Weekend Argus (Saturday Edition)
Family the fire that kept him alive
AFTER 53 days in ICU and just over a week in a general ward, City firefighter Deon Arnoldus has won his Covid-19 battle. He contracted the virus in the line of duty.
“Someone had gone for testing and had not disclosed it. Then the results came back and the person was positive. I started to self-isolate but, by the second day, I could feel flu-like symptoms,” Arnoldus said.
His body ached. He went to a doctor who treated him for flu.
“The next day, after seeing the doctor, it got worse. From that day I don’t remember much. I know from what people have told me. While I was laying in bed I started to make funny noises, my wife said.”
He recalled the pain he felt over all of his body. Arnoldus was transported to MediClinic Durbanville and put into an ICU ward where he remained sedated for about three weeks.
When he woke up, he saw his hands tied to the sides of the bed.
“They (nurses) told me it was because I was fighting and wanted to remove the pipes. This was not like me. But while I was sedated I had bad dreams, like people were standing around me, trying to kill me. I was confused, I woke up not knowing where I was. My speech was slow and I couldn’t do anything.”
When he spoke to the doctor he was told that, according to science, he should not be alive because he had had double pneumonia and Covid-19.
“I could not sleep properly for a week – the lights and machines, then you hear a beep and you know someone has died. You hear everything, like when a doctor is trying to revive a patient. I got scared; people were dying all around me. You don’t even know if it is day or night.”
He recalled a sister who motivated him every day, by telling him that he would make it and he was strong.
When he moved to the general ward,
Arnoldus felt some relief when the sun shone on his bed. However, was soon moved to his own room.
“I was so weak and I could not even lift my phone to call my family. I was missing them so much. I told myself I must get better, so I pushed myself to get better. Being able to see my family again was my biggest motivator.”
After being discharged, with his treating team clapping for him, Arnoldus met his wife in the hallway. He could not touch her but it was emotional moment. He was transferred to Vincent Pallotti rehab where he had to relearn how to walk and regain his muscle strength, for three weeks. He is in physio because he has shortness of breathe and muscle tenderness.
His wife, Jacqueline, said the family prayed for him every morning and evening: “I was very worried but God told me to be strong and he would be okay. Seeing him after so many days is a feeling I can’t describe. It feels good to have him home, even though he is on edge. He is a very hands-on person but now he has to take it easy.”