Virus-infected-and-cured senior citizen says one must be physically, mentally and emotionally strong to beat the disease

Mysore/Mysuru: The outbreak of Coronavirus has diagnosed more than a crore patients worldwide. Soon, the number of cases is going to exceed in the coming days.

It is estimated that the Coronavirus is going to affect 60 percent to 80 percent of the total population of the world, but again, these are just estimates as nothing can be predicted in this time of uncertainty. We don’t know to what extent national restrictions, which vary wildly across the globe, will prevent or delay infections and deaths. Even the official Coronavirus death tolls are only the estimates.

We are living in a time of uncertainty and it is the time how we as an individual and society stand up and support each other in this time of crisis. Here is a story of a 62-year-old person, who was among the initial COVID-19 recovered patients in Mysuru giving us insights on how real is the problem and why we should take ourselves seriously — physically, mentally and emotionally.

Infected in Hunsur

He has been identified as P-9047 and a resident of Devaraja Mohalla. He got infected at a programme in Hunsur where several people had come from Bengaluru. “After attending the programme, I learnt from my family and friends that some of the people who had attended the Hunsur event like me tested positive for COVID-19. I remained in home quarantine for a few days and got myself tested in the designated Government laboratory where I tested positive,” he told Star of Mysore. 

“Doctors took me to the designated hospital where I was kept in isolation. Good encouragement from doctors and unflinching support from my family members made me overcome the disease. Initially I had fears of treatment as it was a Government facility. Generally, we don’t speak high about Government hospitals. But here, the treatment, food supplements, medicines and the overall atmosphere was very good,” he explained. 

Positive outlook

“What helped me the most during these difficult days (and what I am recommending to everyone who feels the symptoms) is a lot of rest, turning off the television (because the amount of bad news increases our anxiety and makes us very worried, which compromises our improvement) and lots of positivity to beat the virus. The more anxious you are the more susceptible you are to the virus,” he said and added that one must be patient and have belief in the treatment. 

Doctors at the hospital used to give him a lot of vitamin supplements including zinc to increase his immunity. As the effect of Coronavirus is different from person to person, the fear of unknown creeps in because there are cases where even young people with no serious health issues have died. We need to mentally prepare during this hard time,” he says with ample confidence. 

Supportive family

After he got discharged, people came to talk to him asking about the disease and its symptoms. “People including relatives had a tone of curiosity, because it is still very common to find people who do not believe in the seriousness of the situation. But to my surprise, I received a lot of support especially from my family members,” the recovered patient explained.

“Repeated assurance by the doctors and healthcare workers at the hospital made me cheer up and even if I was seared in a pensive mood, doctors would come to me with fresh reassurances and were telling me that world over, the recovery rate is very high and there is no need to panic,” P-9047 said. 

“The best medicine for COVID-19 at present is wearing a mask and maintaining social distancing. If we are not careful, we will be victims and we will not even know that we had contracted the disease,” he added.