A local woman who tested positive for COVID-19 earlier this month is in recovery. Now she’s thanking local doctors for their quick response, before her health got any worse.
Debra Gunn was released from Doctor’s Regional Hospital on May 12; however a week before then, the 57-year-old retired nurse knew something was wrong.
"I could get up and no longer do little things, like trying to cook, or get up and walk to the other room without getting dizzy,” she said. “I was so weak-feeling."
Gunn didn’t go to the doctor’s office right away out of fear of catching the novel coronavirus, but eventually her symptoms got so severe that she was admitted to the emergency room, where she tested positive for the virus.
"I had an upset stomach, nausea, and vomiting," she said. "Nothing tasted good, I had no appetite. I was lucky I got there when I did. I was at the point where it was just getting worse."
Gunn said she considers herself lucky because doctors used plasma from recovered COVID-19 patients to treat her. She was one of the first patients in the Coastal Bend to be treated and recover after receiving that type of treatment.
"I think that it really helped boost my system right at the point where it was either going to get much better, or that it was going to get worse,” Gunn said. “And I think the timing could not have been any better."
After receiving the plasma treatment, Gunn said she got stronger every day. She was in the hospital for a week, and now she’s just thankful to be home with her family.
"Each day, I seem to get better, and after two days I wasn't needing oxygen anymore,” she said. “I’m just really grateful because I got lucky that everything went so well."
Gunn is now waiting on test results to confirm she is still negative for COVID-19. Gunn lives with her husband, who is also getting tested for coronavirus.