‘Exercised & Kept Fit, Yet I Tested Positive for COVID-19’

Amaan Akhtar from Lucknow also got pneumonia due to the novel coronavirus.

(Photo: Shruti Mathur/The Quint)

Video Editor: Ashutosh Bhardwaj
Video Producer: Aliza Noor

As coronavirus cases continue to rise, including the recovered ones, I thought to share my story of how I contracted coronavirus and the manner in which it severely affected my body.

I just want to tell everyone who is taking this lightly, that I was in your spot. I was neglecting social distancing and not taking enough precautions. And now I am here, I haven’t seen my family since over a week.

I have a furniture business in Lucknow. I tested positive on 11 July, and I have been admitted to a government hospital ever since. Still recovering, I am now waiting for my final tests in a few days.

‘Got Pneumonia Due to Coronavirus’

I do not smoke or drink, neither do I have any respiratory issues. When I started having chest pain and breathlessness, I had no idea it was related to COVID-19. When I received my X-Ray report, it showed an infection in my lungs.

Later on, I got to know that it was Pneumonia caused due to coronavirus, which entered my respiratory system through my nose and mouth and it damaged my lungs.

The doctors said that the white patches on my lungs showed the infection.(Photo: Accessed by The Quint)

This came as a shock to me because I am into fitness and body-building, hence, I take extra care of myself and my hygiene. I couldn’t believe how I contracted the virus, because no one I met recently had any symptoms.

The doctors have told me that I probably got coronavirus by touching an infected surface.

Before my test, I had a fever for a week. The next day, I started having chest pain and breathlessness when I walked or did any physical activity.

‘Surprised By Conditions in the Hospital’

I got myself admitted to a government hospital in the city. The wards and the beds are being sanitized regularly in the ward. The bathrooms are clean, which definitely I wasn't expecting. We are also given breakfast, lunch, and dinner in the hospital, although the food quality is okay.

The hospital is well-equipped. In fact, the patient recovery rate is also very high in this hospital. Almost 80 percent patients coming here are recovering in two weeks.

On day 8, I felt much better as my chest pain and the breathlessness has reduced.(Photo: Accessed by The Quint)

There needs to be a special mention to the doctors and nurses who are doing a great job risking their lives every day. They are coming here to treat us and helping us through this crisis.

When it comes to the medication, it varies from patient to patient, depending upon the symptom and strain of the virus.

For instance, the doctors are giving me antibiotic tablets, and antibiotic injections, along with Ivermectin, which is the medicine being used in India to handle coronavirus
patients.

Having gone through so much, it is a request for everyone to please stay indoors. Stay at home, protect yourself and your elders till the vaccine comes out.

(All 'My Report' branded stories are submitted by citizen journalists to The Quint. Though The Quint inquires into the claims/allegations from all parties before publishing, the report and the views expressed above are the citizen journalist's own. The Quint neither endorses, nor is responsible for the same.)