Texas Man's Amazing Coronavirus Survival Story
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: Now to one Texas man's amazing coronavirus survival story. Frank Arredondo is a pharmacist in the Rio Grande valley area of Texas. He was one of the first patients to become infected in his region. And he spent 10 harrowing days on a ventilator. At one point, his oxygen levels dropped below 80 percent. He suffered wild hallucinations. And his wife, a nurse, not only cared for him, but documented his miraculous journey to recovery. And Frank Arredondo joins me, as well as his wife, Tyra Greene. Thank you so much both for being here. And tell us how you're feeling, Frank.</s>FRANK ARREDONDO, PHARMACIST WHO BECAME INFECTED WITH COVID-19: At this point, I'm feeling remarkably great. Still have lingering issues, secondary to possibly COVID toes when I started to experience a couple days after being discharged.</s>KEILAR: OK, COVID toes. Your experience in some sort of almost vascular inflammation or something?</s>ARREDONDO: Yes. The coronavirus, amongst other things, tends to stimulate the clotting factors. You've probably heard that kids experience some form of Kawasaki Syndrome. They get it in their fingertips and their hands. Adults and some younger folks actually get those small clots stuck in the smallest portions of the body, which are the capillaries, and at the bottom of the feet.</s>KEILAR: Because this is what we're hearing from so many experts. Seeing a lot of blood clots. You're experiencing that. Frank, you were actually -- already on alert about getting the coronavirus, because you say that your 15-year-olds were cavalier about it. But tell us when you first suspected that you had contracted the virus. What were you feeling?</s>ARREDONDO: You're right. Before I actually contracted what I thought were the symptoms, I, like most folks, out in the country, and the world for that matter, I was very concerned. But it was one day at end of march, March 26th, 27th, I came home from work and I just -- fell, collapsed into my bed and I couldn't get out the next couple of days. My wife figured out within day or two I probably had the COVID virus.</s>KEILAR: And, Tyra, you documented everything. What did you, you know -- kind of from afar, but what did you document as you saw your husband going through this?</s>TYRA GREENE, WIFE OF FRANK ARREDONDO: Well, actually, the documenting didn't really start until Frank was admitted to the hospital. Basically, I started the journal more of, because we had Frank on many, many prayer chains and friends and family were just inquiring daily on his health condition. And I knew that I was not going to be able to remember all of this, because the doctors were very detailed with me in regard to his treatment. Medications, especially once he went on the ventilator. Just everything in a was going on and I needed to be able to repeat that information. For me, that was the easiest way to do, I started writing a journal, which I didn't know would turn out to be what it is now. And have got -- just so much information and detailed information. But I'm so thankful that I kept it because that's really the only way that Frank was able to understand what he was dealing with and going through during this time in the hospital.</s>KEILAR: Frank, that included hallucinations. And also tell us about what, what doctors had to do with your hands when you were in the hospital?</s>ARREDONDO: Well -- while I was on the ventilator -- I don't know if you're referring to when I -- sometime during the course of being on the ventilator, I had actually woken up because they were switches sedatives. The first one tended to -- they try not to keep patients on it more than three days. And because it tends to be very addicting. In the process switching me over, I -- I apparently tried taking out the tubes out of my mouth. And at the same time, they were clogged. They were able to clear out my lungs with shooting normal saline in there and cleaned things up. When I was actually lucid, the one thing I can remember is waking up and hearing the ventilator breathing for me. It sounds like Darth Vader from "Star Wars." I could look out the window, realized I couldn't move. Looked down to my hands and couldn't even move my feet and I realized I was awake on the ventilator and couldn't move. But right away, I heard somebody says, "He's awake," and then sedative kicked back in at that point. I don't remember anything around that.</s>KEILAR: You had hallucinations, is that right? Can you tell us about that?</s>ARREDONDO: Sure. I -- I think when people think about hallucinations, they think of psychedelic dreams or disjointed thoughts. But for me, I felt it was just like I'm having a conversation with you, or with anyone else. It seemed very, very real. I had -- at the time, I believed I was not in a hospital room but in a hospital, that, in fact, the doctors were flying me over to another country to some experimental treatment. And then, at one point, I think I had fallen out of favor with the doctors. So the nurses and one of the doctors were plotting to kill me. I had, in fact, had been kidnapped, taken down to Mexico. And I was -- I was being hunted by Mexican cartel, Mexican police. I had a Texas Ranger after me. I had drummed up murder charges against me. And it all seemed very real. And, in fact, there was even high-tech ways of going after me. And, in fact, there were points, times where I was in my -- in my hospital bed -- this is maybe a day or so off the ventilator. But I could see things. And the only way I could go after them was to try to break them apart with my hands. And meanwhile, the nurses, I'm sure, are looking at this patient, myself, in the room, and see the patient swatting, swings his arms in the room and I'm sure just shaking their head.</s>KEILAR: It's, I mean, sounds traumatic, honestly, as you describe it. But so important Frank you're sharing this story and, Tyra, you're sharing the story. We're so glad to see you together and, Frank, you healthy. And I thank you both for coming on.</s>GREENE: Thank you.</s>KEILAR: Thank you. We appreciate you taking an interest in our story.</s>GREENE: Yes. Thank you so much.</s>KEILAR: Thanks for sharing it. Dr. Anthony Fauci speaking right now as the White House attacks him. We'll take his comments next. Plus, clusters are popping up along the coast of Georgia and officials ARE blaming beach vacations. Some Arizona schools using power breezers to spray disinfect? We'll talk about how this works.