We’re now a few days into lockdown and getting used to this new way of life.
Coronavirus has turned everything we knew upside down.
To help you understand how people are coping through these times, we’re launched a new mini-series – My Quarantine Routine.
So far, we’ve chatted to Kelly, a foster carer and business owner who is worried about keeping six teenagers occupied, Rebecca, who is recovering from anorexia and living with depression and is worried about the impact the pandemic is having on her mental health, and Jade, who is working from home while 34 weeks pregnant.
Today, we’re with Harry Clarke – a 19-year-old student from Belfast. His classes have been cancelled but he continues to work in a supermarket, and he has faced some difficult shifts as people continue to panic buy.
He has epilepsy and although the condition does not put him in the vulnerable group, he is concerned as having the flu has previously caused him to have seizures and he is worried about what would happen if he caught covid-19.
Speaking on Purple Day, the global day for epilepsy, which falls today, Harry wants to raise awareness of how the current situation is having an impact on his condition.
This is how he spent Tuesday 24 March.
9 am
I wake up and look at my phone for a bit before gathering the strength and energy to get out of bed after replying to all the messages I missed after fading off to sleep last night. I get up and brush my teeth and get in the shower.
9:45 am
I sit down to watch the latest news from Boris in the kitchen with a bowl of cereal and my dog Rejjie jumping up trying to get some of my chocolate Weetabix. Then I take three of my many tablets for my epilepsy.
10:30 am
I take Rejjie for a brief walk around my estate to give him and myself a bit of exercise. I then come back in home and watched a bit of The Simpsons on Disney+ which I bought the night before.
12 pm
I grab some lunch, then I jump on Discord with my friend Matthew for a couple of hours to catch up with him and play a few games.
2:30 pm
Around this time I start to do a bit of uni work. I’m studying Computer Science so while uni is cancelled, I can still work on my programming assignment and do a bit of that.
3:30 pm
I’ve another assignment due but this time for Web Technologies, which is a group project which is a bit difficult to do in isolation. Thankfully I’m in a group with two of my friends from uni, Sophie and Stacey. We have to make a game based on a website.
4:30 pm
I sit down to learn a new song on my guitar, which I got for Christmas. I tried learning some John Mayer songs but gave up and got a bit angry that I’ll never be as good as him. I stick to some Rex Orange County songs which are a bit easier to play.
5 pm
My mum calls me down for dinner before I head to work. There’s some spaghetti on the table which looks great (and was great). My dad’s also coming in from work at this point. His work has to stay open as his job is to help fix the water services in Northern Ireland.
5:30 pm
I head to work. I work in Sainsburys, so we are still open to supply food to the surrounding area. Today I’m in charge of the checkouts.
5:45 pm
I arrive at work and stand and talk to my friend for a bit of a catch-up before I start.
6 pm
I go upstairs to clock in and start my shift and collect the keys and phone from the person who’s finishing their shift.
7:30 pm
By this time I think I’ve been asked about 506 times when we’re getting the next toilet roll delivery. To be honest, I haven’t seen a pack of toilet roll in nearly two weeks.
On checkouts, the workload can be tough as there is a constant stream of customers who are panic buying (which I try to discourage!). The customers certainly keep you on your toes.
My memory is always pretty dire due to my epilepsy, especially when the shop is packed out with customers asking me a question every minute.
I do tend to forget the simple things, such as where items are located in the shop. But it usually comes back to when I walk about the shop for a bit (or I’ll get someone else to find it for me).
8:30 pm
By this time, I’ve had to inform loads of people about the social distancing practices. That’s the thing that stresses me out most; shoppers who don’t respect the social distancing advice we have plastered around the store. Some just ignore it and go about their normal day. This puts me on edge, out as I’m worried about contracting Covid-19.
I know that if I was to contract it, I would be prone to having more seizures, as the same happens when I get the flu.
I’m lucky to not have had a seizure since November and I’d like to keep it that way.
10 pm
My shift comes to an end and I make my way home. My hands feel sore from the amount of hand sanitizer I’ve put on.
10:25 pm
I arrive home, greet my mum and Rejjie, then I head upstairs brush my teeth, wash my hands etc. and then get on Discord to speak to Matthew again.
Hearing all the steps the government are taking to battle Coronavirus helps to put my mind at ease on how it can affect me and my epilepsy.
11:30 pm
I jump into bed and watch a few more episodes of The Simpsons and maybe even a few YouTube videos if I can stay awake long enough.
I also take the rest of my epilepsy meds before I go to bed. (I’ll maybe also browse my guilty pleasure which is TikTok).
Harry features in Epilepsy Action’s Purple Day video to raise awareness of the reality of living with the condition.
Do you want to get involved with My Quarantine Routine? Email laura.abernethy@metro.co.uk.
MORE: My Quarantine Routine: Jade, a 30-year-old PR executive who is 34 weeks pregnant
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source https://metro.co.uk/2020/03/26/quarantine-routine-harry-student-supermarket-worker-epilepsy-12457298/?ITO=squid
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