Storyteller: Antonia Levario
Sandra is a 66 year old living in Saginaw County. Sandra is a COVID-19 survivor and a grandmother to 10 grandchildren and 8 great grandchildren. Sandra first was aware of Covid when she saw it on the 5 o’clock news. The pandemic was really shocking to Sandra because she has never experienced anything like this before. Sandra says wearing a mask took a while to get used to but she knew it was necessary to do so.
When Sandra was first exposed to the virus she had pre existing conditions which made the virus way worse for her. Sandra spent time in the hospital with a mild case and she did need to be put on oxygen to help Sandra breathe. Sandra’s mental health declined because there were no visitations in the hospitals whatsoever and Sandra missed her children and grandchildren very much.
After Sandra was cleared of the virus she made sure to stay inside in order to keep herself and her family safe. While stuck inside Sandra really got to rediscover what she loved and started to become more tech savvy. Like trying to get used to her new smartphone, Sandra says one thing the pandemic taught her was patients is key to everything. All Sandra had to look forward to was being cleared of Covid, to be let free out of that hospital room and start making the best out of her situation.
Sandra lost her taste and sense of smell due to one of the symptoms of Covid and she has also lost family members to the virus. Sandra looks at these not as life events but as life lessons. Sandra explained although she’s up in age and seen a lot of things in her lifetime. Sandra has had plenty of time to learn a lot of lessons. Sandra says, “We are all learning the same lessons right now, so let’s look around us and see how we can help each other.”
MIPandemicStory 