How to get back on your feet after Covid-19 or illness.
This isn’t a post I ever hoped to write.
Covid-19 sucks. I mean it really does.
Im sure i’m not the first to write about this and surely not the last but it sure as hell sucks being sick.
Firstly, I want to give a shout out to anyone who suffers from chronic illness. I cannot begin to imagine what life is like having to deal with constant lethargy and limitations to simple life activities and actions.
As I write in my (hopefully) last few days of recovery I am reflecting on how much illness can really impair your sense of self and worth. A messy house, people you cannot be tasked to respond to both mentally and physically and lack of inertia can take its toll.
Being ill brings a whole host of additional challenges, especially when you live a little more remotely away from services. I say this as my partner heads into town to do the first bit of supermarket shopping in over a week.
In just a week our media has been flooded with the newest round of food shortages and case numbers. As some one who has suffered from anxiety and depression throughout my life it is enough to send you on another spiral. Fortunately the need to eat and self preservation is enough to head out to make sure next meal is going to consist of more than the remnants of the slowly decaying food found in the bottom of my fridge.
Finding motivation and getting better is to be finely balanced so here is what worked for me in order to get back to a normal routine.
Realise it’s ok to be sick. Accept that nothing can be done apart from providing the necessary rest and drugs if required to get your self back to where you want to be.
Take your time. I am fortunate enough to have a partner that fully supports me. Otherwise I live in a country (Australia) that has generous sick leave. If you are sick, give yourself the time to heal. Not just physically but also mentally as well.
Ask for help. There is no shame in being sick. I hope you are fortunate enough to have support around you. If you do, ask for help if you need it. Being in isolation sucks enough without having to do it alone. Even if you need your alone time, reach out when you need for the things you need.
Switch off. Work will survive without you. Your team will find a way. Your boss will manage, thats their job. If this becomes an issue reflect on whether thats a place that is supporting you as a healthy human being in the long run.
Nourish yourself. Without nourishment your body will take longer to bounce back. One of the biggest things I did to help my recovery was to actually admit that it wasn’t just going to be a three or four day illness and to accept additional supplements and painkillers. Further to this I allowed myself to sleep until midday, upped my multivitamins and vitamin C and ate healthier nutritious food rather than opting for cheap greasy takeaway.
Get some sunshine. Now i’m going to sound like a fucking Nana. Go outside, sit in the garden/park/balcony and get some sun on your bones. I cannot underestimate how much effect this has had on my recovery.
Read something. The biggest surprise for me during the last week is for the first time in years I picked up a book and read it. Two books in fact. Not only did it get my brain working again and away from the numbingness of TV but it started to give my days some purpose. I read Alastair Humphreys ‘There are other rivers’ and ‘Ask an adventurer’ both interesting and worthwhile reads.
Pick one task. I picked one. Take the trash out. It was bugging me and had the biggest impact on mental health. Even though i felt like collapsing and going back to bed right after.
Cook something. If you are like me and love cooking, one of the biggest things about being sick was the lack of energy to do the things I usually loved doing. It wasn’t until day five that I was able to get back into the kitchen and cook. You can not under-estimate how much better you will feel getting stuck back into some good baking. I made sausage rolls. They were delicious.
Spend the day out of bed. When you are ready, have had enough sleep and feel up to it, get up, get dressed and spend a day out of bed. Although I had been up and down the entire time I was sick, i committed to staying out of bed for one full day. Sure I still slept till 11am, I have a lot of beauty sleep to catch up on.
Take care of your mental health. Your mental health is as important as your physical health. Balance the two and you’ll be on your way to recovery a lot sooner. Stress causes more illness than what people realise.
Lastly, Go at your own speed. go at your own speed. Yes this sounds a bit frivolous for those who need to get back to work, have commitments and cant afford the down time. Yes I completely get it and understand. But at the end of the day maintaining your own health is vital.
One of the things you need to be aware of is if you died tomorrow, the ad for your replacement would already be up before your funeral.
I hope you find at least some of this helpful. Again this is my experience and what has helped me, and If you are unwell, wish you a fast recovery.