Faith over fear

Satinder Kaur

My husband and I used to go for morning walks in the park of our compound very early in the morning at 5am, when there was hardly anyone around. That is the only time we would step out of the house. It was in mid-March this year, when the cases began to rise. I immediately became alert, took all precautions and stopped stepping out of the house. Basically, I did everything possible to keep myself and my family safe. My Covid symptoms started showing abruptly on April 12 with severe leg pain, just like menstrual cramps and all of a sudden, I started feeling terribly weak.

Headache and body pains gradually added up. I isolated myself right away and decided to get tested for Covid-19. The first night of isolation on April 13 was the toughest. As I awaited the test results, I grew increasingly anxious about being tested positive and the fear of passing the infection to my husband, and my 10-year-old daughter kept me awake at night.

My condition slowly started to worsen. I decided to quarantine at home since most hospitals in our area were fully occupied, much like how grim the situation is even right now.

That day I came down with a fever and developed a sort of irritation in my throat that turned into frequent, persistent coughs. My reports came on April 14. I tested positive with a CT value of 11-12 which is considered high, evident from the critical symptoms I was experiencing. It took me a lot of courage to disclose this to my parents and it triggered a wave of emotion in our family.

While my husband Prashant showed no symptoms at all, we still decided to get him tested. My worst fears came true when even he tested positive with a CT score of 26-27 which is also not considered mild.

We did everything to ensure our daughter and parents would not be exposed to the virus. Prashant and I isolated ourselves on the first floor of our home. Thankfully, we had a terrace where we could take short walks and soak in some fresh air. My brother-in-law made sure that all the prescribed medicines, medical and surgical equipment like steamer, nebuliser, oxy-meter, blood pressure measuring unit, oxygen concentrator etc. was available to us at home. He constantly reassured us and motivated us to stay in a positive state of mind. It was comforting to know that our parents were there to cheer us up, provide us with nourishing and comforting food and most importantly to look after our little daughter.

Next day onwards, our bodies started to feel extremely weak and we lost our sense of taste or smell. We kept ourselves busy with regular chores like dusting, mopping and changing the bed sheets. It goes without saying that it is very important to keep your surroundings extremely hygienic during this time. We used the rest of the time to inhale steam, nebulise, monitor oxygen levels, body temperature, blood pressure and sip on ‘kadhas’.

During this time, we followed the prescriptions and continued with the home remedies which I had begun using even before testing positive. Steam inhalation, gargling with saline water and hot milk with turmeric really seemed to help us get better. The medicines we took were Azithral, Doxycyclin, Ivermectin, Vitamin C and Zinc. And, my brother-in-law who was supporting more than 100 infected people during that time with consultation, arranging medicines and oxygen asked us to add Tulsi, Giloy and Ashvagandha as immunity boosters along with protein supplements twice a day. He would also bring a piece of ‘mithai’ every evening to lift our spirits.

It took two weeks for our sense of smell and taste to return. We eventually tested negative on April 30. Even though testing negative was a relief, the experience almost left me decimated. My body still feels weak and the after-effects are quite evident still. Thankfully, the recovery has been slightly better for Prashant.

While still on the road to recovery, I am thankful to have come out of this situation and finally being able to hug my parents and cuddle with my daughter. There is truly no one who can comfort you like your family and there is no place like home. I would urge you all to monitor yourselves closely and if symptoms develop, get yourselves tested at the earliest. Do take care of yourselves and your loved ones.