Chicago Cubs pitching coach Tommy Hottovy was on the Mully & Haugh Show on 670 The Score in Chicago this morning and talked about his recent battle with COVID-19.
Hottovy, who is only 38 years-old and who had no underlying health conditions, says that he and his family took every precaution they could think of. They socially distanced. They cleaned and disinfected. They wore masks. You name it. But he still got seriously, seriously sick and took a very long time to recover.
From the interview:Hottovy called the first five to six days of his battle with the coronavirus typical with fevers and the usual symptoms. Then it got much worse.
“The problem with is on day eight through 14, it crushed me,” Hottovy said. “It got into my lungs. I got the full what they call the COVID pneumonia, a viral pneumonia, shortness of breath, really trouble breathing, constant fevers.”
Hottovy had a fever of more than 100 degrees for six straight days. He had breathing treatment upon checking into the hospital, he said. Hottovy was treated and released from the hospital on the same day, he added.
It took Hottovy 30 days before he tested negative for the coronavirus, he said. He went through what he called a stretch of depression.There are many who have downplayed the threat of COVID-19 with respect to younger people like Hottovy or who have cited evidence of slowed death rates from the virus. As Hottovy’s example illustrates, however, even if you’re young and healthy, you can get it, it can be serious, and it can have long-term effects even after the worst of it is over.
