Lethbridge mother shares story of her son’s battle with COVID-19 – Lethbridge | The Canadian News

Lethbridge’s mother, Asheley Cowie, said it was scary to see her young son contract COVID-19. She said she recovered from the virus almost as fast as it hit him.

“It was really isolating and scary and I wouldn’t wish it on anyone, really,” Cowie said, adding that her 11-year-old son, Liam, recently contracted the virus during the fourth wave of the pandemic.

“Unfortunately, without contact tracing, we have no idea where his COVID-19 came from, but he actually started showing symptoms with a headache,” he explained.

When Liam’s test came back positive, Cowie, who is fully vaccinated, decided to isolate herself at a hotel with him to try to protect the rest of her family. According to Cowie, she never contracted the virus. Liam had a fever of 101 to 104 that lasted more than 24 hours. It was so bad that he used ice packs to try to lower her temperature.

Liam is fully recovered now, but for Cowie, a mother of two young children, he was living what seemed like a nightmare.

“I’m not exaggerating when I say he was holding my hand to his chest to see if he was gurgling, if there was more fighting than the last breath, like it was terrifying,” Cowie said.

“The fever really scared me because it was long-lasting and unrelenting, it didn’t break.”

Cowie’s husband, who is also fully vaccinated, contracted COVID-19 along with their other son and both had little or no symptoms.

You’ve heard the narrative that children between the ages of five and 11 are not as at risk as older children and adults, but after you’ve lived through it, you know that’s not the case.

“I have two children in that age group, and one (had COVID-19) very seriously and (for the other) it wasn’t (that bad). So while I appreciate the idea, ‘It’s not that hard for kids,’ I can say it is. “

Cowie hopes that by sharing her son’s story, she can prevent another family from going through something similar.

“We have a responsibility to care for our children, and everyone’s choice is yours, but we live in a society where we depend on each other to maintain health and order, and if you can get vaccinated, I highly recommend it.”