“The emotional trauma and the paranoia of contracting the virus again is something I have to overcome and deal with at the moment.”
These are the words of a recent Covid-19 recovered patient. The resident, who would like to remain anonymous due to the stigma of being Covid-19 positive, told the Herald about her personal experience. Lidia (not her real name) fell ill a couple of weeks ago while thinking she only had the flu, since it is currently flu season.
She then decided to contact the doctor, who prescribed her antibiotics and she went on sick leave. While at home, Lidia could feel that the symptoms of normal flu were changing to something different. She couldn’t quite explain the change she felt and the doctor referred her to the laboratory for a Covid-19 test. The results were positive.
This explained Lidia’s changed symptoms of headaches, nausea, dizziness and severe exhaustion. She also had no appetite for food and an extreme dryness in her mouth, but according to her, the exhaustion was the worst of the symptoms.
“It was difficult to even lift my legs to walk.” None of her symptoms compared to those commonly associated with the coronavirus. “That is what is scary about this virus; the symptoms are so close to those of the flu that you just don’t know.”
Lidia says she is paranoid about contracting the virus again, not for herself, but the fact that she could potentially infect other people around her who might not have a strong immune system.
The guilt of infecting others and being the cause of their possible death is too much to bear, she explained. It aggravates her when she sees there are still people who are irresponsible by not wearing their masks.
She doesn’t know where she contracted the virus, as she was always careful and followed all the protocols when out and about. Every now and again, a few light symptoms still occur, but she is healthy and fully recovered. However, the mental trauma is still very real, as well as the stigma that goes with it. “I just don’t want it again, hence I am paranoid about sanitizing everything I touch or even buy,” a very emotional Lidia concluded.
*Lidia is not her real name, to avoid any stigma.

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