HER stint in a hoops camp in the US was supposed to give Trina Guytingco of the Ateneo women’s basketball squad’s career a big boost.
It turned out to be one of the biggest battles she has faced so far.
The 5-foot-7 guard contracted COVID-19 in the US and narrated her ordeal with the dreaded disease during the So She Did! podcast.
“For me, it felt like I worked out the whole day when I was literally at the bed the whole day. I was exhausted and my body was just like hurting and aching everywhere. Think of it like after a workout and you just did squats, a really heavy squat workout and then the next day, you can’t walk. Imagine that feeling, but all over your body. For me, it was just hard to walk around for a week. I was just 24 hours in bed outside of going to the bathroom,” related Guytingco.
“I can tell you there were a lot of ups and downs with my mental state. There were days when you think that you’re going to be fine, take all those medicines, just rest and drink water. But there were days that you think, ‘Why did this happen to me?’” she added.
Guytingco, 23, attended a three-day combine in Las Vegas last July and went back home to Pleasant Hills, California feeling ill.
“I was very cautious with everything that I was doing– wearing a mask, washing my hands, practicing social distancing. I think I did a pretty good job, and I thought I was. When I went to this camp, I spent three days with just a whole bunch of women playing basketball,” explained Guytingco.
“A couple of days later, I started feeling sick. Then I received news that one of my teammates tested positive for COVID. I started to feel symptoms, started to have a fever, a really bad headache, and there was a sore throat, loss of appetite, just a lot of body aches.”
Guytingco’s mental health was not spared.
“It was just very nerve-wracking, and I didn’t know what was about to happen just because when you have contact with (someone infected with) the virus, it just messes with your head,” said Guytingco.
“You keep on thinking about the tragic stories of COVID-19 like what if you deteriorate all of a sudden. It was a very rough week for me.”
While waiting for the result of her COVID-19 test, Guytingco acted like she already had the lethal virus.
“When I got sick, I had to treat myself like I had COVID. I treated myself like I was positive, and my family treated me like I was positive. They did their best to wear masks, disinfect properly everything and anything I could’ve possibly touched, and I was just in my room for a whole two weeks,” offered Guytingco.
“This was just a regimen that my mom made me do and what helped me get through this. Of course, I had to take Tylenol for my fever, and to help with my sore throat, I drank a lot of ginger tea with cinnamon. It burned but it felt good. I was also taking a lot of organic multivitamins. Aside from that, I took a lot of vitamin D and vitamin B, and I was taking probiotics for my stomach just in case. I was on a lot of stuff.”
Two weeks later, the test came out positive although she is feeling better now.
“I’ve been feeling amazing. Since I passed the 14-day quarantine mark, I’ve been able to go outside for a walk but, obviously, with a mask on,” Guytingco said.
But she is not leaving anything to chance. “We still don’t know how much this virus can get. I don’t know when I’m safe,” she stressed.
