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So far, Covid-19 has caused more than 3.2 million deaths worldwide, and infected over 157 million people. Many who have survived the disease are also dealing with the long-lasting effects of the viral disease. Several reports have highlighted the rising cases of lasting mental and physical health issues among the Covid-19 survivors. Sensitivities to light, fatigue, extreme body pain, headaches, dementia, stroke, depression, are some of the lasting effects of Covid-19 reported to be experienced by the Covid-19 survivors. Mental health experts in India have also come across two other common phenomena among Covid-19 patients: survivor guilt and ICU trauma. The patients who had been in the most critical conditions during the infection struggle more with mental health, Dr Harish Shetty, a social psychiatrist at Dr LH Hiranandani Hospital, Mumbai, told NEWS18.
It is not uncommon for patients who had a near-death experience to have an existential dilemma, Dr Shetty stated. Many are still struggling to cope with the trauma of being in the ICU, and or losing loved ones. According to psychiatrist, survivor guilt is another phenomenon that is being noticed in Covid-19 patients, especially among those who have lost their parents or partners due to the disease. These people are in dire need of support and counselling, he added.
Lack of sleep and total insomnia, palpitations, a sense of impending doom, fear of dropping dead at any moment, anxiety and depression have also been commonly observed among Covid-19 patients in India.
Speaking to the news channel, Mumbai-based psychologist Priyanka Varma said that the ICU has been a very triggering place for emotional disturbances among many patients. The sounds of monitor beeping, the noise of doctors walking through corridors, other patients around dying from the same disease, minimal contact with family members, physical isolation and the loneliness all of these can trigger fear and emotional disturbances, explained Varma.
Here are some helpful tips suggested by mental health experts to cope with the trauma post Covid-19 recovery.