A healthy 33-year-old man is still battling the effects of COVID-19 three weeks after first showing symptoms.
Steven Cortez is an avid cyclist, who said COVID-19 symptoms hit him hard while at a family gathering on July 4.
"I just started getting really dizzy for no reason," said Cortez, who played the dizziness off as heat exhaustion. He was planning on a bike ride with friends the next day and wasn't planning on canceling. "About three to four miles in, I started getting really dizzy, and that's not normal for me. I was out of breath, I was coughing. It was so weird."
Cortez was forced to stop riding and ended up sleeping for most of the day. It was that evening, he said when the symptoms really started to hit him.
"I got the fevers, and body aches," said Cortez. The next week was a battle against the virus. "Getting through it was rough. Pretty much for a whole week straight, I was in bed. My fevers got up to 104, almost 105."
Cortez was tested, and after a week and a half, his test results came back positive for COVID-19. His family was also tested. His fiancée and their seven-year-old daughter tested negative, while their 12-year-old son tested positive, but didn't show any symptoms.
Three weeks have passed since symptoms first showed for Cortez, but he is still battling effects from the virus. A cyclist who once rode for 30+ miles with ease, is now struggling to ride one.
"I still have a weight on my chest. It feels like, my breathing not restricted," said Cortez. "It just feels like there's a pressure in my chest for some reason. And so I can't ride yet because I get so out of breath very quickly."
