– I do not understand speech in company, I do not hear music, I watch TV with subtitles. I don’t know what someone with his back to me is saying. I have a two-year-old granddaughter who starts talking. I do not understand him, and I would love to participate in his growing up and enjoy the newly spoken words – says Dorota, who lost her hearing after COVID-19. To the doctors who looked after her during her hospitalization, she has a grudge. If they hadn’t ignored her pleas for a quick specialist consultation, perhaps she would have heard today. “Sometimes I regret waking up,” she admits.
- Dorota is 46 years old. She fell ill with COVID-19 in March 2021. The course was difficult, a respirator was needed. She spent five weeks under it
- Rehabilitation after waking up was almost instant. The only exception was hearing, which has not returned to this day
- – The current doctors say that in the hospital they should send me in for treatment within 24 hours. Today it is too late for them – he says
- The only salvation for Dorota is a good quality hearing aid, which she cannot afford at the moment. As a result of COVID-19 and complications, she had to quit her professional activity
- You can find more such stories on the TvoiLokony home page
From a scratchy throat to a respirator
52. This is the saturation measured by paramedics who come to one of the apartments in Września on March 29, 2021. The patient was hospitalized in a critical condition. The next day – a respirator.
10. So many days earlier, Dorota felt sick. Symptoms typical of COVID-19: scratchy throat, tiredness, slight fever. After five days of improvement, no improvement, the temperature remains at 38 degrees Celsius.
Teleportation, test, positive, medication. Two days later, a cough appears, which is extremely tiring, making it difficult to function and sleep. Doctor again, drug change, nothing again. The breathlessness is getting stronger, but the 112 dispatcher says it is a panic attack refuses to send an ambulance.
A day later, Dorota cannot get out of bed anymore. An ambulance is coming. Hospital, one and a half days under high-flow oxygen. Saturation goes up to 90 but then drops below 80 again. Decision to ventilator, intubation, trip to another hospital.
90. This is the percentage of lung involvement of the coronavirus that the attending physicians saw on X-rays. The respirator on the settings of about 80 percent. After three days, the kidneys refuse to obey. An antibiotic helps, but the respirator still has to work at high speed.
The twitch is only visible after two weeks. The lungs regenerate, but there is a rash and a high, nearly 40-degree fever. Doctors suspect sepsis, but it turns out to be a side effect of the drug. Substance change and finally a breakthrough. The coronavirus test is negative three times. Dorota returns to the city hospital.
The rest of the text below the video.
Dormant hearing
Bake. The pharmacological coma into which Dorota was introduced lasts these many weeks. On April 30, 2021, the respirator is disconnected. The patient breathes through the tracheotomy tube and wakes up poorly. Doctors warn about possible neurological disorders. After a week, Dorota is ventilator-free, conscious, and logically responding. He doesn’t speak yet and doesn’t get up, but he can finally see his loved ones.
Have you passed COVID-19 and are you concerned about your health? Get tested. You can find a research pack for convalescents in the Medonet Market.
Third. This day of June stuck in my memory, it is a return home. There are no forecasted neurological disorders, but there is something that disturbs Dorota: she hardly hears. It turns out that in the right ear he has a complete hearing loss, the loss in the left one reaches 80 percent.
Doctors ignore the problem. They argue that this is not the most important thing. Dorota does not see the laryngologist and audiologist until after a month.
The specialists are shocked. In the case of an ear infarction, as it is said, treatment should begin within 24 hours. It’s too late now. Nobody wants to go to therapy.
– I have a grudge against the doctors from the hospital that they ignored my requests for a quick specialist consultation – admits Dorota. “Sometimes I wish I’d woken up,” she adds.
Due to COVID-19, a hospital stay and a hearing loss, she had to quit her job. He is trying to extend his pension. It uses a hearing aid, but the quality of it leaves much to be desired. He’s collecting money for the better. This is the only chance she can hear anything.
– I have a two-year-old granddaughter who starts talking. I do not understand him, and I would love to participate in his growing up and enjoy the newly spoken words – he confesses. – I do not understand speech in company, I do not hear music, I watch TV with subtitles. I don’t know what someone with their backs to me or behind my back is saying. This is truly a tragedy – he adds.
If you want to help Dorota, you can donate any amount as part of the fundraiser for a new hearing aid. Each amount will bring her closer to improving the quality of life after COVID-19.
Have you been through COVID-19 and want to share your story with us? write on [email protected]!
We encourage you to listen to the latest episode of the RESET podcast. This time Joanna Kozłowska, author of the book High Sensitivity. A Guide for Those Who Feel Too Much »says that high sensitivity is not a disease or dysfunction – it’s just a set of characteristics that affect the way you perceive and perceive the world. What are the genetics of WWO? What are the perks of being highly sensitive? How to act with your high sensitivity? You will find out by listening to the latest episode of our podcast.