Windy City Media Group Frontpage News

THE VOICE OF CHICAGO'S GAY, LESBIAN, BI, TRANS AND QUEER COMMUNITY SINCE 1985

home search facebook twitter join
Gay News Sponsor Windy City Times 2023-02-22
DOWNLOAD ISSUE
Donate

Sponsor
Sponsor
Sponsor

  WINDY CITY TIMES

Chicago dancer discusses battle with COVID-19
by Matt Simonette
2020-04-15

This article shared 5054 times since Wed Apr 15, 2020
facebook twitter pin it google +1 reddit email


When Joseph Hutto—a Chicago dancer who performs locally under the stage name Ben D. Mann—got sick in late March, he assumed that he had somehow contracted food poisoning.

"I couldn't figure out what this was, because I really hadn't eaten anything out of the ordinary," recalled Hutto, who, among his other dance work, directs, produces and headlines the Boylesque dance troupe that performs biweekly at Charlie's.

Hutto was ill with a multitude of digestive-tract issues at first, but one day he began experiencing chest pains and breathing problems as well—symptoms that were uncharacteristic for him but are hallmark symptoms of COVID-19. Conversations with his physician and other health professionals led them all to conclude that Hutto was indeed showing symptoms of coronavirus; his digestive issues were showing up in a small but significant number of COVID-19 patients.

"What was tricky with me was that I didn't present the way most people do," Hutto said. "It took me a while to figure out what this was. I had digestive problems, intestinal issues and stomach cramping."

Hutto's diagnosis of coronavirus was an unofficial one. Since he was ill already, both he and his providers did not want for him to leave his home to get tested or to seek additional medical attention at a time when community medical resources were being stretched thin; they determined that his best chances were with simply getting bed rest. He was physically on his own for the recovery, but was in touch by phone with providers while friends dropped off food and supplies.

The illness was especially harsh for about a week. For days, Hutto wanted to do little but sleep, and could barely keep food down. He described the recovery as "super-gradual."

After about a week, he phoned a nurse practitioner for a followup telehealth visit. "I was starting to feel slightly better, but not by much," he recalled.

But that nurse practitioner warned him that his malaise was likely not over.

Hutto explained: "She said, 'Right at the time you feel like you're going to get better, you're going to have a day or two where you're going to get worse. It's going to feel like you're sicker than you should be, and it's going to be kind of scary, but rest assured it's happened to everyone and they're getting through it just fine.'"

Indeed, Hutto went into a severe relapse for the next few days. "I had about five days where I was sick as a dog, a couple of days where I felt a little bit better but not much, then a couple of days where I was sick as a dog again, and thought, 'Holy crap, is this never going to end?' Then, once I got over that hump, I recovered very quickly. Within a couple days, I was 100-percent back to normal."

Hutto is living with HIV, and credited his ongoing efforts at staying undetectable with helping him to face the challenges of COVID-19. He had coincidentally just had his T-cell counts run before getting sick and had a clear idea in his mind when he was feeling off and when he wasn't.

"I have a really strong immune system and my numbers are always really high, and I keep track of them," he said. "I'm well aware of how that works, way more than the average person. I really stay on top of it. I wasn't extra-paranoid or scared. I knew that my immune system is strong and I knew that I can fight this off."

As his symptoms have subsided, Hutto is trying to reclaim whatever normality he can under self-isolation. Money is now a struggle since there will be no dance gigs in the immediate future, and the dog-walking service for whom he works during the day closed for the duration of the state's shelter-in-place order.

"Being confined for so long is hard mentally, especially if you're a social person and you're used to working Chicago nightlife, and have shows every two weeks," he said. "But I'm getting there. I'm adjusting."


This article shared 5054 times since Wed Apr 15, 2020
facebook twitter pin it google +1 reddit email

  ARTICLES YOU MIGHT LIKE

Gay News

Baldwin leads 22 colleagues in calling on FDA to end discriminatory blood donation policy
2023-03-24
--From a press release - WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) has headed up a group of 22 colleagues in sending a letter to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Dr. Robert Califf expressing support for the agency's ...


Gay News

Iowa, Georgia ban medical treatment for trans minors
2023-03-24
Two more states have enacted laws that prohibit medical treatment for transgender minors. On March 22, Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds signed two bills into law that affect transgender minors in the state, NBC News reported. Senate ...


Gay News

Utah bans conversion therapy
2023-03-23
On March 22, Republican Utah Gov. Spencer Cox signed a bill that bans licensed professionals from practicing conversion therapy—the discredited practice that attempts to turn LGBTQ+ people heterosexual—on minors, Q ...


Gay News

US Bishops' statement limits trans health care in Catholic health care facilities, DignityUSA responds
2023-03-22
--From a DignityUSA press release - On March 20, 2023, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' Committee on Doctrine released a policy statement on how Catholic medical institutions should treat transgender and nonbinary people. Entitled "Doctrinal Note on the Moral Limits to ...


Gay News

WORLD German bishops, trans woman's death, Hungary, human-rights event
2023-03-18
Germany's Catholic bishops voted (38 to nine, with 11 abstentions) to adopt formal ceremonies for the blessing of same-sex relationships, defying the Vatican and testing church unity on what has become one of the most contentious ...


Gay News

NATIONAL Ritchie Torres, N.J. towns, Karine Jean-Pierre, Tennessee items
2023-03-18
New York Congressman Ritchie Torres has talked about his own struggle with depression and the importance of mental health in the wake of U.S. Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.)'s recent hospitalization for clinical depression, The Washington Blade ...


Gay News

Arkansas governor signs anti-trans medical malpractice bill
2023-03-15
Republican Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders signed into law a measure that makes it easier to sue providers of gender-affirming care for children, ABC News reported. This move, involving a law that will take effect this ...


Gay News

Chicago Black Dance Legacy Project to present dance concert 'Sans Pareil'
2023-03-14
--From a press release - Deeply Rooted Dance Theater joins the Chicago Black Dance Legacy Project again to take the stage in a dance concert entitled Sans Pareil—French for "unparalleled," a nod to the Haitian lineage of Chicago's founder, Jean-Baptiste Pointe ...


Gay News

Study: Outcomes for children similar regardless of the LGBTQ+ identity of the children's parents
2023-03-10
--From a press release - NEW YORK — This week a new report was released by BMJ Global Health examining outcomes between LGBTQ+ families and families headed by heterosexual couples. The report, a literature review and synthesis of dozens of academic ...


Gay News

SHOWBIZ Little Richard, Indigo Girls, Rodriguez's honor, dance film, Pedro Pascal
2023-03-10
Video below - Produced by Bungalow Media + Entertainment for CNN Films and HBO Max, in association with Rolling Stone Films, director Lisa Cortes' Sundance opening-night documentary Little Richard: I Am Everything will debut in theaters and on VOD ...


Gay News

NATIONAL Folx Health, gay mayor arrested, powerlifter's suit, Versace visit
2023-03-10
Boston-based Folx Health—which provides primary healthcare services and gender-affirming healthcare to LGBTQIA people—made Fast Company's list of the world's 50 most innovative businesses. A few of the other healthcare companies ...


Gay News

Minn. governor signs order protecting gender-affirming healthcare
2023-03-10
At a time when so many political officials seem to be backing anti-LGBTQ+ measures, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz is doing just the opposite. On March 8, Walz signed an executive order protecting the rights of LGBTQ+ ...


Gay News

Study examines straight men and their sexual attraction to transgender women
2023-03-09
--From a press release - An analysis of online Reddit conversations also revealed a paradox: the same men devalue both trans and cisgender women Some straight men said they sexually desire transgender women because of the women's supposed hyper-feminine traits. Brandon ...


Gay News

Billy Masters: Raunchier Uncoupled on the rebound with Showtime
2023-03-06
"I never liked when she did this in concerts either. I don't like when females are overly sexualized in art. It degrades and objectivy's [sic] women in a way that's not healthy." —TJ Jackson on reports ...


Gay News

LGBTQ+ groups criticize Tenn. bill that bans access to medical care for trans youth
2023-03-03
--From a press release - NASHVILLE — On March 2, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee signed into law HB1/SB1, a bill that prohibits transgender-related healthcare in Tennessee for people under the age of 18. The bill is set to take effect on ...


 




Copyright © 2023 Windy City Media Group. All rights reserved.
Reprint by permission only. PDFs for back issues are downloadable from
our online archives. Single copies of back issues in print form are
available for $4 per issue, older than one month for $6 if available,
by check to the mailing address listed below.

Return postage must accompany all manuscripts, drawings, and
photographs submitted if they are to be returned, and no
responsibility may be assumed for unsolicited materials.
All rights to letters, art and photos sent to Nightspots
(Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago
Gay and Lesbian News and Feature Publication) will be treated
as unconditionally assigned for publication purposes and as such,
subject to editing and comment. The opinions expressed by the
columnists, cartoonists, letter writers, and commentators are
their own and do not necessarily reflect the position of Nightspots
(Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago Gay,
Lesbian, Bisexual and Transegender News and Feature Publication).

The appearance of a name, image or photo of a person or group in
Nightspots (Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times
(a Chicago Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender News and Feature
Publication) does not indicate the sexual orientation of such
individuals or groups. While we encourage readers to support the
advertisers who make this newspaper possible, Nightspots (Chicago
GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago Gay, Lesbian
News and Feature Publication) cannot accept responsibility for
any advertising claims or promotions.

 
 

TRENDINGBREAKINGPHOTOS







Sponsor


 



Donate


About WCMG      Contact Us      Online Front  Page      Windy City  Times      Nightspots
Identity      BLACKlines      En La Vida      Archives      Advanced Search     
Windy City Queercast      Queercast Archives     
Press  Releases      Join WCMG  Email List      Email Blast      Blogs     
Upcoming Events      Todays Events      Ongoing Events      Bar Guide      Community Groups      In Memoriam     
Privacy Policy     

Windy City Media Group publishes Windy City Times,
The Bi-Weekly Voice of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Trans Community.
5315 N. Clark St. #192, Chicago, IL 60640-2113 • PH (773) 871-7610 • FAX (773) 871-7609.