Chef Megha Kohli
For the manual she made for Covid caregivers
When chef Megha Kohli, 31, hit day 13 of being Covid positive, her 91-year-old grandfather tested positive and so did her father. So, she immediately switched from being a patient to a caregiver, based on her own experience.
The first thing to remember is to reduce stress by making the patient feel it’s no big deal, she says. Her family Facetimed her, ensuring she didn’t feel isolated.
Her mother made her favourite dishes though Megha couldn’t taste them, dished up in cheerful crockery. So when it was her turn, Megha made kheer, grilled fish and poached eggs, so the patients looked forward to meals. Planning meals helped the patients too.
“Most caregivers forget that the patient needs to vent. I had a venting schedule from 3 to 4 pm every day, when my mother would stand outside my room and hear me out. Letting it out of my system made me feel lighter,” she says.
She also counted down to being Covid-free. “It gave me something to look forward to,” says Megha.
Megha avoided social media, which was full of plasma donation requests and crematorium pictures, inducing anxiety and tears. “I broke down and my brother forced me to watch Hera
Pheri. I was banned from everything but comedies.” So were her grandfather and father in their turn.
But the most crucial thing a Covid caregiver can do is insist on patient isolation. “At times, my brother had to explain that if he too fell sick, there wouldn’t be anyone to count on in case of an emergency. Logic over emotions, always,” says Megha.
She also stayed away from toxic positivity. “I got put off by social media posts about boredom. Those people were lucky to be bored and not dealing with Covid. People celebrating cocktail day when 80 per cent of the population was hurting was absurd,” she adds.
“MOST CAREGIVERS FORGET THAT THE PATIENT NEEDS TO VENT. I HAD A VENTING SCHEDULE FROM 3 TO 4 PM EVERY DAY” —MEGHA KOHLI
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