The Story of Rachel Pintrick, A COVID Survivor Who Has Spent 18-Months Advocating, Mentoring, and Sharing Her Experience

Once upon a time, I was a normal, fairly healthy mom, wife and daughter, just living life and enjoying my time here on this earth. Never, in a million years, did I imagine that at 29 years old I would be considered a “miracle”. 

After days of struggling with coordination, memory loss, confusion and hallucinations, my husband took me to the nearest emergency room where, to everyone’s surprise, I was diagnosed with COVID-19. Regardless of my symptoms, I was sent home and told to rest. Two days later, I was in the emergency room again, struggling to breathe and again, I was sent home this time with a pulse oximeter to monitor my oxygen levels. I knew my body was fighting something fierce, not even 12 hours later we made that dreaded 911 call after my oxygen dropped into the low 50s and I continued to float in and out of consciousness. I remember watching my husband and daughter fade away as we drove off. Scared that it would be the last time I ever see them. 

After being admitted I spent that night and the following day in the ICU. After struggling to keep myself on a bi-pap machine, the doctor came in and told me if I couldn’t keep the bi-pap mask on, he would have to intubate me. With no family by my side, with no phone call to say goodbye, I looked right at him and gave him permission to place me on life support, somehow knowing that I was not going to let Covid win. 

For 10 days, I remained on life support and my family watched as my health declined and I was given less than a 20 percent chance of surviving. Not only did I have Covid but I had also developed double pneumonia. 8 days in, they attempted to reduce the ventilator and exhausted body did not respond at all, the machines were 100 percent breathing for me. The doctor made the phone call to my husband informing him that “I was too sick and there was nothing more they could do for me”. Something no one ever wants to hear about their loved one.

Two days later, I came out of my medically induced coma, extubated myself and was breathing 94 percent on my own. I remember sitting there scared and confused as I watched doctor’s, nurses and therapists rush to my side, crying, calling me a true “miracle”. Not realizing how hard it would be to accept myself as a “survivor”.

I always say my family had it the hardest while I was in the ICU because I don’t remember much of anything from those first 11 days. Little did I know the toughest battles were yet to come. I spent days learning how to stand and walk again, months in therapy and on oxygen and went home with a walker that I had to use for almost 8 weeks. I suffered from Post Intensive Care Syndrome, PTSD and severe anxiety. I spent the better part of that first year recovering both physically and mentally. 

Since then my body has battled multiple bouts of bronchitis, pneumonia and countless upper respiratory infections. As tired as my body is from fighting against the aftermath of Covid, I knew that I needed to make the most of my second chance at life. I’ve spent the last 18 months trying to help raise awareness as an advocate and have spent time mentoring and speaking to others about my experience. I know that this journey is far from over and I have finally allowed myself to believe that at my core, I AM a survivor.

Mark Garcia the love of my life amazing husband, father, brother, papa, and friend. Mark came home from work in oct, 2021, honey I don’t feel real great I’m going to bed, day 2, honey I’m not going to work I still don’t feel good 3rd day, 4th day and so on, mark asks me, honey can we go yo the ER I just don’t feel right. November 1st 2021 mark enters the ER NEVER CAME HOME! Mark was ventilated, Cpap machine, yummy time and ECMO Machine and dialysis for 45 day I begged god to please heal him I can’t breath, I can’t live without him and December 15, 2021 I took him off life support to this day I CANT BREATH WITHOUT HIM!

I was diagnosed with Covid Feb 2021, around March 2021 everything went downhill and I have not been the same since. In less than 2 weeks I had been the emergency rooms at least 10 times, every place said I was fine, labs were normal & sent me home. It felt like I was dying every single day since onset. I’m struggling with neurological changes, headaches, changes in vision, loss of smell, weird tingling, numbness to parts of my head and body, difficulty breathing, dysautonomia, panic attacks, severe anxiety, pains, aches, trouble sleeping, unable to concentrate or think. It has been a nightmare and I have never cried out to God so much in my life. I can’t work or finish school, sometimes I can’t even get out of my house. Everything has changed and I’m not finding much healing.

I tested positive for COVID 7/24. And then took plaxovid for 5 days. Tested negative that weekend. And then rebounded that week after the weekend. Tested positive for 2 weeks got put on short term disability on 8/15 after not being able to work due to major anxiety, fatigue and insomnia. Tested negative on 8/21 but cannot shake the anxiety, fatigue and sleepless nights. My Short term disability ends next Tuesday and I’m still experiencing these God awful symptoms. My doctor is putting me on FMLA to stay out of work 6 more weeks. She put me on an antidepressant called Paxil to help with the anxiety but the effects of the drug made things worse. It causes anxiety and you have to push through it for at least 3 weeks before your symptoms will improve. Which didnt make any sense to me. I was suffering from every side effect of this drug. So stopped taking it on Saturday. 

I can’t work even part time because of these symptoms. I don’t know what I’m going to do for money until I get through this. I’m praying every day that these symptoms start subsiding so I can return to work sooner then later. 

I didn’t know what’s happening to me so I kept it to myself until I started to journal my symptoms as I am physician in India and I knew this is something abnormal and its not me as I always use to be usual self and I didn’t feel like myself had like out of body experience and brain fog cudnt spell basic spelling or task. And I had no one to go to. I tried all holistic methods to recover, read various articles on to why am I having this thats when I met my mentor and I found out that I am having something called as long covid post covid anxiety syndrome. 

I had pulled out 6 months with suffering all by myself with having multiple severe phobias that I could not stay alone in the house. I would feel better if we had more people with me I would be scared if I was left alone and would get panic attacks. I had so bad hair loss i felt il go bald. With lost appetite I came down to weight only 89lbs. 

Now slowly I have started to improve and slowly my symptoms have started to resolve, still do have few symptoms like nightmares but most of the symptoms have resolved. I hope someone who is going through there with similar symptoms I just want to say you aint alone in this. As I know the feeling and I had felt completely helpless and i had changed doctors to doctors in order to get the right diagnosis. Please do reach out if anyone is going through similar symptoms and I hope i get to recover as soon as possible. And go back to being old me. Happy and bubbly. 

I hope still I am not alone and I hope its only post covid and it shall all go away with time.

At the end of December 2020, our 48 year old mother contracted Covid 19. To keep her four children from worrying too much, she kept it to herself. She eventually told them and said she was feeling okay. After a week she asked for a ride to the Hospital. There she had good spirits, asked for her favorite hygiene essentials, and called them. She received medication and different types of supplemental oxygen. We were told that due to her age, the prognosis was good. We shouldn’t worry. She called us to say she was feeling better. On January 13th, everything changed. She knew she was declining and needed help. She told her RT she wanted to fight and do what was next. She called her oldest daughter and in a one-minute phone call said her goodbyes. She told them “I love you guys.” We begged her to fight. Fight she did. She fought with everything she had for 50 straight days on the ventilator. She endured many surgeries and complications. We had our priest visit her and give her the sacrament of The Anointing of the Sick. This helped her spirits. Her children were allowed to visit. As soon we cleared we spent 40 days with her, not missing a day. We took turns and were lucky enough to see her somewhat awake on good days. Although unable to speak we knew, she knew, how loved she was by all. On March 3, 2021, a little past 11 pm she passed away, leaving behind four children and five grandchildren, and many broken hearts. Since her passing, all her children have been diagnosed with PTSD from the 57 days of her battle with Covid. We continue to try to live the lives she hoped and prayed for us. She is not just a number.

Michael Eddie Suarez aka My Love lost his battle to covid at the age of 59 years young after 4weeks of being in the hospital on a ventilator. My Love was an amazing husband. Father, grandfather, son, brother, and friend that is missed every single day. My love and I had a once in a lifetime love for each other. We completed each other’s sentences. We cheered together for our Steelers and U of A Wildcats. We never ever had one argument in the 13 years we were together. My love absolutely loved our grandchildren Kaeden and Hailey and even though my daughter wasn’t his biological daughter he would do anything for her. She had what she called “daddy do projects” that my love happily would do for them. My Love was the biggest Steelers fan I know. We even got married in Steelers jerseys and had a superbowl themed wedding. We had plans to go to Pittsburgh for his 60th birthday fall of 2021 to watch our Steelers play in Pittsburgh for the first time but he passed away before we could go. My Love was caring, hardworking, lovable, faithful. And is truly missed by everyone who knew him. 

I had COVID-19 in India when my husband and I traveled to visit our folks and we both got covid in January 22. Immediately on the 4th-5th day of recovery started to notice sweaty hands and legs severely followed by 8th day I had major depressive symptoms with intrusive thoughts and that same night I had insomnia where I just could not sleep and as we tested negative after 2 weeks of quarantine we flew to USA. And my nightmare started. I started having pounding of heart with insomnia during the day with tinnitus in my right ear and severe anxiety so much that I wanted to run away. I would wake up middle of night with sweating body and rush of anxiety that I felt I’ll get or something worst will happen to me. I would cry every single day. 

I didn’t know what’s happening to me so I kept it to myself until I started to journal my symptoms as I am physician in India and I knew this is something abnormal and its not me as I always use to be usual self and I didn’t feel like myself had like out of body experience and brain fog cudnt spell basic spelling or task. And I had no one to go to. I tried all holistic methods to recover, read various articles on to why am I having this thats when I met my mentor and I found out that I am having something called as long covid post covid anxiety syndrome. 

I had pulled out 6 months with suffering all by myself with having multiple severe phobias that I could not stay alone in the house. I would feel better if we had more people with me I would be scared if I was left alone and would get panic attacks. I had so bad hair loss i felt il go bald. With lost appetite I came down to weight only 89lbs. 

Now slowly I have started to improve and slowly my symptoms have started to resolve, still do have few symptoms like nightmares but most of the symptoms have resolved. I hope someone who is going through there with similar symptoms I just want to say you aint alone in this. As I know the feeling and I had felt completely helpless and i had changed doctors to doctors in order to get the right diagnosis. Please do reach out if anyone is going through similar symptoms and I hope i get to recover as soon as possible. And go back to being old me. Happy and bubbly. 

I hope still I am not alone and I hope its only post covid and it shall all go away with time.

My name is Timmy Pusher. I reside in SC. I am a covid survivor. I went into the hospital on 7/29/22 . I had double pneumonia. I was put in a medically induced coma and placed on a ventilator for about 2 months. While I was on the ventilator, I had lung failure, kidney failure. I coded and had to be resuscitated. After 2 months God preformed a miracle. I i was finally able to get a trach to help me breathe. I was awaken from the medically induce coma. My lungs continued to collapse and I had up to 5 chest tube. Long story short, I’m a walking miracle. I’m still recovering after 1 year and i still have a long way to fully recover but I’m thankful to God that he allowed me to live. I’m a walking miracle and I’m forever grateful

On September 3, 2021 I received a phone call from my mom’s best friend that she couldn’t get in contact with my mom and she was very concerned because the last time she had spoke to her she could tell my mom was under the weather. That night we found out she had been rushed to Emory Hospital on Clifton road because she was coughing up blood. When she called me I found out she was on a bipap machine because she was breathing sixty breaths a minute and the average beats per minute is twenty five.

On Monday September 5, I never knew that would be the last time I would ever speak to my mom and even though I could barely hear her I’m glad I got to speak her one last time, because that night she was placed on a ventilator because she couldn’t breathe on her own and she had tested positive for Covid 19 pneumonia.

Those next three weeks were the worst weeks of my life. I remember a nurse asking me did my mom ever tell us how long she wanted to be on a ventilator and she was very sick and they didn’t think she would survive, My mom was high risk because she was diagnosed at the age of four with a rare lung disease called Idiopathic Pulmonary Hemosiderosis which meant her lungs were like tissue and a regular cold could be deadly. There would be days where it would like she would make and other days that looked like she wouldn’t.

We never got to go visit her at the hospital, because of covid restrictions and we did two zoom calls with her on a ventilator. We were rushed to the hospital twice before she actually died because it was times they thought she would pass but did not. On September 26, 2021 I got the worst call anyone could receive that my mom didn’t survive and she died about thirty minutes ago and would I like to come say goodbye. My brother and I had to say goodbye through a glass window and my mom died in the hospital all alone.