Edinburgh mum-of-three shares ‘claustrophobic’ and ‘frustrating’ experience of Covid-19 and urges parents to stick to the rules

An Edinburgh mum-of-three is urging parents to adhere to the Scottish Government’s coronavirus guidelines by telling of her ‘claustrophobic’ and ‘frustrating’ experience of contracting the virus and the effects which are long lasting.

Miranda Leyton and her daughter are still feeling the effects of the virus more than one month on

Last month Miranda Leyton, 45, who has children aged 12, ten and eight noticed that her eldest had lost her sense of taste and took her for a Covid-19 test the following morning. She then noticed she had lost her own sense of taste and went for a test herself only for the both of them to be confirmed positive within 12 hours.

Miranda said: “As soon as my daughter lost her sense of taste, my whole family had to isolate immediately. We both isolated for 10 days and the rest of the family had to isolate for 14 days.

“In terms of symptoms, I was extremely tired in the run up to losing my taste and I experienced back aches and tummy cramps. My body just felt like jelly, I felt heavy, mentally drained and I also experienced extreme bouts of fatigue.

“The isolation period was a very claustrophobic experience. There was lots of screaming from my children who were feeling extremely frustrated being stuck at home. My husband encouraged them to run laps of the garden and take some time away from screens but they were still feeling very restless.”

The family, who Miranda described as ‘extremely cautious’ with regards to sticking to the rules are still feeling the effects of the virus which has caused the children to miss school and are still fatiguing Miranda now leaving her unable yet to return to work.

She added: “I knew that Covid-19 could be fatal, and that people could get very ill from it, but I hadn’t grasped just how bad a mild dose of the virus could be, even to those who are younger and have no additional risk factors. My daughter and I are still feeling the effects.

“My daughter attempted to go back to school after 16 days of testing positive for it, but it was too much for her. She had to come home early and have two naps because she was feeling dreadful. Even when I’m pottering about, I need to sit for around two hours afterwards because I feel so exhausted.”

“It’s important for parents to realise that they do need to stick to the rules. It’s been awful getting the virus not only for the way it makes you feel physically, but mentally too; it’s been so frustrating having to isolate for almost two weeks. To help reduce the spread, it’s important we consider others when in two minds about sticking to the rules and do the right thing. I also believe many people think that their children won’t experience any symptoms if they do contract the virus however, my daughter has had it much worse than I expected and she’s still feeling drained and exhausted which is awful to see.”

The Parent Club set up by the Scottish Government is an online information resource and support hub for parents of kids aged zero to 16, and offers helpful tips and information to help ensure children and their parents are getting the information they need to protect their health, happiness and wellbeing throughout the pandemic.

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