My experience with COVID-19

Coronavirus is an infectious disease caused by a newly discovered virus that has affected millions of people in India and world-wide.

On Aug. 28, I returned from one of the best trips I had taken this year to my friend’s house in Chandigarh only to be found bed ridden for the next two weeks.

After several months in lockdown, I was bored out of my mind like any other teenager and planned a week-long trip with my friend. I had done my research and found that there weren’t too many cases where I was going. I didn’t need to take a test to get there.

On my way to Chandigarh, I was a little apprehensive and nervous but decided that I would take extra precautions to be safe. My first week went along very well. My friend and I took every precaution: washing our hands hourly, wearing our masks, and practicing social distancing. We had had such a great time that my parents let me stay on another week. The second week went along, but we started taking fewer precautions and not worrying too much about the virus.

On the morning of Aug. 28, I woke up to a sore throat and a little bit of a headache. Naturally, I assumed this was because we had slept very late and eaten a lot of ice cream. Unfortunately, I was wrong. My friend’s mother had taken a test the night before and woke up to news that she had caught the virus. She isolated herself at once, but too late as we had spent time with her the night before. My friend woke up to a low fever, body ache and a pounding head. We were scared and tried to avoid the topic that I could potentially be infected with the virus. Later that day, I went home to a scared family who told me to isolate myself right away.

I spent the whole day in my room, trying to keep myself busy by reading books, writing, talking to my friends, and occasionally watching Netflix. I tried to distract myself from the possibility of contracting the virus. The next morning, however, I woke up at 5:00 am to get my test done. I was made to wait for two hours before getting my test done. I witnessed a huge fight between patients and a decided lack of social distancing. To say I was frightened would be an understatement. Once I had gotten my test done, I went home and slept for a couple of hours. I woke up to a fever, body ache, sore throat, and extreme anxiety. That night, both my friend and I tested positive for COVID19.

This was an extremely mild case with a few symptoms, but I knew I would be fine. The first few days of quarantine weren’t too bad. I had plenty of entertainment and lots of work to catch up on. I studied for multiple hours in a day and slept for the rest, occasionally eating. However, the most amount of time was spent on figuring out what medicines I had to take. Considering the absurd amount of pills, all the homemade remedies my grandmother insisted on taking and the endless amount of gargling and steaming, I had around 20 minutes of the day left to do what I wanted!

The sixth day was the worst. My symptoms had intensified and my chest felt heavy. I was unable to taste or smell and I was overwhelmed with fatigue. My friends and basketball coach were a constant support and asked me almost everyday how I was feeling. They distracted me by telling me what was going on in their lives.

After my two weeks of quarantine, when I had recovered, I reflected upon my trip to Chandigarh. I remembered taking the virus lightly and realised that my story was just one in a million.

Featured image by Ira Ahuja.

Ira Ahuja is the A&E editor.

Edited by Arnav Kumar.