Wigan councillor describes her recovery from Covid-19

Coun Debbie Parkinson has told how she was left “extremely frightened and struggling to breathe” as she battled coronavirus.
Coun Debbie ParkinsonCoun Debbie Parkinson
Coun Debbie Parkinson

Describing her experience as “scary”, the Standish with Langtree ward councillor for Labour said the deadly virus made her lungs feel like they were aching inside.

Coun Parkinson was given the bombshell news she had coronavirus last month - and is now recovering at home after two weeks of being ill.

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Her illness was made all the more worrying as she suffers from asthma and diabetes which puts her at greater risk than the general population.

Coun Parkinson, 63, from Standish, said: “I was told by my doctor around three weeks ago that I had coronavirus.

“I’d been having symptoms such as a headache, feeling tired and a fever and a cough, so that’s when I became worried.

“I was ill for two weeks and self-isolated at home and now I’m feeling normal again.

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“When I was at my worse, I would be feeling breathless and struggling to breathe.

“It was nasty and my lungs felt like they were aching inside.

“All of it was extremely frightening and scary.”

Continuing to describe her own experience, Coun Parkinson said the illness was different to just having flu.

She said: “The cough can last for several weeks and I still have that.

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“I would have this overwhelming feeling of tiredness and would have to sit down and rest every 10 to 15 minutes.

“I was bed bound for the first few days and I’ve just been drinking plenty of fluids and taking paracetomol to recover.

“Living alone and being ill is really scary not knowing what’s going to happen.

“The fear of the unknown is extremely frightening and everyone can have different symptoms and it affects people in different ways.

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“Coronavirus feels different to a cold or flu or any chest infection.

“I’ve never had anything like it and I’ve never had pneumonia before but it was more akin to that.”

Guided by her own experience, Coun Parkinson, wants to raise awareness and the importance of people observing the government’s strict lockdown rules.

Coun Parkinson, who works in the NHS as the Patient and Public Involvement Lead for the North West Coast at the Academic Health Science Network, said: “My advice to anyone who is worried they may have coronavirus symptoms is to contact their doctors or the NHS online service.

“It’s then important to stay at home and self-isolate.

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“I’m fully supportive of the government extending this lockdown and it’s important that people observe it, so the virus doesn’t spread.

“It’s the sensible and right thing to do.”

She added: “I’m working from home now and just trying to get back to normal.”

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