The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of COVID-19 Testing

Most of us have either been tested for COVID-19, or we know someone who has. Some are thinking about being tested just to be on the safe side of knowing their status to prevent the possible spreading of the disease to unsuspecting victims, as the virus may be spread without the carrier ever having a noticeable symptom.

When the outbreak first began, many fell into the latter category… Until we saw a visual representation of how the test would be done!

That looks like a swab going into the nose and beyond the ocular cavity to the back of the throat, where the specimen will be collected. A swab passing your eyeball? You initially gave it a hard pass, didn’t you?

However, for various reasons, many people began being tested.

What resulted is varying degrees of reviews. For some, it was slightly painful. Others describe the screening as being horrendous. Even more describe a feeling of discomfort but nothing unbearable. A very few said the test wasn’t bad at all.

For me, the test wasn’t the worst feeling in the world, but it certainly wasn’t the best. I had a general idea of what I’d experience. So, I told the nurse I would take a deep breath, close my eyes and tilt my head up. I didn’t want to see it coming and didn’t want to breathe during the process.

The screening wasn’t horrible for me. I instantly wanted to blow my nose, kinda like the annoying feeling of having a bug to fly up your nose, if you’ve ever experienced that. Once I was able to rub the odd feeling away from my nose, it was fine.

My daughter had an entirely different experience. She had inside both cheeks swabbed and then the back of her throat. Having had numerous flu and strep swabs in the past, she said this screening was much better.

Have you been tested? How has it gone for you? If you haven’t been tested, have others spooked you?