Lessons Learned From COVID-19

Muhammad Jais Mariappan Abdullah and his family had a standoff with the infectious COVID-19. He was hospitalised when his lungs’ oxygen levels dropped to 80 per cent. The news of his conditions had totally shaken him. He was overwhelmed with anxiety and uncertainty of whether he would be able to recover from it or not. Nevertheless, he stayed optimistic and came back stronger. Here is his story and lessons learned…

I started having fever just two days before Eid Adha but I brushed it off thinking that it was just a normal fever since I had it on and off. Even though, Malaysia was shaken by the gripping fear of the new Delta Variant, it did not occur to me that I could possibly be infected by the virus. I did not take any medications because I only thought that I am just having a light fever. Next two days passed by, my fever worsened followed with tremendous muscles and joints pain to the point where I cannot even stand up. I started taking Panadols as remedy and went to see a doctor. After my blood had been taken, the results shown that I could possibly be infected by either Dengue or COVID-19, hence it was recommended that my family and I take a swab test.

My worst nightmare happened when I was told that I was tested positive of COVID-19 along with the other family members. Fortunately, my mother was not infected of the deadly virus at all probably because she had been fully vaccinated. I was told to home quarantine and only go to COVID-19 Assessment Center (CAC) if my symptoms worsen so I bought an oximeter to monitor our oxygen levels at home.

Several days had passed, I started coughing badly and my oxygen levels showed results of 80-90%. I went straight to the CAC and they told me to continue quarantine in hospital. I admitted at KPJ Ampang Puteri and was diagnosed of Stage 3B of COVID-19. While hospitalised, I could feel myself overwhelmed with anxiety and fear of whether or not I would be able to recover from this as doctor told me that the virus had severely infected my lungs. It was my mistake for not taking medications early as it can help prevent the virus from infecting my lungs and other internal organs.  During my stay at the hospital, I talked with people to keep myself busy from thinking about my condition. I started seeing a ray of hope when the doctor told me that my condition had improved.

After I was discharged from the hospital, I found myself not fit enough to continue with my usual routine but I kept strong and do light exercise as advised by the doctor to help my lungs recover. I faced difficulties to move and speak as usual. Even now, I still have a hard time performing my prayers. Nevertheless, I tried my best to keep a positive mind and have confidence in my recovery. Alhamdulillah, now I can do cycling exercise at home without any problem. It is important for post-COVID-19 patients to do light exercises as simple as walking to help your body especially your lungs to recover. I know it may be hard, but we have to keep ourselves strong and have faith that we can recover from it.

My experience with COVID-19 had taught me the importance of adhering to government’s Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) as precautions to prevent us from being infected. I would like to advise people to seek and start treatment right away if you develop flu-like symptoms. This will prevent you from experiencing severe symptoms due to COVID-19 as the first five days are extremely crucial.

Please do COVID-19 swab test if your symptoms prolong. Being tested and isolated early can help prevent the virus from infecting more people. Do not take it too lightly and be in denial and wait for more severe symptoms. We have to reduce the chances of severe symptoms.

Getting vaccinated, practicing social distancing, masking and hand hygiene to manage the virus are the only ways forward. I have not gotten the vaccines yet even though I have registered for vaccination through MySejahtera. My mother who have gotten complete doses of the COVID-19 vaccines was fortunately saved from being infected of the virus.

All in all, COVID-19 is real and it is something that we need to take seriously. Do get vaccinated as our protection against COVID-19 and take as many precautions possible to prevent us from being infected from the virus.

Note : It has been assured that the COVID-19 vaccine is safe and has been tested on tens of thousands of recipients before being approved (Health Minister & Coordinating Minister for Covid-19 Immunisation, Khairy Jamaludin, The Straits Times, Feb 14 2021). We need to stop listening to conspiracy theories on social media, family WhatsApp groups or fake sources. Get your information from authorised and credible sources about vaccine. Let us do our part in achieving herd immunity against COVID-19.