LAS CRUCES — Eddie Bernal is tough.

The retired 81-year-old correctional officer — who now splits his time between Las Cruces and his ranch in Mexico — has just recovered from COVID-19 disease.

“It’s terrible, what happened to me,” Bernal said. “I don’t wish this on nobody.”

After a lengthy hospital stay, he was finally discharged to a rehabilitation facility on Thursday, May 21. With a little help, he is slowly getting his strength back, and he hopes to be back on his ranch very soon.

Feeling funny

Bernal was at his ranch, about 12 miles south of Santa Teresa, when he began feeling funny — “not sick, just funny,” he explained. It must have been near the end of April, or perhaps in the first days of May. (The timeline, he explained, is a little hazy. More on that in a bit.)

“And it kept, sort of, increasing,” Bernal told the Sun-News. “So, I decided to go to Cruces to see a doctor — I have benefits here. I was going to go directly to the hospital; at that point, I was feeling more sick.”

But as he made the 50-mile, cross-border drive to Las Cruces, he crashed into another vehicle.

“I’ve never had an accident in my life. And suddenly, I just lost it,” he said. “Later, I found out that this virus also affects your memory and your mind — all those things. Apparently, that’s what happened to me. I couldn’t understand how I crashed.”

As he describes it, he just became “very foggy.”

“I’ve always been a very careful driver,” he explained. “Suddenly, out of thin air, I just went and crashed. Fortunately, it was very, very minor."

Bernal said he crashed into an elderly couple, who were waiting at a red light. “I was already decreasing my speed, so I barely touched them — but I did.”

Police arrived at the scene of the crash. Eddie, who had remained in his car, explained he was headed to the hospital because he wasn’t feeling well. An ambulance was called.

“They took me to the hospital, but the hospital released me — because they were thinking I was there because of the crash. I had no injuries, so they sent me home.”

That evening, he stayed at his home in Las Cruces, with his son.

But the next day, he said he started feeling “real bad.” His son called the ambulance, and Eddie was taken to Memorial Medical Center, where he was admitted and isolated. He was tested for the novel coronavirus — which was positive. He also had pneumonia.

An unusual case

Eddie’s experience with COVID-19 — a disease that manifests itself in a variety of different ways — was not typical. Even now, Eddie struggles to explain what he was feeling.

“It’s difficult to explain,” he said. “I learned that this virus attacks your memory, and it attacks your intelligence. I’m still recovering from that; sometimes, I can’t remember exactly how things transpired.”

He didn’t experience the breathing problems that many COVID-19 patients do; he didn’t have the body aches, loss of taste or smell, or the persistent dry cough that many describe. He did have a high fever, he said, as well as severe fatigue.

“It took my energy completely,” Eddie said. “I couldn’t even move my hand when I was in the hospital.”

But most of all, it affected his mind. Eddie doesn’t remember much of his hospital stay.

“The only thing I remember is telling my doctor to unhook me, and to let me die — because I was feeling so bad,” he said. “That part I remember.”

When asked about that moment, he doesn’t recall experiencing much physical pain; it was nearly psychological — a sense of hopelessness and despair, a feeling he said he’d never before experienced.

“I was in no pain. I was rarely in pain,” he said. “There may have been some discomfort, but I’ve never experienced this type of feeling. I was so desperate, and had so much frustration and anxiety, I just wanted to go.”

But eventually, “the fog started going away, and I started getting better each day.” His pneumonia cleared up, too.

Researchers continue to study COVID-19’s impact on neurocognitive functions, but the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have listed “new confusion” as an emergency warning sign for the disease. The CDC urges those experiencing new confusion to seek emergency medical care immediately.

Mitchell Elkind, president-elect of the American Heart Association and professor of neurology and epidemiology at Columbia University, told Vox.com the long-term complications of COVID-19 — whether caused by the virus itself or the inflammation it triggers — could include decreased attention, concentration, and memory, as well as dysfunction in peripheral nerves, “the ones that go to your arms, legs, fingers, and toes.”

Eddie had little concept of how long he had been hospitalized. Initially, he estimated it had been 10 or 12 days; after receiving a copy of his medical records late Thursday, he was surprised to learn he’d been admitted on May 4 and discharged on May 21 — a total hospital stay of 17 days.

A life well-lived

Originally from El Paso, Eddie proudly served his country in the United States Air Force. After his service, he went to college before beginning a career in corrections.

Eddie said he started as a corrections officer in Houston, then later worked in Galveston before ending up back in El Paso. During his time as a corrections officer, he helped spearhead a program that utilized technology and therapy to rehabilitate inmates.

He retired from the El Paso County Sheriff’s Department as a correctional officer in 2010, he said.

“When I retired, I wanted to come to Cruces because my son was over here. So, I bought him a home in Las Cruces, and I spend time between Cruces and my ranch, across the border. I commute, back and forth,” he said.

Eddie has raised three daughters and one son, and he has six grandchildren. When asked what he’s proudest of, he answers without hesitation.

“I’m proud of my family,” he said. “Even when my kids were little, I didn’t have to wake them up to go to school — they were always so responsible. My son has a doctorate in economics. Two of my daughters have earned their degrees, and the third decided stay at home with her husband.”

Bernal said he is extremely proud of the adults they have become.

Advice for life — and surviving a pandemic

Eddie attributes his survival, primarily, to a lifetime of healthy living.

“I think I was very, very lucky,” he said. “I’m 81, and many people have told me, ‘We thought you were going to die.’ But my message to the community — and I think what saved my life — is that I always exercise, I live a good life, eat good food and — most of all — no liquor, no cigarettes and no drugs. I’m a very religious person, also.”

When asked his advice regarding life, in general, he offers the same guidance.

Looking ahead

Eddie was discharged from MMC on May 21, but knew he wasn’t yet well enough to go home.

“I recuperated, but I was feeling very, very weak. I knew I could not go home like this. The hospital gave me a release, but I knew I had to go to a rehab,” he said Thursday, by telephone, from Desert Willow — a short-term rehabilitation facility at The Village at Northrise. During his time at Desert Willow, the staff has worked with Eddie to help him regain his strength and stamina.

“I feel great now, thanks to the hospital and this rehabilitation facility; I feel very good now,” Eddie said. “All the exercise — besides just being nice to me,” he said. “I was here to recuperate, which is working very well. I’m much, much better now.”

Eddie completed his rehab and, on Friday morning, was sent home.

Because this disease is new, little is known about its long-term effects. While Eddie looks forward to getting back to the ranch, he knows the road to recovery could be long. At the very least, he expects it will slow him down.

“I was very lucky, but this is going to change my life in a way.”

Damien Willis is a Lead Reporter for the Las Cruces Sun-News. He can be reached at 575-541-5443, dwillis@lcsun-news.com or @DamienWillis on Twitter.

This story originally appeared in the Las Cruces Sun-News on June 1, 2020.