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Post-doctoral researcher Anitha Praveen is in high spirits as her quarantine has ended and she can celebrate Deepavali with her family members.
The 33-year-old fell ill suddenly with Covid-19 in mid-October. It was a mild attack. But, as part of her recovery programme, she had to be under isolation in her house for 10 days.
"Even though our nation is into its second year of being affected by the pandemic, Covid-19 felt like a distant problem till I experienced it," she said. "My immediate concern was my (one-year-old) son (Vikram). I felt very worried for more than a week."
On Oct 14, Ms Anitha had flu-like symptoms. The next evening, she visited a clinic, where an antigen rapid test (ART) showed she was Covid-19 positive. The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test done at the clinic the next day confirmed it.
"Suddenly, a well-known disease affecting millions of others felt much closer to home," said Ms Anitha.
Her family believe that, despite taking precautions, she caught the disease from a guest who had visited their house a week before.
"The first thing we both thought about was our son," said her husband Praveen Selvam, 32, a business development executive.
After other members in the household tested negative, Ms Anitha was immediately isolated. She stayed in the guest room for a day and then moved to the master bedroom as it had an attached toilet.
"Thoughts were racing in my head about my son's safety," said Ms Anitha. "I was concerned because a negative test does not necessarily mean that there has been no infection."
The couple were also worried about how their child would adapt to the mother's new situation. All interactions between the boy and Ms Anitha were done through Zoom. "He was kept busy by my husband and our helper kept him company," said Ms Anitha. "So the separation did not affect him as much as we had feared."
Initially, the facilities at home seemed less adequate to Ms Anitha than what would be available in a hospital. But she soon realised that it was the better option.
"The care at a hospital would have been more immediate," she said. "Yet being young, educated and tech-savvy has allowed home recovery to be a comfortable option. Through tele-services, I was able to access medical care and advice from doctors. I also had the comfort of binge-watching Netflix, even in the midst of battling bodily discomfort."
Ms Anitha added that recovering by herself at home added to her sense of achievement: "I told myself to abide by the system we created for my recovery. That helped streamline my thoughts and remove unnecessary worry and fear."
Her quarantine period ended on Oct 25 and she was soon making Deepavali preparations and attending her PhD graduation ceremony in biomedical engineering. Ms Anitha is now looking forward to celebrating the Festival of Lights with her family through the use of technology.
"Instead of going to Tekka market for shopping, we have done all our shopping online," she said.
Her husband said: "Covid-19 may have stopped us from gathering but it certainly will not stop us from ordering our favourite meals and feasting."
