Notes from isolation: Covid-19 is not a thing of the past, even if we wish it were

There's still a need to be cautious, even if we are all suffering from pandemic fatigue

Covid-19 is not yet a thing of the past. AFP

You know that pandemic thing … the one that upended our lives, brought the world to a halt and has had us all half-hidden behind surgical masks for the best part of 26 months? Well, guess what? It isn’t actually over.

I’ve had some time to reflect on this, as I am eight days into a 10-day stint of isolation, having contracted Covid-19 for the second time in three months.

I’ve been lucky – this time around I’ve had almost no symptoms and only found out because I was due to travel and thought it would be handy to have a negative PCR test result to show to airport officials. Just in case.

My positive result, angry red Al Hosn notification and cancelled trip were all entirely unexpected.

Like many people, I had become a bit lax. Having spent the best part of two years on the more cautious end of the how-to-deal-with-a-pandemic spectrum, I let my guard down.

I, too, succumbed to pandemic fatigue, and started attending large work events and exhibitions, regularly socialising with larger groups of people and sometimes forgetting to put my face mask on indoors.

And now, I’m quietly put out at the inconvenience of having to cancel my travel plans and stay at home on my own for 10 days.

There is certain paradox in the fact that I was supposed to be at a wellness retreat in Thailand, but instead am parked on the sofa grappling with an invisible virus.

I’ve tried to make this stint of isolation productive. I’ve cleaned out the store room, done reams of personal admin, reorganised and categorised all the apps on my phone and played about 3,000 rounds of fetch with the dogs.

But now, with the finish line almost in sight, I’ve reached peak levels of stir crazy.

Scroll through the gallery below to see Covid-19 memorials across the US:

Italian sculptor Sergio Furnari poses for pictures in front of 'The Hero Monument' heart sculpture on October 25, 2021, in New York. AP

The Washington Monument where US President Joe Biden hosts a memorial to honour those who died from Covid-19 at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, January 19, 2021. Reuters

A woman takes selfies with her daughter in front of 'The Hero Monument' in New York. AP

Italian sculptor Sergio Furnari stands next to his car near 'The Hero Monument' sculpture in Manhattan, New York. AP

Christopher Edwards holds up a memorial to those who died from Covid-19, including his grandmother, Brenda Meadows, in Washington, May 5, 2021. AFP

A woman and child look at the 'Naming the Lost Memorials' at the Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York. Reuters

Faces of victims of Covid-19 are projected on to the Brooklyn Bridge on March 14, 2021, in New York. Getty Images via AFP

Artist Suzanne Firstenberg's temporary art installation, 'In America: Remember' in Washington, September 17, 2021. AP

A cyclist rides past the 'In America: Remember' memorial. Reuters

One of the flags that make up the 'In America: Remember' installation. AP

Visitors mourn at the 'In America: Remember' memorial. AP

The memorial with the Washington Monument in the background. AP

An aerial view of the memorial. AP

A flag with a message for a loved one. AP

The installation consisted of more than 600,000 flags. AP

A mourner visits the memorial. AP

A visitor sits on a bench near the memorial. AP

Two people hug as they look at the thousands of white flags. Reuters

Part of artist Suzanne Firstenberg's temporary art installation. AP

Hundreds of Covid survivors march across the Brooklyn Bridge on Saturday, August 7, 2021, in New York. AP

A woman holds an image of her husband as hundreds of Covid survivors gather at Cadman Plaza in Brooklyn. AP

A sign at a Covid survivors' march in New York. AP

US President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden arrive for a memorial for victims of Covid-19 in Washington. Getty Images / AFP

The Washington Covid-19 Memorial. Photo: National Parks Service

The Washington Covid-19 Memorial. Photo: National Parks Service

I’m having to remind myself that I should be grateful, particularly as a smoker, that I am feeling fine. People are still dying every day, all around the world, from this virus.

And while in my mind and that of many others the pandemic is something to be thought of in the past tense, it is still very much part of our present.

I am lucky that my biggest worry is whether or not I will be able to reorganise my trip. On the day I tested positive, my neighbour flew back to the UK to attend her mother’s funeral.

Her mother was one of the 53,000-plus people around the world who died of the virus in May, according to figures from Johns Hopkins.

At the same time, my friend’s young daughter was rushed to hospital because she was feeling unwell and stayed there for two nights before it was discovered that she, too, had contracted Covid-19.

So no, it’s not quite over yet. There is still a need for some caution, even if we are all so desperate for things to get back to normal.

And with monkeypox looming menacingly over the horizon, we might be well-advised to remember that.

Discovery TV documentary tells of Dubai hospital workers' heroics on Covid front line — in pictures

Michael McLaughlin, director of the ICU at American Hospital Dubai, said it expanded capacity to cope with extra demand during the second wave of Covid-19, driven by the Delta variant. Victor Besa / The National

'Making Peace with a Pandemic' charts Dubai’s response to the Covid-19 crisis. Photo: Screengrab / Films by Nomad

The two-part documentary, which aired on Discovery Channel, focuses how staff at the emirate's hospitals battled to save lives as the coronavirus spread. Photo: Screengrab / Films by Nomad

Alice Augustin, one of the patients featured, was working as a school nurse and was seven months' pregnant when she caught Covid-19 in January 2021. Photo: Screengrab / Films by Nomad

Waafika Seegers, intensive care unit manager at the Mediclinic Parkview, said the virus had calmed down and the hospital had not seen any Covid-19 cases lately. Pawan Singh / The National

Covid-19 vaccines were a game-changer, Dr McLaughlin said. Photo: Screengrab / Films by Nomad