LANCASTER, Wis. – Katie Reuter, 35, has made a living helping others as a nurse at Homeward Bound. When you are not caring for others at work, you are caring for your family at home.
Her son Jack, 9, was diagnosed with T-cell leukemia in February 2019. Her father, who lives next to her, is 82 years old, has chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and is a smoker.
Reuter said she takes every precaution to keep herself and others safe and healthy from the virus, but last Tuesday the virus reached her.
In a Facebook post, Reuter said he started experiencing symptoms last Tuesday. She described her intense migraines, burning cough, sweating, and the feeling of being hit by a truck. Reuter tested positive for COVID-19 last Thursday.
“It is literally my biggest fear since this all started,” he said.
Reuter said her children, Jack and Lily, 5, come and go between her home and her parents’ house often. Reuter said he was afraid that one of his children might have spread the virus to his parents. Reuter said her children tested negative, but her experience in treating COVID while she was quarantined away from her family has been difficult.
“I have not been able to eat or drink much or I am nauseated. I have returned to the hospital twice for different liquids or medications to help, ”he said.
Reuter said she now has to watch her children play out the window as she fights COVID alone. She said this is the longest amount of time that she has been away from them and has not been able to sustain them. She said it has been especially difficult because she wants to make sure her son stays healthy.
“I have done a lot to keep him healthy since he was diagnosed and this has just added a lot to all of that,” Reuter said.
While her immune system is compromised, Reuter said she is also concerned that she has been in contact with her father, who has a weakened immune system with his underlying health conditions.
“This virus is not a joke. This is not a hoax and it is not political. No one should feel what I had to feel last week, “he said.
Reuter said that not being able to help others and being close to his family has been a unique experience. As he makes his way to recovery and eventually back to work, he said he hopes his experience can be a reminder that people continue to take the virus seriously.
“I just wish people would come on board wearing masks and trying to care about everyone in our community and not just about ourselves.”
COPYRIGHT 2020 BY CHANNEL 3000. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. THIS MATERIAL CANNOT BE PUBLISHED, TRANSMITTED, REWRITTEN OR REDISTRIBUTED.
