Out of the millions infected by the coronavirus in India, 5 cases were contributed to by my family.
20th September, 2020.
My sister and father had a sore throat and fever for over a week. The rest of us had mild headaches. Our general paediatrician assured us that it was just the common cold due to seasonal change but, at noon, we got a message from him asking us to take the RT-PCR test. The ruckus created reminded me of the school atrium during lunch breaks.
The next 30 hours passed in silence, as everyone waited for a phone call from the lab, preparing ourselves for the possibility of testing positive. We braced ourselves for the worst, and the worst did happen.
The news spread like wildfire. Phone calls flooded in, asking how we got infected. We had no answer.
I realized just how hard the doctors were working when we got a teleconsultation appointment for 11 that night. I was left awestruck by their commitment. The medications were delivered to us by 1 a.m.
The 2nd day started with cleaning the house. Officials from the BMC were coming to sanitize it. This was tiresome, but it balanced the days of rest which were to follow. My father, being diabetic, was hospitalized for a few days, and so was I due to breathing difficulties. Our floor was sealed as per protocol, and my neighbours had to self-quarantine.
At the hospital, they did a CT scan to see how far the virus had reached our lungs. Thankfully, it turned out to be mild. We were sent home in 2 days.
To minimize the chores, we decided to use disposable cutlery. Our garbage was to be collected by different people in PPE kits now who came once in 3 days. This is highly inconvenient for a family surviving on disposable utensils.
Daily routine included rest, steam, gargling, and taking medicines. My mother was able to rest because my loving aunt and cousin prepared all the meals for us.
Time acquired the speed of a snail. One bright side of the situation was a drastic increase in family time. Thus, ended the 21 days of isolation.
Hoping that my COVID experience offered you some respite from the confusion. Stay safe, everybody!
Comentários