Since Sept. 17, 2020, Westside High School has been able to go to 100% capacity, but this has not been without cases of COVID-19. Several staff members and students were diagnosed with COVID-19. All are in the process of recovering or have recovered. 

Sophomore Jack Gerard was diagnosed with COVID-19 on Wednesday, Aug. 28. Gerard said that he didn’t mind quarantine.

“I didn’t mind quarantine for the first week,” Gerard said. “I had a sore throat and a pretty bad cough, but that all went away in the second week.” 

Experts at the CDC say that mild symptoms such as these are common in 80% of COVID patients, but they can still take a physical toll.

“I’m on cross country and I play soccer,” Gerard said. “There was a huge difference between before and after I got [COVID-19]. It’s like getting over the world’s worst cold because you still feel it in your lungs.” 

However, the virus’s toll does not stop at feelings of physical ailments. The mental stress related to recovering from coronavirus can be just as taxing.

“It was kind of weird to actually think about what COVID-19 actually was,” Gerrard said. “It was just hard to wrap my mind around the concept of it. I didn’t really think I was going to die, quarantine was the biggest thing and it was just unpleasant.” 

In addition to the physical and mental stress related to the virus, there is significant stress placed on family members. Jack’s sister, freshman Cece Gerard, said she was forced to continue her quarantine for two extra weeks after Jack was released.

“I didn’t test positive when Jack did so I needed to quarantine for an extra two weeks just to make sure I wasn’t asymptomatic,” Cece Gerard said. “I wasn’t really worried about Jack because [he was] really healthy, but I know my mom didn’t feel good and I felt bad for her. Still, staying inside for another two weeks was not fun.”