Camp Quarantine : Isolation Day (pt. 1)

March 27, 2020

“You’ve been in recent contact with a suspected COVID-19 case so you will be required to self-isolate for two days until the test is confirmed…” I receive this phone call at 9:45pm on Friday night from the public health nurse. In an instant, things became very real, very fast. My husband stares at me as I hang up. Knowing that this day would likely come, I give him a shrug and we begin to execute our contingency plan.

My youngest son’s eyes water in fear as I explain to him that I’ve been in contact with a potential case and have to go into self-isolation for two days. Moments ago, I was surrounded by my family during our ‘forced family fun’ night. We were eating pizza and choking back tears as we watched Schindler’s List. I did as I was told. I’ve been isolating properly. I’ve been washing my hands raw. And now I have to isolate myself from even my family. How quickly things can change. I reassure my youngest that it’s going to be okay and that with my work, this would happen eventually. We just need to take the necessary precautions to keep everyone else safe. I then ask him to begin disinfecting the light switches, door handles, and common surface areas while I tell the other two kids.

My husband is in our bedroom, packing his stuff so that he can relocate to the spare room downstairs. I get a twinge in my heart as I watch him fill a suitcase full of clothes, not knowing if this will be for two days or two weeks. He grabs his alarm clock, two pillows, and all of his toiletries. And just like that, I officially begin quarantine. I look around my bedroom. It doesn’t look different but it certainly feels much different; I suddenly feel a bit sad, scared that my family may be at risk, and lonely.

***

Two weeks ago, we began social distancing as the COVID-19 virus took the world by surprise.

The kids were initially excited to be given two weeks off school; however, as the situation continued to grow, so did their social distancing … and boredom. Trying to maintain normalcy, I began slipping ‘to do’ lists under my son’s door every morning, titled “Camp Quarantine”. It gives him a list of responsibilities ranging from English and math assignments to basic household chores. Are these desperate attempts to stimulate his mind a complete waste of time? Who knows. But I do them anyway. The assignment which I am most excited about is his journal. He began recording his day to day experiences of living through this pandemic. I emphasized that this is a historical event in which none of us have ever experienced before. We don’t know how long it will last nor how it will end but we do know, for sure, that this will reshape the way we live and the world around us.

My husband and I both work in the healthcare field; therefore, we’re considered essential workers. We both face different stresses during this time. As a surgeon, my husband’s access to the hospital is limited so he’s often quite distracted by trying to figure out what to do with his more urgent cases. How do you tell a person they have cancer and in the same breath tell them that they have to wait for treatment? When I find this pandemic frustrating or overwhelming, I think of these people …

I work in a primary care clinic, approximately thirty minutes from home. Our services have also been reduced to urgent and essential; however, I still continue to carry out patient visits over the telephone. I work with an elderly and vulnerable population, so I try to ensure that they are staying home and have the support they need during this difficult time. I sit down at my desk every morning, pull up my list of patients on my computer, and begin calling: “Hi, this Amanda, your nurse practitioner. During the pandemic, I will try my best to care for you over the phone in order to keep you home and keep you safe…”

Everywhere I turn, it’s about the pandemic. I have coffee with my husband in the morning and we discuss the latest development. I drive to work and tune into CBC and it’s about the pandemic. I call patients and they require reassurance about the pandemic. I check my Facebook and it’s about how people are coping with the pandemic. I call my mother on my way home and we talk about how this pandemic is affecting our daily routine. I then go home and discuss the latest cases in New Brunswick with my husband.

I live in the Northeastern region of New Brunswick. Every day the numbers continue to grow and there are newer cases closer and closer to home. I can feel the squeeze of the coronavirus slowly surrounding us, like a snake with its prey. It squeezes tighter and tighter until it will eventually penetrate our communities, our neighbourhoods, and our homes…

Please, stay home and stay safe!

To Be Continued…

Author: wanderingmandy2018

I am a travel blogger from New Brunswick, Canada and am very passionate about travelling and adventure! I absolutely love going to new places, trying new foods, meeting new people, and having a lot of fun! My adventures range from catching a wave on the North Shore in Hawaii and being breathless on the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro, to living in a Westfalia van on Vancouver Island and being awestruck by the starry nights in the Sahara desert! I look forward to blogging my adventures and hearing your comments, feedback, and own personal stories! Cheers 🤙 View all posts by wanderingmandy2018