One year ago, Chris Tillett became Connecticut’s COVID-19 patient zero. Living in Wilton at the time, he tested positive for the coronavirus on March 8, 2020, after having flown home from a professional conference in California. He ended up becoming gravely ill and spent weeks hospitalized.
Tillett, who now lives in Virginia, said he gained a strange type of fame.
“I would go walking the Norwalk Valley trail and you would see people talking, saying, ‘That’s him, that’s that guy,’” said Tillett.
He can laugh about it now -- but last year at this time, he was fighting for his life at Danbury Hospital. Tillett said he remains close to the staff there, and they still text him to see how he is doing.
Tillett said his decision to move back to his home state of Virginia was made in his hospital bed.
“I remember slowly but surely thinking to myself, ‘I think I need to be near family,” said Tillett. “My parents are here, my sisters and their husbands are here.”
His twin boys were just 4 months old when Tillett got sick. He said because of the pandemic, his parents missed the first year of their grandkids’ lives. He also wanted to be close to family because of the persistent effects of the virus.
“That was one of the main reasons why I moved here,” said Tillett. “I don’t know what it’s doing to me in the long term. I am on blood pressure medication now that I was never on before, and probably will have to be for a while.”
Tillett said he still experiences muscle pain, stiffness and swelling in his legs. He said his feet remain covered in red spots, a common lingering symptom of the virus.
He plans on getting vaccinated once he qualifies. His wife is a nurse and has decided to work administering COVID-19 tests.
