CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A Charlotte mom who worked as an ER doctor for many years has a warning for others – she got COVID-19 from her 14-year old. She said her family had been doing mostly everything right – until she let her kids see some friends.
“It’s a really bizarre unusual thing, it is frightening,” Kimmery Martin said. As of July 22, she is still suffering from COVID.
She hung up her scrubs four years ago to focus on her writing, but last month this mother of three quickly went back into doctor mode when one of her teenagers spiked a fever after playing field hockey outside with friends.
"Just feeling yucky," she said. "Vomited once and again — I truly thought this was heat exhaustion.”
But a COVID-19 test came back positive. Then days later, Martin started feeling awful herself.
“I felt super achy, muscles achy, hurt to get out of bed, I had a sore throat," Martin said. "Once the initial symptoms resolved, I started noticing bizarre side effects — pulse would zoom up really high every time I stood up and when I tried to move- I got super dizzy.”
She’s mostly frustrated because the family thought they were doing just about everything right before they got sick.
“I have not really left the house in months," Martin said.
But after months at home, her kids were begging to see friends and she finally let them – but she now realizes they didn’t do what she’d asked. She’s convinced that’s why her family got sick.
“I instructed my teenagers to wear masks at all times but that didn’t always happen," Martin said. "I really regret that now."
One other bizarre twist — Martin started writing her third book two years ago. It’s about a worldwide pandemic, and she even interviewed people at the CDC in the research process.
“It’s been surreal to see things I described in my book happening," she said.
Martin registered with the state of North Carolina to go back to work in the emergency department if they need her during the pandemic. So far, she says they haven’t needed her.