The reality of Covid-19 is starting to sink in as the virus is infecting more and more people we know in our communities. A major problem emerging from this pandemic in infected communities is stigmatisation and victimisation. The chief of staff in J.B. Marks’s executive mayor’s office, MacMillan Neo Dlutu (34), was also infected but has since recovered. He shares his journey to Covid-19 recovery.

“This virus has robbed us of so much already, but we can’t allow it to take our sanity – we are going to get through this.” This mantra is what kept him sane through the isolation period.
Dlutu says he was led to take the test on Monday, 22 June, after his close colleague tested positive for Covid-19. This also resulted in the main municipal building being temporarily closed. His results came back positive on Wednesday, 24 June. The news came as a shock for him as he generally felt well and healthy. “Following discussions with the executive mayor and senior management team of the municipality, we decided that it would be a responsible thing to release my results publicly. This was in an attempt to destigmatize the disease and ensure that members of the public who may have been in contact with me were afforded the necessary information to take the appropriate action,” he said.
As part of his response to the results, he says his treatment plan included immune boosters and multivitamins. “My doctor prescribed pain and flu medication from the onset, which assisted, particularly in the second week of self-isolation. I was very fortunate that I remained largely asymptomatic throughout the first week and generally experienced normal flu-like symptoms in the second week,” he says. Dlutu expressed his appreciation to his family, colleagues and friends who made his journey as seamless as humanly as possible. He sincerely says he would not have got through it without all the support he received. “Throughout my recovery, I’ve been able to work from home and join meetings through virtual platforms. This helped me a lot because I could forget about the virus for a few hours every day,” he said.
Dlutu believes that everyone is familiar with the precautionary measures put in place by now. They include washing our hands, wearing a mask when we’re in public and social distancing. However, he highlights the need to guard our sanity with equal vigour. He explains that we have been inundated with news reports on the virus from the beginning of 2020, including how it has killed millions across the world. He explains that Covid-19 has taken a psychological toll on all of us. Therefore, when one is diagnosed with the virus, they are justifiably anxious and in shock because they fear that their life is in danger. He decided to limit the amount of news, both online and on television, that he would watch to no more than one hour a day. “I generally focused on steering clear of negative posts, be they on WhatsApp, Facebook or Twitter; particularly those about people dying from the disease. I appreciated that it would have a direct impact on my psychological state,” Dlutu said.

His isolation period had its fun aspects for him as he made it a priority to watch at least one comedy sitcom a day and listen to good music as part of relaxing his mind.
He fiercely condemned the ongoing discrimination of Covid-19 patients. “We must understand that Covid-19 is not something within our control and it does not automatically equal a death sentence. We can and will overcome this pandemic and we will do it through working together,” he said.

According to Tuduetso Mocwane, a community service dietitian at Free State psychiatric complex, there has been no scientifically-based information on precisely what food to eat to strengthen the immune system against Covid-19. However, as a general rule, food sources high in protein (milk, cheese, fish, mopani worms, etc.) and Vitamin A foods (carrots, spinach, mango, pawpaw etc), maintain a healthy respiratory tract lining, which is essential for Covid-19 patients. Mocwane says you can add more energy to your food by adding margarine or peanut butter to your soft porridge/butternut. She labels Vitamin C (found in citrus products – oranges, grapefruit, naartjie, etc.) as the giant in fighting infections, as it is an anti-oxidant and plays a vital role in immune function.

Dlutu believes the question we need to start asking ourselves is whether we are taking personal responsibility to protect ourselves against the virus. “We have to take all the precautionary measures available to us to protect ourselves against this pandemic. We cannot afford to allow it to take over our lives due to fear, however. We are going to overcome this virus,” he concluded.