How Do You Know if You Have a ‘Mild’ Case of COVID-19?

…At this point, the list of possible symptoms has grown to include: headache, runny nose,
sore throat, weakness, fatigue, muscle aches and pains, nausea, stomach upset, vomiting,
diarrhea, loss of smell and taste, and red eyes.

Like everything with COVID-19, this is causing a lot of confusion. Is it possible to have just a
runny nose and have COVID-19? Is it possible just to have an upset stomach and diarrhea
and have COVID-19? How about a mild fever, sore throat, and muscle aches that go away
after a week or two? Could you have already had COVID-19 and not even known?

These are all great questions.

The answer is: It’s possible. It seems that mild disease really can look like anything. The
likelihood of having COVID-19, depends in part on if there is an outbreak in your community
and if you’ve had exposure to someone who has COVID-19. If you are in parts of New York
City, it’s more of a possibility right now than if you are in a part of the country that isn’t
seeing much COVID-19 yet…

So what do I do if I am having mild viral symptoms?

Practically speaking, if you feel unwell, you should isolate (find tips here). This means staying
home, staying away from family members (stay at least 6 feet away, in a separate room and
use a separate bathroom, if possible, don’t share household items, clean and disinfect
surfaces) and monitoring your symptoms to make sure you are getting better. Check your
temperature daily, watch for worsening cough or shortness of breath. If your breathing
worsens, call right away for medical attention. We’ve seen many cases where people are
feeling ok, and then suddenly worsen….

So, again, if you start experiencing any symptoms, the best thing to do is isolate and watch.
And if you live with someone who is sick, stay home and away from others for 14 days, to
make sure you don’t develop symptoms during that time as well.”