A young, fit nurse shared alarming before-and-after photos showing the impact the coronavirus had on his body
- Mike Schultz, a 43-year-old nurse from San Francisco, is one of 38 people who contracted the novel coronavirus after attending the Winter Party Festival in South Beach Miami in early March.
- Schultz dropped from 190 to 140 pounds during his six-week hospital stay, which he showcased on Instagram in a before and after comparison post.
- Schultz, a normally healthy and fit person with no pre-existing conditions, told BuzzFeed News he was shocked by how COVID-19 impacted his body.
- "I didn't think [the coronavirus] was as serious as it was until after things started happening," he told BuzzFeed News. "I thought I was young enough for it not to affect me, and I know a lot of people think that.
Mike Schultz, a 43-year-old nurse from San Francisco, normally entertains his 30,000 Instagram followers by posting muscular selfies, work-out videos, and couple pictures with his boyfriend.
But in one of his most recent Instagram posts, he isn't showing off his muscles or a post-workout selfie. Instead, Schultz posted an alarming side-by-side comparison of his body before and after his six-week fight with COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.
On the left, Schultz is 190 pounds of clearly defined muscle. On the right, his face visibly more hollow and his body is about 50 pounds lighter.
Schultz told BuzzFeed News that at the end of his six-week battle with COVID-19, he weighed 140.
The caption reads: "I wanted to show everyone how badly being sedated for 6 weeks on a ventilator or intubated can be."
Schultz thought being young and having no preexisting conditions would protect him from the virus
Schultz is one of 38 people who got sick from the virus after attending the Winter Party Festival in South Beach Miami. The festival took place from March 4 to March 10 — ending a day before the World Health Organization declared the novel coronavirus a pandemic.
While concern about the virus was mounting as more cases popped up in different parts of the US, most cities hadn't yet gone on lockdown and many people were generally going about their regular day-to-day lives.
Though he knew about the virus, Schultz told BuzzFeed News because he was young and had no pre-existing conditions, he figured he could risk a trip to see his boyfriend, 29-year-old DJ Josh Hebblethwaite, perform at the festival.
"I knew what I thought going in [about the coronavirus]. I didn't think it was as serious as it was until after things started happening," Schultz told BuzzFeed News. "I thought I was young enough for it not to affect me, and I know a lot of people think that."
A week later, Schultz was feeling symptoms and beginning his six-week fight for his life
A week later, Schultz was back in San Francisco and feeling a bit under the weather but didn't think much of it. On March 14, he flew to Boston to be with Hebblethwaite during lockdown.
Two days later, he was in the hospital with a 103 fever and liquid in his lungs.
"I was so weak. This was one of the most frustrating parts," he told BuzzFeed News. "I couldn't hold my cellphone; it was so heavy. I couldn't type, because my hands shook so much."
Schultz was transported to a larger hospital within four days, where he was intubated for four-and-a-half weeks. Hebblethwaite was quickly made his medical proxy in case anything were to happen to Schultz.
Approximately 57 days after he was taken to the hospital, Schultz was able to leave with Hebblewaithe. His lung capacity is still recovering after his ordeal with COVID-19 and food tastes a bit different, according to his most recent Instagram post.
Though he and Hebblethwaite have received backlash from people since he posted his before and after photos — some saying he deserved to contract the coronavirus for attending the festival, but he told BuzzFeed News he is focusing on the positive.
"The negative stuff bothers me," Schultz told BuzzFeed News, "but it doesn't bother me that much, because I've gotten so much positive feedback."
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