My covid-19 experience.

I can’t express my feelings. I feel numb. The thought of losing someone close to me brings chills to my spine. So many families have already lost their mother, father, brother, sister, son, daughter, grandfather, grandmother, friend, wife, husband. The second wave of covid-19 hit India shook all of us. We took the opening of lockdown lightly and it stabbed us right in the back.

Almost losing both of my grandparents was already a traumatic experience. Seeing them weak and fragile not able to help them in any way. Not meeting them for weeks was torture. We are a family of six and currently, three of them are covid positive. It’s been a week or so since I have seen them.

It was mid-march that I had finished my grade 11 final semester and was promoted to grade 12. My parents had started taking precautions because of the rising Covid cases in India. We had limited our time going out. We just went out if it was necessary. It was just my father going for his work. My mother had stopped going to work because my grandmother was suffering from a high fever and had to be quarantined.

I was the next victim of it. One night suddenly I lost my sense of taste and smell and was fatigued by doing small tasks. By this time I was quarantined too for precautions. In three to four days all my symptoms of covid were gone and I was recovering from it But the next day, my brother had a fever. It was just normal fever but all of this was caught by my grandfather. He couldn’t get up from his bed later that day and had tested covid positive. We couldn’t quarantine him in the house because at the same time he was diagnosed with a liver infection. Which had to be treated immediately.

By this time in India, all the hospital beds were almost filled. All the resources were exhausted but somehow my father had arranged a bed for him and admitted him to a government hospital. After admitting him all of us had to be tested and within 48 hours we got the result where my brother and grandmother had tested positive. We had to home quarantine them. They didn’t have many symptoms, just cold and cough.

But we had lost any contact with our grandfather. The doctors won’t give us his exact report. And we were just told he was doing okay.

After being admitted for a week or so he was discharged on 3rd May 2021. “The feeling was surreal when the doctor informed us how strong our grandfather is and has fought covid-19 like a warrior”.

He is a 75-year-old man. If he can fight covid so can you. He finds happiness in food. Talking to his wife after a long day makes him feel loved. If he can find small things which make him happy so can you.

I am so grateful for having a roof over my head, having resources to treat my family, to the doctors who are working tirelessly working to treat the patients.

I know this is a tough time. I am helping anybody who requires verified information of non-exhausted resources because that’s the least I could do for people who are running around trying to save their family. Don’t give up hope and keep fighting till the end. Talk to your loved ones, tell them how much you love them, assure them it is all going to be okay, stay safe and inside, and be kind.

One thing this whole experience has taught me is time is uncertain. Live your life to the fullest. Don’t sleep angry with anybody. I understood how important it is to spend time with my family and tell them I love them because when they will be gone and I would regret not telling them that.