COVID-19 survivor shares her recovery journey

JACKSON, Tenn. — Alamo resident Mardavia Williamson is a licensed cosmetologist and owns her own salon and lash business. She’s also a caregiver. Williamson never would have thought she’d be part of the COVID-19 statistic.

On June 23, Williamson started to notice something was off about her health.

“It was a regular work day for me,” said Williamson. “I started to get a little bit more tired than usual. So around like 2 o’clock, I was exhausted. That’s typically not me, I work all day.

And within days she found herself in the hospital, making two trips in June and July. She was COVID-19 positive. Williamson said one of the first symptoms she noticed was lack of smell and taste, along with other common symptoms such as fever and coughing, which eventually turned into COVID-19 related pneumonia.

“I couldn’t do anything for myself,” said Williamson. “I was extremely fatigued, so I couldn’t barely make it from my room to the bathroom.”

Williamson said other pre-existing health conditions, such as asthma, made it harder on her.  She was released by the local health department Friday, and the Tennessee Department of Health on Sunday after being hospitalized for five days. Her symptoms are still lingering.

“My smell is about 95 percent,” said Williamson. “My taste is about 95 percent back, not back fully. And it’s been almost a month since exposure.”

She’s been supported by her mother who lives with her and says she’s thankful to all the doctors and nurses who comforted her during her recovery.

“Everybody was very kind to me,” said Williamson. “They made me feel comfortable, ’cause I had those moments where I was crying, freaking out.”

With cases rising at a record rate every day in the state, Williamson says people shouldn’t be scared of checking on their health. She wants to remind everyone that protecting yourself from the virus must be taken seriously.

“So if you feel sick, please go to the doctor, please go get tested, it’s not as bad as people make it seem,” said Williamson. “Lets just always be mindful that our lives are not the only one that matters, like it’s other people that we’ll come into contact with everyday. So you know, just be careful. ”

Williamson says she is putting her salon business on hold until she can fully recover.