Experiencing COVID-19: An Interview With Samsun Nahar
Conducted By: Avantika Samanta
COVID-19 has made a lasting impact on so many lives – practically everyone has been affected in one way or another. Yet many don’t know what it’s like to actually contract the disease.. Here is a look at what Samsun Nahar experienced while having COVID. Huge thank you to Samsun for participating in this interview, we really appreciate it!
Avantika Samanta: Hello! So, before you contracted COVID-19, did you have any symptoms or suspicions? If so, how bad were they?
Samsun Nahar: Hi! Before feeling any symptoms, I knew that my brother in law was really sick – he works for the NYPD, so his chances of being exposed were really high – so I was definitely scared, but I was still too oblivious about the matter to think that I would actually get covid, but then I started feeling really tired and I barely had any energy to do anything – then the fevers hit, and I’ve been sick before, but the way I felt was completely new to me. It was unlike anything else I’ve been through. I was also just really cold all the time and I couldn’t smell or taste anything.
Avantika: Woah, so what would you say was the worst part of that whole experience?
Samsun: Honestly when I was at my worst my dad was also in the hospital so for me it was actually dealing with the thought that I might never see him again than it was my own health. I was deteriorating more mentally than anything else and that was like the worst part about all of this. I was so numb and scared about my dad being in the ICU that I couldn’t even attend to my own sickness. I was so drained emotionally mentally physically, it was awful in every aspect.
Avantika: Oh my goodness I’m so sorry, my grandmother got Covid and it was terrifying, I can’t even begin to imagine what you went through. How did your perception of COVID change from what you had thought before you got the disease?
Samsun: Before getting COVID and before my family got it, I honestly didn’t take it that seriously. I mean I wasn’t going out or anything and if I was I was wearing masks and taking all of the necessary precautions, but I really thought it would only last a few weeks and it’d blow over. I didn’t think it was going to impact me or anyone I knew but I was really wrong about that. I lost several family members and even in my immediate family, so many of us tested positive and it really opened my eyes to how seriously everybody should be taking this virus. It’s so unexpected and it can drastically change your life so quickly.
Avantika: How long did you have COVID for?
Samsun: About a week, but I didn’t have my sense of taste or smell for around a month. When I actually got tested for COVID I thought I had already recovered but I didn’t. The more obvious symptoms only lasted a week, COVID just hadn’t completely left my system for like a month.
Avantika: Oh wow, so what was the testing process like?
Samsun: I’m usually good with stuff like this, even when it comes to getting my blood drawn or getting shots, I can deal with it for a few seconds so it wasn’t awful, but it was definitely really painful. My eyes teared up and I was coughing too.
Avanitika: Yeah, I saw some videos of the testing and some seemed scary but others weren’t too bad. So what advice would you give to people who have COVID and what would you say to people who don’t have it yet? Is there anything that could help them in the long run which you’d recommend?
Samsun: For people that have COVID, I’d just say to not be selfish and quarantine themselves – if they don’t need medical attention in the hospital of course. And for people that don’t have it yet, just don’t be ignorant and go out unnecessarily because they might be able to fight it off, but they never know who they’ll come into contact with and how badly it may impact them. Even for me, a seventeen year old with no health conditions, I still felt awful and it was one of the worst months of my life. Yeah I made it out alive but that’s not the only thing that matters. When I had COVID, I tried every remedy there was, I drank all the teas, inhaled all the steam, but I’m not sure if anything really helped me significantly. It’s easier said than done but just try to be patient and let your own body fight it off. It’s also important to stay on top of your eating too. When I was sick, there were days when I had no appetite, but the days I didn’t eat only made me feel worse.
Avantika: This is all perfect, thank you so much, this has been really helpful!
Samsun: Of course!! Thank you for your time!
Thank you Samsun for sharing your story, it was beyond helpful, and really opened my eyes to what it’s like having COVID-19. We have and continue to be impacted by this pandemic, but we often minimize the disease itself. COVID is no joke, and it’s nothing to be taken lightly. It’s important to understand the full extent of its effects. This is the first major pandemic decades, and if we don’t take this seriously it may become even worse. Again, many thanks to Samsun Nahar for letting us interview you and providing important insight. It was a pleasure talking to you!
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