You may have to fight a battle more than once to win it.” This old adage stands true for the people who got infected by Covid-19 and recovered from the deadly disease.
Their survival stories reveal how the recovery process is more often a mental battle than physical and the deep-seated stigma around the affected persons has exacerbated their sufferings.
“It’s been a roller coaster ride of emotions. From being tested positive to being blamed for spreading the infection in Bapu Dham colony, I am still putting some of the puzzle together… Certainly, the last one month has been really challenging for me,” says a ward attendant at Government Medical College and Hospital Sector 32, who was the first positive patient detected in Bapu Dham colony-a containment zone in Chandigarh.
“It had started with a mild fever and no other symptoms. The fever went away after a day or two, yet I decided to undergo the Covid-19 (coronavirus) test as I was working for several weeks at the hospital amid the spread of Covid-19 in the city,” the 30 years old healthcare worker recalls.
His test came positive on April 24 and like many other healthcare providers, he too became a victim and eventually a survivor of the contagious virus. The recovery period, however, became more distressing for him as the police lodged a criminal case against him for allegedly throwing a party to celebrate his wedding anniversary at home with more than 100 people in attendance defying curfew orders while media labeled him as ‘super spreader’ in the Bapu Dham colony (BDC).
After he was reported positive on the night of April 24, the colony has till June 2 reported 225 cases, which accounts for more than 74 percent of the total cases in Chandigarh. The BDC in Sector 26 here has an approximate population of 60,000 people.
The GMCH-32 ward attendant tells that his own six family members out of eight were tested positive and admitted in PGIMER for treatment. “We live in a small house and 100 people cannot be accommodated for a party there. It was a lie and I am facing the consequences till now. People blamed me for spreading Coronavirus in the colony. Many people in our colony have blocked entry to their lanes by parking vehicles so that no one from our lane enters their areas. This is the kind of discrimination we are facing here,” he says while sharing his agony.
“Like everyone else, I also wanted my family to stay safe. But, anyone can get infected…Blaming and shaming a patient for this is really distressing for them and their family,” he adds.
About his recovery period, he tells, “I spent almost a month in quarantine to recover from Coronavirus. My family members were also admitted in the PGIMER. During the quarantine period, there were no concerns related to health as I was asymptomatic and I always knew that I will recover from this. The only concern was the fear of misinformation and discrimination as people are not very educated in our locality. Still, I tried to keep myself positive and stay in touch with my relatives and friends.”
“Taking precautions is important to fight coronavirus but people need to understand that after getting infected, one can also recover from this. There is no need to panic and stigmatize those recovered from this virus. Rather, people should focus on getting themselves tested if they have symptoms of the virus,” he advices.
For Inder Singh (38) and his 17 family members, who contracted Coronavirus, the journey to recovery was not less than a nightmare. Another resident of Bapu Dham colony, Inder ho lives in a joint family says, “I had fever and breathing problem. After being tested positive, I was admitted in PGIMER on April 27 and stayed there for almost 22 days. One by one, all my 17 family members aged 10 to 68 years including mother, two brothers and their family were tested positive and admitted to PGIMER.”
“Initially, I was very anxious but the doctors counselled me and advised me to stay positive and relaxed to recover from the virus. I braced myself for the situation because that was the only option. My entire family was infected so I tried to stay positive and prayed that everyone gets recovered from this soon,” he says.
“I and my wife were admitted in the same room, so we took care of each other during difficult times,” Inder tells while adding that all his family members have now recovered from coronavirus and are back home.
About his quarantine experience, he shares, “I was tested three times but was not discharged because my report came positive. On the morning of May 18, I received call from my doctor and was informed that my test report has come negative and I will be discharged from the hospital with one another family member. That was the happiest day in the past one month.”
Commenting on how the people in their locality responded when they came back home, Inder says, “There is no point of thinking how people respond. We are under home quarantine as per treatment protocol. I feel people are not fully aware of Coronavirus and there is a lot of unnecessary panic and rumor-mongering. But, I hope things will get better with time and we will be able to end the stigma around the virus.”
Sadly, those who have stricken with Covid-19 and cured, are being forced to navigate the society that is clearly less welcoming and plagued by fear-driven stigmatization and discrimination. Across the world, instances of discrimination against Covid-19 patients have been witnessed.
Health observers say that the stigma in the forms of social rejection, gossip, physical violence, and denial of services harms the mental and physical health of people dealing with this deadly disease. While feeling stigmatized is not what many survivors expect, the fact remains that the Covid-19 cured patients have also come forward to donate convalescent plasma to save lives of those who are still fighting the infection.
In Chandigarh, the first coronavirus patient, Fiza Gupta, her brother Arnav Gupta and others, who won the battle against coronavirus, have donated plasma to save lives of other sick patients.
In the past two months, many mothers along with their infants have also recovered from coronavirus in the PGIMER and were given a warm send off with showering of flower petals and gifts, symbolically wishing them good health and happiness for all times to come.
One such mother is a 34 years old resident from Sector 30 B here, who was admitted in PGIMER along with her three-year old son on May 1. She tells, “The past several weeks have been really tough and it was not easy to keep my child occupied and happy during 25 days quarantine period in the isolation room.”
“The day of Covid-19 testing at GMSH-16 was the toughest as we kept waiting for the report for several hours without any food for my child. The first to test positive in the family were his grandparents. Following this, I and my son, who were asymptomatic were tested positive while my husband was tested negative. Keeping my child busy in the isolation ward was proved to be a major challenge as he is really attached to his father and kept crying to meet him,” says the overwhelmed mother.
“During the 25 days of quarantine, I was really worried about my son as he often got injured while playing in the small room where we were admitted. I tried to keep him engaged by playing songs on mobile, telling him stories but it was a really difficult time,” she recalls while adding, “I just want to erase those memories from my mind now.”
“The disease took toll on my physical and mental health. While I have recovered from Coronavirus, I still feel physically exhausted,” she says of the twists and turns in her heath. “There is still fear in my mind about Coronavirus and I often think how the neighbors and others in the locality will behave with us after things get back to normal,” she further says.
Shedding light on the stigma attached with Covid-19 and the anxiety that the patients feel due to uncertainty of the virus, a 35 years old, recovered patient from Mauli Jagran says, “Fake videos and messages on social media and the media coverage about coronavirus outbreak had a negative impact on society and Covid patients are being treated as untouchables even after they have fully recovered.”
Weeks after he has recovered from the virus, the resident has joined back his duty as an attendant at OT in GMCH-32 here and says, “While people at work are aware about coronavirus and understand the health protocols, I am surprised by the indifference and strange behavior of residents in the colony. People here are not very educated and have misconceptions about the disease.”
While the healthcare worker contracted the virus and was tested positive on April 26, all nine family members were tested negative.
During the 26 days he was stuck isolating at PGIMER, he says, “I kept myself busy during isolation period. The food served was kept light and nutritious to not tax the body’s system. I used to do yoga twice a day, walk in my room, listen to music, talk to my family and friends and pray to God for good health and well being of my family.”
“While no words are enough to convey gratitude to PGIMER doctors who took good care of me, the one thing that kept my spirits up during the recovering period was the idea to meet my family again and go back to work. I believe that staying mentally strong is the most important thing to recover from this disease,” he concludes.
As The Pioneer spoke to more recovered patients, their stories revolved around the stigma of being a Covid-19 cured patient and the fear of social boycott, which is also preventing them from revealing their identity even after recovery.
All cured patients attributed their recovery to the care given by PGIMER doctors at hospital and the fighting spirit to win the battle against the global pandemic.
They, however, feel there remains a dichotomy between constant fear of stigmatization and becoming its victim but a resolve to hope for a better future and even help saving other people’s lives by giving their plasma.
Apparently, the unfolding of their stories of despair and hope reveal how the stigma associated with Covid-19 is here to stay and the deadly disease is bound to have long-lasting effects on human health and behavior.
