INDIANAPOLIS — A local afternoon radio host is currently off the air, battling a case of COVID-19 that has been unlike any illness she could recall.
“I’m probably banking six hours of awake time per day,” said Nikki Miiler.
The afternoon drive announcer on Indianapolis station WJJK (104.5) is tired, and that’s not even the half of it.
“I can honestly say this has probably been one of the worst sicknesses I’ve ever had,’ said Miller.
Last Wednesday, Miller was diagnosed with COVID-19 after she started feeling sick on Monday.
“It started with a dry cough and a pretty sore throat started coming on, which I thought was kind of odd, and by Tuesday afternoon, I felt like I got hit by a semi,” she said.
It's why listeners haven’t heard Miller on the radio this past week.
“I’m going to try my hardest to get back tomorrow here in Indy,” Miller said.
She said she did everything she could this past year to avoid getting the virus and even had her vaccine appointment scheduled for next month.
“I could not wait to get that shot in my arm,” she said.
Instead, COVID-19 got to her first.
“It finds a way in, I’m telling you. If you are down just a little bit, be careful. Be extra cautious,” Miller said. “If you’re working a little bit too much or you’re stressed out from a family situation or whatever the case is, that’s when your immune system might take a halt, and that’s all it needs.”
According to the CDC, if you get the coronavirus, you should quarantine for 10 days, but you can still get the vaccine 10 days after showing your first symptoms.
"There is a study recently that shows having the vaccine right after having COVID-19 works actually as a booster of the immunity," said IU Health infectious disease Dr. Nicolas Barros. "So your antibodies and your immune system will actually get a boost from the vaccine and you'll be protected for more than the patients that are not vaccinated at all."
Miller is now more determined than ever to get her vaccine when she’s able.
“Get that vaccine as soon as you possibly can,” Miller said.