Pa. Coronavirus Survivors Reflect 1 Year Later As Virus And Symptoms Remain
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- A local COVID-19 survivor has come a long way since his hospitalization in the early days of the pandemic.
Jim Kauffman was on a ventilator for two weeks.
"When I came home, I was having a hard time breathing. My steps, I'd be out of breath when I got up to the top. I was really weak when I came home," he said.
Kauffman has ongoing joint pain and mild confusion, but his heart has been fine and his strength and breathing have improved.
"I'm not as short of breath as I was. Overall, compared to when I see other people on the news, I'm blessed. I'm really much better off than so many other people," Kauffman said.
Having had the illness, he worries people aren't as guarded and careful as they should be.
"It's a serious thing and people just got to understand it. The last time I was at the grocery store, people were getting way too comfortable. They had their mask on, but they start crowding around you," Kauffman
Survivor Michael Bayens was hospitalized over the summer in intensive care.
"It scared me. It scared my family. Another friend of mine was hospitalized with it and ended up passing away," Bayens said.
He still gets chest pain when he takes a deep breath, and he'll lose his train of thought.
"The whole left side of my body is a lot weaker than the right side still. The tremors that were in my left arm, they don't happen as often," Bayens said.
He can now go for a walk without a cane, but the former boxer can't do what he used to do.
"I can't hit the bags. I can't jump rope," Bayens said.
Catching it again is in the back of their minds.
"I'm not frightened, but I'm very cautious," Kauffman said. "Just as cautious as somebody should be who never had it."
"That is one thing I cannot understand is why people don't want to wear a mask?" Bayens said. "This is gonna be something that's gonna be around for a long time. It's not going to go away."
