‘I don’t know if I’ll ever forget those moments. They were so terrifying.’

Back in November, Jacki Bezak contracted COVID-19 and ended up at Aurora West Allis Medical Center. While she’s doing better today, her journey through COVID-19 and recovery hasn’t been easy.

“Right now I’m feeling incredibly thankful, grateful, blessed and a whole bunch of other emotions I can’t describe,” Bezak says. “The first few days were odd… the daytime was decent, sick, but I could still work. The nights though, those were filled with fevers, vomiting and no sleep. As the days and nights went on, I still wasn’t showing any relief. I was miserable. I made the decision to go to Urgent Care. They said I developed pneumonia and gave me some antibiotics.”

“Days went by and things weren’t getting better, they were getting worse. I wasn’t eating or drinking anything. I literally couldn’t keep anything down and decided to go to Urgent Care again. I thought I’d go in, they’ll give me fluids and I’ll feel better. Nope. I passed out in the care room. THANK GOD for the staff and their quick action. They saved me from hitting the floor and called an ambulance immediately.

“When I got to the ER at Aurora West Allis Medical Center, that’s when the real fun started… the IVs, wires, blood draws, scans, the millions of questions,” Bezak says. “My liver enzymes were in the 1200s when they’re supposed to be around 40. That was enough to lock me in for at least a night, which eventually turned into a three-night hospital stay.”

“I don’t know if I’ll ever forget those moments,” she says. “They were so terrifying. I was told had I waited any longer, I might not have made it. If I wasn’t healthy before, they don’t think my body would’ve pulled through.”

“I am SO grateful to the wonderful staff and care I received from Aurora West Allis, the Urgent Care in Franklin and the Franklin paramedics. Without these people, I probably wouldn’t have made it. THANK YOU. Thank you for saving my life.”

Today, Bezak is doing much better. Her liver enzymes have returned to normal and her fatigue has improved.

“The fatigue is much better, but it took over a month before I could go a day without a nap,” she says. “I do still get short of breath easily (walking up the stairs or into a store with my mask on can be a challenge at times) and my body aches more than it should for someone in their early 30’s, but overall, so much better.”