OK, nasal swabs were invented by a sadist...

[druidity33]

Got swabbed today for a Covid test. Holy Hell! That was one of the most uncomfortable 10 seconds i've ever experienced. Right before she stabbed me in the brain of course she says "You might feel like sneezing... don't" My eyes watered for over an hour! No way does everyone in the WH have to go through that every day! I will know in 1-2 days what the result is. I have a coworker who tested positive, i don't have any symptoms, but figured it was good to know. I'm not being charged for the test, it was a drive-up and i had to make an appt and travel over an hour to get there. FWIW it seemed well run... looked like the National Guard directing cars and checking IDs, medical personnel in full gear. I was told they were scheduling 30 tests an hour.

[Buckeye_Democrat]

1. I assume it's like the nasal swab that I had...

... when I caught the flu last year.

My experience was similar, and it certainly surprised me!

I don't envy the nurses (or doctors) who do it, either, since the reactions from SOME patients are surely violent.

[oregonjen]

4. The nasal swab for the flu I had was like a long q-tip.

The one I had for COVID was like a very thin little bristle like thing. It hurt!!

[Buckeye_Democrat]

7. Oh! You're right, that sounds even worse!

[LeftInTX]

9. Thanks for the heads up!!

I was wondering and had asked several people on here. No one knew.

You have enlightened me!

[oregonjen]

19. You're welcome! It's like a tiny thin bristle bottle washer.

Made me gag and tear up. My doc asked what the test was like and I told her how I reacted and she said, good, he did the test correctly.

[samnsara]

2. yep!!! My hubby got one early April and I filmed it..

...i posted the grueling experience (not the film) on DU and I was told to 'grow up'. So YES I know WTF you are talking about! Another reason to stay safe. Its like watching those car wreck films in HS drivers ed.

[Cirque du So-What]

3. I don't think Orange Foolius feels a thing

He's snorted so much powder up his snout that his septum has dissolved. It's absolutely cavernous in there.

[smirkymonkey]

5. There is no way MF45 subjects himself to that every day.

He's too much of a baby.

Pardon my ignorance, but why can't they do a blood test for this? Is the nasal cavity the only place the virus is located besides the lungs? Wouldn't it show up in blood as well?

[MyOwnPeace]

6. My daughter works in a hospital

and had to have it done. She gave birth to my granddaughter 3 years ago - and having another one in about 2 months - she said she'll do the "birthing" thing several more times rather than have one more "Q-tip up into her brain!"

Best of luck with your results......

[Buckeye_Democrat]

8. I've had needles injected in my eyeballs...

... numerous times for early-onset macular degeneration due to a very rare genetic condition.

I'd rather have the shots in my eyeballs than another nasal swab!

[LeftInTX]

10. I've survived flu swabs. They eyeball thing sounds just freakin awful

[drmeow]

13. Everyone says that

but they actually aren't that bad after you get over the freak out of "you're sticking a needle in my eye!!!!!!"

[Buckeye_Democrat]

14. It's not as bad as it seems.

The shots went in the side of the eyes (told to stare at something to the side), and it was always quick. About three seconds, maybe?

I could always see the anti-VEGF drug swirling around in my eye during the injection.

That part of the eye was previously numbed with a topical anesthetic too, gently applied with a soft Q-tip like thing for about a minute.

[LeftInTX]

16. I have duct plugs in.

Before he puts the plugs he, he puts a numbing eye drop. I don't even feel them going in.

[Buckeye_Democrat]

18. My ophthalmologist initially gave me numbing drops...

... and the drops worked great too.

I'm not sure why he switched to the Q-tip thing after a couple years. I preferred the drops.

[safeinOhio]

24. Had laser surgery on my eye ball

2 times to repair a rip. Had me on my knees. Had CV-19 swab test 3 times two days ago, no big deal for me. Having all 3 come back negative was great. Last one was for the throat, didn’t tell me they were going thru nose to get to the throat and it was worse than the first two. But, got that result back in a few hours. Well worth the discomfort.

[LastLiberal in PalmSprings]

11. That's why I think Trump is lying about taking the coronavirus test every day.

The test for the flu is similar, and that was the most painful experience I've ever had -- other than my first marriage, of course.

As much joy as it gives me to think of him enduring that pain on a daily basis, the reality is that he doesn't do anything that makes him uncomfortable. Hell, he won't even fire a person to his face. He either has someone else do it for him or writes a snarky tweet.

[druidity33]

26. cheek swabs man, cheek swabs. nt.

[LastLiberal in PalmSprings]

29. Here's the collection process:

[cally]

12. I've had the camera like thing go up nasal passages to sinuses

Is is worse than that? I figure it is because the emt doctors are very well trained and patient. They also spray a numbing agent first.

[Buckeye_Democrat]

15. I think what bothered me the most...

... when I was deep-swabbed for the flu was the swirling around of the swab. It goes in deep, and then it's swirled around too (at least for me). I was actually concerned about the tip breaking off in there!

[druidity33]

27. yeah for a very long 10 seconds. ugh. nt.

[LeftInTX]

20. They don't numb you for swabbing though

For the flu swab, it was a little bit like when you dive/jump in water the wrong way, but wasn't half as bad.

I would think for Covid, there is much more at stake, so I assume they really go in there though.

[Reader Rabbit]

17. Worse than stirrups & speculum?

Or a D & C?

[druidity33]

25. Yeah probably not...

and noses aren't quite as intimate an area, but it's as uncomfortable as it can get before you would call it Pain. A VERY long 10 seconds I'll tell you...

[moriah]

30. I gag with just flu tests, so I feel their pain.

I've also had a copper IUD inserted when I was a nullipara. (Do think the sounding of my uterus was actually what hurt the worst, nearly came off the table, and it coming out was no picnic either but it didn't require a scope or cutting).

I regret none of it -- the IUD, the flu tests, a COVID-19 test if I have to get one and they really have to rotor-rooter around. The process may bite, but not getting it if needed would lead to worse consequences.

Of course, every time I get bronchitis I end up having to get a shot in each asscheek -- one side antibiotic, the other side steroids. And I count myself lucky if it doesn't turn into pneumonia/having to get admitted/getting an IV. Despite what it may feel like, they really aren't going for torture....

[MuseRider]

21. NO SHIT!

I had an influenza swab in December because I was having lung problems....the reason I was told to get tested now for Covid. I sat in the car with my husband in the passengers seat thinking it would be like the flu swab. She went in and it was uncomfortable but then she said she had hit something and had to move the swab around until she could move it forward. At that point I knew I was going to cry, lol. When she moved it past the obstruction I heard my husband gasp, he is a doctor and I am a nurse but his gasp was about the worst thing I have ever heard when it was about me. I won't be going back until they force me to. Holy hell is right! Negative but I knew it.

[Tech]

22. Not to discount your pain, but my husband and I got tested last week and had zero pain.

We had free testing and they were testing thousands of people. We were in and out in less than 15 minutes. Maybe it is like shots or blood draws, with some it is quick and painless, with others you want them to go practice on more oranges. I am sorry about your discomfort and really hope your results show you to be covid free.

[Wounded Bear]

23. Gov Cuomo did it live on camera...

yeah, that sucker is pretty long.

[Buns_of_Fire]

28. Now that many have gone through this, they'll be pleased to know...

Saliva samples preferable to deep nasal swabs for testing COVID-19

https://news.yale.edu/2020/04/24/saliva-samples-preferable-deep-nasal-swabs-testing-covid-19

As testing for the novel coronavirus continues to scale up, a new study finds that saliva samples are a “preferable” indicator for infection than the deep nasal swabs now widely used.

The study led by the Yale School of Public Health — and conducted at Yale New Haven Hospital with 44 inpatients and 98 health care workers — found that saliva samples taken from just inside the mouth provided greater detection sensitivity and consistency throughout the course of an infection than the broadly recommended nasopharyngeal (NP) approach. The study also concluded that there was less variability in results with the self-sample collection of saliva.

“Taken together, our findings demonstrate that saliva is a viable and more sensitive alternative to nasopharyngeal swabs and could enable at-home self-administered sample collection for accurate large-scale SARS-CoV-2 testing,” said first author Anne Wyllie, an associate research scientist at the Yale School of Public Health and a member of its Public Health Modeling Unit. She was joined by 49 other researchers at Yale on the study.

The researchers also reported that the saliva approach detected SARS-CoV-2 in two asymptomatic health care workers who had previously tested negative for the virus in a NP swab test. Saliva testing may be especially useful due to its accuracy in identifying mild SARS-CoV-2 infections that are not detected with other methods, the researchers said.

Don't tell President Plump, though. They've been giving him a daily colonoscopy for three months now, and he still hasn't caught on.