The Real Gift Hidden in the Pandemic

What I’m learning from the pandemic that could be one of the greatest gifts that God could give us …
if we will learn to use it.

My husband and I ended up getting Covid while we were in Arizona a few weeks ago. We’d held out without getting it til then. We’d spent the previous couple years building our immune systems by making our own elderberry juice and syrup, taking vitamins and supplements, and our physician had us on prescription strength vitamin D.

By the time we headed to Arizona at the end of January 2022, perhaps we were feeling a bit impervious to it, but we found out we weren’t. I’ll admit, I was a bit frustrated that we ended up getting Covid somewhere other than home. If we’d been at home, I was stocked up on all the essential oils and supplements we would need to fight it off. The first thing we did was get some Quercetin / Bromelain / C respiratory blend.

A friend suggested we get some black cumin seed oil in capsule form and NAC. We got those as well and lots of C, Zinc and Vitamin D. We immediately went on a protocol that I’d gotten from a physician friend and added the black cumin seed oil supplement to it.

Our Protocol:

500 mg quercetin with bromelain respiratory combo.
Two black cumin seed oil capsules / day (one in morning, one at night)
2000 mg C 3 times/day
50 mg Zinc twice a day
NAC
2000 IU Vitamin D twice a day
1 aspirin/day
Melatonin at night.
I sucked on Breathe (essential oil based) lozenges to help my breathing.
I also drank Melaleuca’s Sustain Sport that has B12. It hydrates and gets your energy up. If you don’t get that, take Liquid IV. Make sure you’re good and hydrated.
We also juiced fresh citrus and drank it … grapefruit and tangelos.
We got as much fresh air and sunshine as we could. That worked wonders. We also got lots of rest.
I also take a Peak Performance daily vitamin pack and an immune system booster supplement that I get from Melaleuca.

A friend with a respiratory therapist relative told me to lay prone on your stomach as much as you can. It keeps it from settling in your lungs. I noticed this made me feel like I could breathe better – which I never would have thought.

Staying Calm – Releasing the Fear

Fortunately, we both had mild cases. I only had some nasal stuff going on the day I tested positive. By that night I was having trouble breathing deeply. I felt like I would breathe deeply but my lungs weren’t absorbing all the oxygen. It was sort of like I had a Teflon coating on my lungs. I don’t know whether my oxygen level was low because I didn’t have my oximeter with me.

I got a little panicky that night – not because it was that bad, but because I realized my lungs were being affected and what if it got worse? The last thing I needed was a panic attack on top of not being able to breathe well. I began quoting scriptures in my mind to calm myself down.

“There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.”
Psalm 91:9-10

“Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.”
Joshua 1:9

I repeated these verses over and over in my mind until I felt more at peace. I prayed and asked what I could do and had a strong impression to take another one of the Quercetin / Bromelain / C complex capsules. I did that and within 30-40 minutes, my breathing improved, and I was able to go back to sleep and slept til morning.

That was the only time my breathing was of any significant concern. I felt a lot better in about five days from the day I tested positive.

Dealing with Residual Symptoms

It’s been over three weeks since I initially tested positive. We’re home now. I got where I was feeling very good and energetic. We’ve been working outside a lot, and I’ve been birdwatching – getting out in the fresh air each day since we’ve been home.

In the last three days I’ve felt poorly when I woke up – sinus pressure and a sore throat. It’s not a bad sore throat, just uncomfortable. As I get up, shower, and go outside for a while, I feel better. Then by the evening I’m really exhausted and not feeling well.

I’ve been trying to sleep an extra hour or two each day. I’ve heard it’s important to get lots of rest and not overdo it when you start to feel better or you’ll relapse. I haven’t slept well for the last few nights with the sore throat, so that’s not been helpful.

Even though this setback has been a bit of an inconvenience, I still feel incredibly blessed that we had the mild cases we did.

Let the Spirit Guide

In sharing what we did, I’m not suggesting that everyone must do exactly what we did. I think the main thing with this virus is that it seems to strike everyone differently, so you must listen to your own body and what the Spirit directs you to do. For example, Dave was throwing up and nauseous for about 24 hours with it. It never impacted my stomach.

I have several friends right now who either are struggling themselves with long-haulers or have spouses who are severely sick. It seems that this thing strikes everyone in a different way. There is probably not a “one-size-fits-all” solution.

The best we can do is to look at what’s available and what we feel led to do. For example, I’ve had two people in the last 24-hours suggest I try an antihistamine… that it’s helping some women who have lasting symptoms past the normal sickness period.

This felt like something I should try since my throat feels like it has inflammation in it. Perhaps it’s an allergic reaction of some sort. Plus, it might relieve the sinus pressure. So, I took a Benadryl this afternoon and will take one when I go to bed. The worst thing that can happen is I’ll sleep better.

A couple other things I’ve felt prompted to do when I’ve quieted my mind and prayed is to make a Mullein tea and also get more turmeric with black pepper (anti-inflammatory). So I’ve made a Mullein, Plantain, Elderberry Tea in the morning. And I’m drinking Coconut Almond milk warm with turmeric, cinnamon, black pepper, ginger and a little honey in it.

One other thing I felt impressed to do was to listen to my Reclaim Your Healthy Body Guided Meditation.

The Gift: Learning to Listen

As Dave and I were talking about all this tonight, the thought struck me that perhaps one of the greatest gifts of Covid is that it is teaching us to listen to our bodies and listen to the Spirit. What is God guiding us to do? Then do it!

When I called my doctor’s office, they told me, “Stay home, take cough medicine, and if you have trouble breathing, go to the hospital.” I asked about any prescriptions, and they said there were none. (Even though I know there are things out there, they were not willing to provide them.) With a medical community that offers very few answers and an online world that offers a bazillion different opinions, we are basically forced to learn to quiet our minds, drop to our hearts, and listen to what the Spirit tells us to do.

This is an incredible gift – IF we will do it. Perhaps being forced to seek and learn to recognize personal revelation is the VERY REASON God allowed this pandemic to happen. If we take advantage of this opportunity, we will learn to receive our own personal revelation and how to trust it. In the days ahead, our very survival may depend upon it.

In Summary

Quiet your mind. Deep breathing, meditation, repeating scripture, listening to calming music or guided meditations can help quiet your mind.
Ask God what you should do. Be specific and clear with your question.
Stay quiet and listen.
Notice things that come your way that feel significant … these may be things you should pursue or try.
Act quickly upon any inspiration you receive.

Sometimes God’s answers aren’t the ones we’re hoping for. Sometimes it’s a person’s time to come home.

“And if we die, before our journey’s through… all is well … all is well.” (Come, Come Ye Saints) As God told me when our little great niece passed away in 2020, “It’s always more merciful to come home.” For all those we’ve loved and lost, we can take comfort that they are at peace in a much better world than this. We are eternal beings making a pitstop on Earth. Life goes on. Families are forever! Trust God’s plan and let God prevail.

Stay healthy and safe, my friends! May God bless and keep you!