Disclaimer: This story represents only two APU students and not the campus as a whole.
Two APU students, one an athlete, were informed to quarantine for two weeks after testing positive for COVID-19.
What is life like for students who test positive for COVID-19? Shelby Lopez from the Acrobatics and Tumbling team and student Cheyenne Eskridge tell all.
Q: How did you know you were positive for COVID-19? Were there any symptoms, if so, what were they?
Shelby Lopez: I knew I had COVID-19 because I had a lot of the symptoms. One of them was a headache, and I thought the headache was from being tired. The next day, I woke up with a bunch of congestion, although I didn’t have any mucus, but I would blow my nose and nothing would come out. A couple of days later, I couldn’t taste or smell anything and that lasted for about five days but ended up going away.
Cheyenne Eskridge: I was super congested and constantly blowing my nose, which wasn’t a fun time. I did get super fatigued from it but, honestly, I sat in bed and took it — that’s all I could do.
Q: What type of tests did you have to take and where?
Shelby Lopez: I got the nasal swab test at the school. It was a rapid test, so I got my results in 15 minutes. I went to the health center where she met me in the back. She swabbed my nose. 15 minutes later, I got a phone call with my results being positive.
Cheyenne Eskridge: I went to APU and got a rapid test where I got pulled to the back of the health center. They handed me the swab to do it myself. I thought that was kind of strange.
Q: What steps were taken for your daily schedule to change? Did you quarantine, take days off from work and school? What did you miss the most?
Shelby Lopez: Once I found out I had COVID-19, the steps I took to prevent roommates and people I was around from getting it was wearing a mask and gloves around the house. I cleaned all of the surfaces I touched with 409, I disposed of the gloves after each use and stayed in my room. Staying in my room kind of sucked because I am used to being around my roommates and friends and being able to hug and be around them. Thaat was the hardest part — not being around them. Being closer than six feet is what I took for granted, so I realized how important quality and physical touch was to me.
Cheyenne Eskridge: Something I changed in my daily routine was sticking to myself, staying in my room and binge watching a lot of Netflix. The hardest part for me was not being able to see everybody because of the timing [of] when I got it.
Q: As an athlete, if you were in season and this happened, what do you think you would miss out on?
Shelby Lopez: In the two weeks where you wouldn’t be able to practice, you also wouldn’t be able to weightlift. So, you might get weaker which can make it harder for you to do acro because you have to be strong to lift people and tumble. Once you get back, it will take you a couple of weeks to get back to where you were, because two weeks is a long time.
Azusa Pacific University is taking the necessary precautions of having a COVID-19 test site at the APU Health Center. If you are feeling sick and live in on-campus housing, COVID-19 testing is being offered at the health center. Take the necessary precautions, stay home, stay healthy and continue to sanitize daily.