SAN ANTONIO – It has been nearly 90 days since San Antonio nurse Natasha Gonzales last saw her children. The nurse and mother of three has been on the coronavirus pandemic frontlines in New York City for the last few months.

“I was so nervous - like my heart was beating... just because I miss them so much,” said Gonzales. “I know that they’ve missed me. You know, my little one doesn’t understand but older ones do.”

After her 76-day stay helping NYC essential workers combat the deadly virus, Gonzales self-quarantined herself for two weeks and waited for test results to read negative. When they did, her husband Albert Gonzales blindfolded their children Elora, Jaiden and Dean to greet her.

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“They would ask me every day, ‘Did you get your results yet?’ I didn’t have them yet— I was in quarantine. I was in quarantine two minutes away for two weeks, so it was really hard,” she said.

When the children removed their blindfolds, they all dashed to their mother.

“[My dad] told us that we were going to grandma’s house to surprise her, but it ended up that mommy came,” said one of the children, Dean.

The Gonzales children taking off their blindfolds to see their mom in person for the first time in months. (Spectrum News)

Gonzales is happy to be home with her family, but now home is itself a pandemic hot spot. As of Monday, San Antonio surpassed 30,000 COVID-19 cases since the start of the pandemic.

“I had friends that were messaging that knew that I was coming back and they told me, ‘Don’t come back, stay there,’” Gonzales said.  “It just makes me sad to know that it’s here in my city and it’s affecting my people.”

Natasha Gonzales says health care workers across the country will likely struggle with post-traumatic stress disorder.

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“I wish that they could see some of things that we saw and the nurses here are currently seeing and they wouldn’t think that way anymore,” Gonzales said.

That’s why she’s urging San Antonians to take all precautions possible.

“Please wear a mask, please wash your hands, please social distance. This is the first time I’ve seen my kids in three and a half months,” Gonzales said. “Just stay home, relax, take it easy, do some self-reflection, pick up yoga — do something.”