DAVENPORT, Iowa — "That Wednesday I woke up, I had aches all over my body, I go from hot to cold and I had a fever that would spike up for short periods of time. It was weird, it maybe spiked up for 15 minutes and go back down."
Patients with COVID-19 have reported similar symptoms but News 8 reporter Marissa Sulek didn't have any coughing, another symptom attributed to the novel coronavirus.
"That was the weird thing. I didn’t have respiratory issues at all," Marissa said.
WQAD isolated two reporters that day, because Marissa shared an apartment with another reporter, Bianca Reyes, who did not have any symptoms.
Marissa has been sharing her quarantine experience in a vlog titled "The Waiting Room."
In her first vlog, she explained why she may never know if she did contract the COVID-19 virus.
She used the Genesis App to choose a doctor and after nine hours, a doctor contacted her virtually. Those who are sick are advised to call ahead instead of going to the emergency room or seeing a doctor without an appointment.
"He told me to get a flu and a Strep test at a mobile site, which is on 53rd and Northwest Boulevard," Marissa said.
The test took three seconds and she got the results back by phone within hours. Marissa was told, "Both of those came back negative. Chances of you having COVID is pretty likely."
"However, there's not enough tests in the Quad Cities area to know if I have COVID," she added.
Health officials in the Quad Cities aren't giving tests to everyone, because there aren't enough.
"So people may or may not know they have it and they shouldn’t expect to be getting tested," said Janet Hill, Chief Operating Officer of the Rock Island County Health Department. "But if they feel like they have symptoms they should take precautions for them and other people."
Marissa has been doing just that, practicing self-isolation as if she does have the COVID-19 virus: staying in her room most of the time, avoiding her roommate, not petting Bianca's dog Cooper and wiping common spaces like the kitchen and bathroom after every use.
"I use one set of bowls and mugs. I wash it after I use it, I leave it on the side to airdry," Marissa said.
She learned about this new virus, just as experts were learning about it.
"I think it was the fourth day in, I lost of my taste and smell," she said.
A few days later, she saw breaking news reports online.
"Get this: sudden loss of smell and taste is a new symptom," she shared in Tuesday's vlog.
The odd symptoms lasted for about a week and she's been regaining some sense of taste and smell since.
"My taste buds are back, but I don’t know if they’re gonna be the same or it’s gonna take more time or if there’re just permanently gonna be like that," she said on Monday.
She's has been learning about herself during this time as well.
"You have to become your own best friend when you’re in isolation. I've definitely grown closer with myself."
Marissa says plans to continue vlogging in the future and she can't wait to get back to work, reporting again in the field, from a safe social distance.