SEATTLE - An American woman who has recovered from the novel coronavirus has a simple message for people who are worried: Don't panic.

Elizabeth Schneider, 37, lives in Seattle, which has the most deaths in the United States from the disease.

She first had flu-like symptoms on February 25, three days after going to a party that was later identified as the place where at least five other people also got infected.

"I woke up and I was feeling tired, but it was nothing more than what you normally feel when you have to get up and go to work, and I had been very busy the previous weekend," she told AFP in an interview Wednesday.

By midday, however, she felt a headache coming on, along with a fever and body aches. She decided to leave her office and go home.

Schneider found she had a high temperature, which peaked at 103 degrees Fahrenheit that night (39.4 Celsius).

"And at that point, I started to shiver uncontrollably, and I was getting tingling in my hands and feet," she said.

She took over-the-counter flu medications and the fever began to recede in the coming days.

Because she didn't have the most common symptoms like a cough or shortness of breath, "I thought, okay, well that's definitely why I don't have coronavirus," said Schneider.

A few days later, however, she discovered through a friend's Facebook post that several people from the party had all developed similar symptoms.

She enrolled in a research program called the Seattle Flu Study. The team behind the study sent her a nasal swab kit, which she mailed back and waited several more days.

"I finally got a phone call from one of the research coordinators on Saturday (March 7), telling me that 'You have tested positive for COVID-19,'" she said.

By this time, her symptoms had already subsided, and she was told by local health authorities to remain at home for at least seven days.

It's now been a week since she's felt better. 

"The message is don't panic," said Schneider. "If you think that you have it, you probably do; you should probably get tested."

"If your symptoms aren't life-threatening, simply stay at home, take over-the-counter medicines, drink lots of water, get a lot of rest and check out the shows you want to binge-watch," she said.