CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — This far into the pandemic, we know or have heard of someone who was reinfected with COVID-19.
3NEWS caught up with a local health expert on why reinfections might happen and how common it is for the second or third time to look different.
3NEWS' Reporter Ashley Gonzalez's brother, Anthony Gonzalez is one of those people who was reinfected.
"I was living in San Antonio. I got it of June of 2020. First go around, it was very minor. The only reason I know I had was because I was trying to eat food and I couldn't taste it," Gonzalez said.
He said, even though that 'first go around' wasn't too bad, he couldn't say the same thing about round two.
"I didn't want to eat," he added, "I didn't want to see the light of day. I felt legit lethargic, almost paralyzed from the headache I received, but once it started dissipating, then things started getting back to normal after maybe two days."
He was fully recovered in a week.
"Happily vaccinated. Boosted and everything," Gonzalez said.
In other cases, people can get it more than twice.
"There are reports of people who have had it three times, or the ones I've talked to, my patients. The first time, it was before we had any vaccinations. The second time, they were vaccinated, but it had mutated to the Omicron," said Dr. Kim Onufrak with the Public Health Department
Onufrak said it's no surprise a lot of folks are picking up the virus multiple times.
"Our booster is almost a year ago and we know our immunity," she added, "unfortunately wanes over time".
She said vaccinated or not, reinfections can happen, but long-term health issues are more likely in people who haven't been vaccinated at all.
"It can cause permanent damage. It can permanent heart damage, permanent kidney damage. People are having respiratory issues from the first time they had COVID, so their body is already weakened and then you put another infection on top of that, it's just going to find that weak spot and weaken it even more," Onufrak said.
The Health Department is still offering free COVID tests and vaccines.
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