Local speaks out on surviving Covid-19

Ockert van Schalkwyk of Boksburg, who battled and overcame the coronavirus, shared how the dark period when he was battling the virus gave him an added appreciation of life and the importance of living a healthy lifestyle.

With its arrival, the virus brought about more questions than answers, including the testing process, symptoms and how one usually feels when affected with the virus.
In his below assertion on the turn of events, van Schalkwyk, a teacher by profession and a rugby commentator, answers some of the questions most people, if not everyone, have.
During a phone conversation with the Advertiser, van Schalkwyk (52) recalled:

“During December 2019, I travelled to England. I left South Africa around December 20 and returned on January 12, 2020.

“I started feeling sick towards the middle of March with a cold fever and nausea; I couldn’t keep food in my system.

“I had severe stomach ache too and so went to the doctor. He did his normal tests and said it was only a stomach bug at that stage and gave me medication. I returned home and I got better quite quickly,” he explained.

But his initial recovery was short-lived before things took a turn for the worse.

“In the middle of June I started feeling very, very sick. My body was sore, I had massive headaches, tiredness, cold fever again – especially at night – and shortness of breath. “Those were mostly the symptoms.

“I did not sleep well as the symptoms were at their worst during the evenings. I went to a Lancet Laboratories for Covid-19 testing and had a nasal test. Within four days they sent me a SMS informing me that I was positive.

“The doctor gave me medication that they normally give for the virus, which included vitamin B.

“I took the medication religiously and got enough rest; sleeping a lot and also eating well.

“I stayed indoors, of course, and all the people around me were aware of the fact that I carried the virus and they also immediately went for the test.
“My wife and my mother in-law, who is already in her 70s, contracted Covid-19 too,” he continued, before stressing that the virus is indeed not a hoax.
“Those who do not believe the virus exists, the virus is a reality. There are obviously a lot of lies going around and massive fraud around the whole thing, but it’s definitely more than just flu.

“My advice to people is to take your medication, stay at home, get enough sunlight, eat well and get enough rest: sleep, sleep, sleep.
“As I said, my body was in total breakdown – with the massive headaches – whenever I put my hand on my head, it’s like I could feel pain all over my body.
“The scariest part was the cold fever. I had to take several warm baths during the evening – now I do not really think that this was one of the symptoms the doctors have put forward but that is the way it affected my body,” explained van Schalkwyk.

“As for the road to recovery, it was about a month after I was diagnosed that I started feeling better but I think the recipe is eating well and getting enough rest.
“Also, keep your mind occupied and keep yourself busy: if you can read, read – do things that stimulate your mind.”

How he could have contracted the virus

The teacher clarified that although he travelled to the United Kingdom, one of the world’s biggest hot spots, he believes he did not contract the virus in Europe.
“You see, I returned to the country on January 12, incubation period is 21 days and I had the initial stomach bug in mid-March. With all the corona talk going around at that stage, everybody close to me thought I had corona.

“It couldn’t be,” he continued.
“It was way pass the incubation period – I only contracted the virus in June, so there are two possibilities – I either got it from my mother in-law or a matric boy I was in contact with that had tested positive. But the fact is, I will never know for sure.”

Lessons learnt

Following his survival, the rugby commentator also found the time to encourage people to live a happy but responsible life.

“Appreciate every moment of life, life is short as we’ve seen in the newspapers and over the news in the past year. Even young lives can come to a sudden end.
“So you never know when death will knock on your door. Never think you’re immortal or that your life is in your hands, you can do the normal things like exercising regularly, staying healthy – I think that was my saving grace,” he stressed.

“I’ve run 15 Comrades Marathons, so I was quite fit in my younger years. I never smoked so there were no underlying symptoms and I think it was my fitness levels and my general health levels that pulled me through. If I didn’t practise and exercise in those early years, it would have taken me down for sure. This virus is definitely a very aggressive virus and if your general well-being is not on par then you’re going to have the fight of your life.”

Also Read: Local rugby commentator talks to the Advertiser