A Seminole man who saw overseas war-time action while serving in the United States Military says he recently beat one of his toughest foes yet: COVID-19.

“I beat it and I’m trying to get back to normal,” said Michael Allison, who was recently released from a two-week hospital stay after contracting the potentially deadly virus.

Allison said he began experiencing headaches on Jan. 25 then lost his sense of taste and smell a couple of days later. He tested positive for COVID-19 on Jan. 27.

Positive test results were not the only bad news Allison received that day. “My brother-in-law called to tell me that my sister, Glenna, had passed away. It was a rough day,” he said.

On Jan. 28, Allison received what he called “the Trump treatment” (a cocktail containing a variety of drugs including Dexamethasone) at Hillcrest Hospital in Oklahoma City, but landed in the emergency room shortly thereafter.

“The next day, I had pneumonia and a temperature of 103. My wife made me go to the emergency room,” Allison said. “If it wasn’t for her telling me to go, I probably wouldn’t be here.”

Allison was admitted to a Shawnee hospital on Jan. 29, where he would remain until Feb. 13. He said he received a plasma infusion during his stay, and his medical team worked to get his oxygen levels regulated.

“My oxygen level was very low when I went in,” Allison said. “They had do get it up to 97, then bring it back down. I still have to carry an oxygen tank everywhere I go.”

Allison was released from the hospital on Valentine’s Day weekend, and he said the first thing he did was hug his sweetheart.

“I grabbed my wife of 32 years, Tanna, and hugged her. I also cried a lot because I really missed her,” Allison said. “I sure didn’t like the thought of being separated from her.”

Tanna also tested positive for COVID-19, but she did not require hospitalization. “A 10-day quarantine was it for her,” Allison said.

According to Allison, his workmates at Wrangler/ Kontoor helped to cheer him up by sending a plant to him as he recovered. “Those folks are great,” he said. “They’re my friends for life.”