While no one wants to get COVID-19, due to the nature of this being a novel virus, everyone who gets exposed to it will likely get sick. Knowing this, it’s important to do whatever you can to protect yourself and those around you from having too extreme a reaction to the virus when it attacks your body and to have a plan in place for how you’ll respond if and when you do become sick.
To help you with this, here are three things to do to prepare yourself for getting COVID-19.
Create A Plan For Home Quarantine
For most people who get COVID-19, quarantining at home for the recommended amount of time as you fight off your illness will be the likely scenario. With this in mind, it’s wise to create a plan for how you’ll handle quarantining at home if you or someone in your household become sick.
According to the CDC, you should choose a room or area of your home where you can have the sick person or persons separated from everyone else in the house. This will help to keep others from getting exposed to the same illness. In addition to this, you may also want to keep your home stocked with items that will last you about two weeks, just in case you do get sick and can’t leave your home or come in contact with other people. Your home stock should include things like food, medicines, and other essentials.
Know How You’ll Handle Your Medical Needs
While most people who get sick with COVID-19 will recover in a manner of days or weeks, the time of being sick isn’t always pleasant. Knowing this, you should have a plan in place for how you’ll handle your medical needs.
Ideally, Kelly Malcolm, a contributor to the University of Michigan Health Blog, shares that you should know how to get in contact with your doctor or where to go to get tested if necessary. Along with this, you may also want to consider who you’ll have to make medical decisions for you if you’re no longer able to or what your wishes are regarding prolonging your life in the event that you get very ill.
Keep Your Mental Health In Check
Whether you’re quarantined because you have tested positive for COVID-19 or you’re just continuing to isolate yourself from others to keep yourself and those around you from getting sick, it’s vital that you check in with your mental state on a regular basis. The stress of this time has had very detrimental effects on many people’s mental state. To try to keep yourself feeling good, Dr. Lisa Lockerd Maragakis, a contributor to Johns Hopkins Medicine, recommends that you try to find something in your life to bring you joy or pleasure on a daily basis, even if it’s something small or seemingly insignificant.
To help you be ready for the worst, consider using the tips mentioned above to help you prepare for the possibility of getting COVID-19.
