Husband and wife describe experience with coronavirus diagnosis

It started with a routine phone call.

Longtime Starkville Resident Jane Owens got a call to remind her of an appointment with her cardiologist. But the nurse on the other end noticed Jane was coughing and sneezing.

Jane said what happened next possibly saved her life and that of her husband.

“They asked me what my symptoms were, and I said, well I’m sneezing, I’m coughing, explained Owens.

It wasn’t too long before the conversation turned to Jane’s husband John. It just so happened John wasn’t feeling well that day either.

“He was rolled up in a blanket on the bed. He was buried down like he was cold, and his face had a purple color to his complexion,” described Jane.

Fast forward a few days, John was officially one of the dozens of COVID-19 patients in Oktibbeha Count.

Ominous news for Jane.

“He said you need to brace yourself because your test will probably come back positive as well,” said Owens.

After John was diagnosed, he was admitted to OCH Regional Medical Center for 10 days.

Jane said the first night without him was the loneliest she had ever felt.

“I couldn’t go to the hospital. I couldn’t see him. I could just talk to him on his cell phone,” said Owens.

With John quarantined in the hospital, Janee endured her own kind of self-isolation. Relying on friends and neighbors to deliver meals.

“They’d ring the doorbell, put it at the back door, and then run,” described Owens.

John was eventually released from the hospital to continue his recovery at home.

Jane got her test results back a few days later with positive results. Now, the two are spending the next 15 days quarantined inside their home.

Jane remains symptomless. John however has picked up a new ailment.

“He’s developed a numbness in his right hand, and his fingers are numb. That worried me a little bit,” said Owens.

The couple married in the late 1980s. They’ve been together for 34 years. Through sickness and health.

“He has taken good care of me, and I’m going to be there for him. We took those vows, and we meant them,” described Owens.

Jane has relied on faith and daily prayer.

“I’ve heard, ‘Jane, the healing is there for you, but you have to reach out and take it,” said Jane.

Jane has no problem taking it.

“No lousy coronavirus. I’m not going to let it ruin any two minutes of a good day,” said Jane.

John receives a visit from a home health nurse twice a week. Both have doctor’s appointments this week to get on update on their recovery.

The Mississippi Department of Health has not released any numbers indicating the number of patients, like John, who have recovered from the virus.