out of her diet, it still does flare-up. So, it’s just a random, it could just be a random rash, but there could be some coincidence going on.

 

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Sally and Ricky’s young daughter complained of a ‘bumbly tummy’. They found it challenging to know whether their young daughter was experiencing Long Covid symptoms, as she couldn’t voice her feelings like an older child.

Age at interview 40

Sally: Yeah, she’s, she’s normally a very smiley, happy little thing, but she gets, yeah, quite upset with it at the same time. So, we don’t know what’s going on. Yeah, it’s hard to tell, ‘cos—

Ricky: Sometimes actually tired.

Sally: She always complained with a bumbly tummy at the same time. But I never know where she’s got that term for or whether she just uses that term for not feeling quite right.

Ricky: No, she has said, a bit bumpy.

Sally: Bumpy.

Ricky: Bumpy… but okay. But yeah, I think she, almost like when she gets overtired and was ready for a nap. She gets a bit whiney and you just, you just know she’s not right, but there doesn't, doesn't physically appear anything, apart from the, the red face doesn't appear physically anything you know, temperature wise and anything like that that’s anything to be concerned about.

Sally: Yeah, sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn't.

Ricky: Yeah, yeah. It’s, it’s a strange one. I think it’s probably you notice it, you don’t normally notice it first thing in the morning. It’s more later in the day. You probably say like lunchtime onwards. So, maybe as she gets more tired, naturally it just starts to present itself a bit more.

It’s a curious one.

Ricky: Yeah, but I think, if you think about Daisy, as much as she has this rash, you just don’t know, she can talk, she speaks. But, she can’t necessarily articulate when she’s saying to you you’ve got a bumbly tummy or whatever.

Sally: Yeah, we have no idea if she has any other symptoms.

Ricky: You, you don’t know, you know, going forward is that a bit like ME the chronic fatigue. Is she gonna be affected by that in the future. It’s hard to know. You know, it’s something you worry about. You hope they’re young enough in their immune system’s developing enough to not be affected. But you know, it’s still a fairly new disease ‘int it, so we don’t really know until it manifests itself in a few years’ time. I guess, for us, it’s a difficult one ‘cos we’re, well, we’re not old parents, but we’re older now and if we had that sort of weird smell thing, I do slightly wonder, you know, it’s not like I can’t do anything because I’m so, got chronic fatigue or something. But I guess the bit being I wouldn't know anyway, because I’d be tired anyway and so it’s, it’s hard having kids as you can imagine. They’re good fun, but they’re, they take a lot of your time up and generally are tiring. So, anything else like saps your energy, would, wouldn't be welcome. I wouldn't, I wouldn't say it’s a thing that keeps me up awake at night. But something we think about.

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