Guilt in a pandemic: How people are handling the possibility they spread coronavirus

Many people who have the new coronavirus do not realize they have the disease until several days or weeks later. During that time, they may be out in public, possibly exposing COVID-19 to others.

Here’s what some people say about their guilt associated with the coronavirus pandemic.

Alex Campbell

A writer for Buzzfeed, Campbell wrote that he played soccer in a park and went to dinner with his wife and friends one weekend earlier this month. That Sunday, he found out he had been in contact with someone Thursday who was showing the major symptoms of the virus.

Campbell, who lives in the UK, said he went into isolation and does not show symptoms. But if the virus was passed on to him, he can’t help but wonder if he then passed it to others.

“I’m left to think about every single person I’ve Interacted with in some way in the past several days, and who they’ve Interacted with, and who they’ve Interacted with, and who they’ve Interacted with,” he wrote. “How many of them are diligently washing their hands, or avoiding large gatherings, or staying away from crowded public areas?”

He cautioned people stay indoors. “Trust me, it’s not worth it,” he said.

Robbie Schaefer

A Memphis man said he had the coronavirus for a week without knowing. Now all of his co-workers have to be tested, he told WREG.

“What I thought was just allergies turned out to be coronavirus, and I’ve been walking around with It for a week because I didn’t know to be on the lookout for these symptoms,” he told the news station.

Schaefer told WREG he has a mild case of coronavirus, but his positive test meant his husband also had to be tested.

Rosney Daniel

An ER doctor, Daniel said he feels “fine” after testing positive for coronavirus, but it’s his colleagues in the medical field he is worried about, he wrote in a post on Medium.

Daniel said he attended an out-of-town conference a few days before becomingsick. While he made a point not to give handshakes at the conference, he fears he could have spread it while he was there.

“I worry that I touched something or coughed somewhere and that now someone else Is sick because of me,” Daniel said. “I still feel guilty even though I stopped any and all social contact and got tested as soon as I developed symptoms. I am working over that guilt, but it’s tough.”

He also urged other medical professionals to not “tough it out” if they fear they are sick. “We need to protect ourselves for when the next serious illness or mass causality comes along.”

Luis Juarez

The 54-year-old Juarez, of Illinois, died March 18 of coronavirus, according to the Chicago Tribune. His family feels guilt that they initially did not understand the severity of the disease — thinking It was pneumonia.

“I feel a sense of guilt because we often try to undermine what is happening by ignoring it and thinking that it won’t happen to us,” Juarez’s 29-year-old son said. “But it did. I still can’t believe it.”

His three sons have tested negative for COVID-19, but they told the Tribune some relatives have been harassed and threatened by people In Mexico, where Juarez recently visited.

What if you’ve been exposed?

If you’ve come into contact with someone who has coronavirus, you should monitor your health for a fever, cough or shortness of breath, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Other symptoms for the disease include fatigue, body aches, diarrhea, loss of smell or taste and runny nose.

If you feel you are getting sick, stay home unless you need to seek medical care, the CDC recommends.

This story was originally published March 27, 2020 at 1:18 PM with the headline "Guilt in a pandemic: How people are handling the possibility they spread coronavirus."