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62-year-old hospital worker survives COVID-19 alone in her house

Paulette Forbes is an advanced imaging technologist in New York. She says, for health care workers, risking getting the virus is "part of what you signed up for."

BROOKLYN, N.Y. — "Listen I don’t know how I got the virus," says Paulette Forbes of Brooklyn, New York, "but I’ve worked in healthcare for over 32 years and its part of what you signed up for – take care of the sick."    

Forbes is an advanced imaging technologist at Brookdale Hospital in Brooklyn, New York. 

"Every day there is a phone call from somebody to tell me this nurse is infected, this doctor is infected, this person’s infected," Forbes says.

In mid-March, Forbes says she became infected with COVID-19.

"For eight-to-10 days that fever rocked my body," Forbes says. "I ate Tylenol like it was going out of style. I was taking 1,000 milligrams three, four times a day... just to break the fever."

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She says her doctor wasn’t seeing patients in person. Instead, he called her over the phone to confirm her symptoms.

Credit: wusa9
Paulette Forbes at Brookdale Hospital in Brooklyn, New York

"He says: 'Do you have a headache, do you have diarrhea, do you have…?' "He started naming them," says Forbes. "I said doc, I have everything. I said I’ve got everything, headache, diarrhea, I’m just weak. Can’t eat, can’t do nothing. He says, 'You’ve got coronavirus.'"

Forbes has three kids: a son in Brooklyn and a son and daughter in Maryland. She says she didn’t allow any of them to come take care of her. Forbes says she didn't see the point in putting them at risk.

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Thankfully her sister lives downstairs and was able to cook for her.

"She called me and she said, sis, you gotta drink, you gotta drink," Forbes said. "I said, sis, there’s no taste in my mouth. I have no appetite. I’m just weak."

Credit: wusa9
Paulette Forbes' family

As a child, Forbes says she had asthma, so her chief concern was protecting her lung function.

"I said Jesus… Jesus.. I call his name three times," says Forbes. "And I say God, whatever you do, give me the headache, give me the diarrhea, give me the fever, let me pee myself – it don’t matter. I can handle all of that, but I’m begging you…don’t let my breathing become compromised because I don’t want to end up in nobody’s emergency room."

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After 10 days of being at home alone taking care of herself, there seemed to be a light at the end of the tunnel.

"When I opened my eyes and I felt myself, my whole pajama was wet, my bed was wet, everything was wet," says Forbes.

Credit: wusa9
Paulette Forbes' bedroom

Forbes says her symptoms cleared, up but her energy is completely zapped.

"I’m trying to get stronger because the thing is, this thing leaves you weak, like a feather. So I’m trying to build my strength to be able to get back out there in the work force to help my peers, my coworkers who need the help badly," she said.

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