An Indian-origin doctor and British politician Dr Neeraj Patil successfully recovered from the novel coronavirus disease, dubbed Covid-19 by the WHO.
Now back to his duties, he has also shared what he did while combating Covid-19 at his home.
A former mayor of Lambeth in the UK, Dr Patil, was also a labour party candidate in the country's Parliamentary election in 2017. He is a native of Kalburgi in northern Karnataka.
Four weeks ago, Dr Patil, an expert in accidents and emergency medicines, tested positive for Covid-19. He had contracted the disease while treating patients at a public hospital in London.
After his recovery, Dr Patil gave credit to the blessing of God and the prayers of his family and well-wishers.
"This was a very difficult moment for me and my family and I consider myself to be fortunate to have made a full recovery from this serious life-threatening illness," he says.
"I will be going back to work in the NHS as a Consultant in Accident & Emergency medicine. My thoughts and prayers will always be with all the people who have lost their lives in this pandemic."
The doctor also extended his prayers for Indian citizens and requested them to adhere to strict social distancing, practice regular hand washing, and avoid touching their faces.
Speaking over the phone from London, Dr Patil says -- "I consider myself extremely fortunate to recover from Covid-19 pneumonia. Like our Prime minister (Boris Johnson, who has also recovered from coronavirus) famously quoted, 'I could have gone another way'."
He narrated his experience while battling the disease, and what all he did in that time. He thought he was going to die; he had even begun to draft his will to avoid any conflict later. But Dr Patil considers himself fortunate to have recovered, and shared tips for patients stuck in a similar situation as him:
Firstly, he watched Bhagwad Gita on his laptop and listened to quotes from various scholars. The saying that gave him great personal courage was from Chapter 18, Verse 66.
"sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śharaṇaṁ vraja
ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo mokṣhayiṣhyāmi mā śhuchaḥ"
"The most powerful thing in a man is his strong faith in God," he says.
Second, he took care to eat, sleep well, and drink sufficient water. He took his antibiotics and also engaged in breathing exercises sent by Prime Minister Narendra's Modi Yoga Guru H R Nagendra.
"They helped me in getting the sputum out of the lungs," he says. Sputum is mucus that is coughed up from the lower airways (the trachea and bronchi).
The one pranayama (Yoga breathing exercise) that he recommends to all -- "After deep inhalation and at the end of exhalation, hold your breath for 10 to 30 seconds depending on your ability. The 'Auto-PEEP' in the lungs will go from roughly 2 mm of mercury to 7 mm of mercury roughly. The Alveoli opens, sputum and secretion collected inside will come out, and one feels great relief."
Dr Patil says he also listened to a lot of Hindu and Buddhist music.
He spent his days isolated in an en-suite room while his wife and children cooked food for him. He kept in touch with his family through Whatsapp video, as well.
The doctor also engaged in reading. "I read a lot about the virology of coronavirus and its molecular biology and how the virus infects the lung cell (Type 2 pneumocyte) with its spike protein."
The novel coronavirus or SARS-CoV-2 is covered in popsicle-shaped 'spike' proteins which make it possible for it to fix itself onto a human cell and soldier its way inside.
He read articles from the Lancet, New England Journal of Medicine, and the scientific research on coronavirus done by Wuhan Institute of Virology on bat coronavirus by Shi Zengli, a scientist dubbed as 'batwoman', as well.
He delved into reading about the more controversial issues being raised about the novel coronavirus -- whether it was a bioweapon created by China or a natural virus that emerged from the Wuhan meat market.
"I also read scientific arguments alleging that this virus was a freak accident at the Wuhan Institute of virology," he says.
He says that quarantine made him realise that there was an inner world full of bliss, unlike the miserable world outside. He will now be treating patients in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
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