Sunday, March 13, 2022

Big Decision


At the beginning of February 2022, COVID finally managed to catch me. Everyone at my home - my wife, daughter, parents and mother-in-law - were down with COVID and thus, there was no need for isolation. It made it slightly easier to manage.

Everyone recovered within 3-5 days but it was not the case with me. In my case, I lost sense of smell after 4-5 days of getting COVID and I had symptoms which are no longer common. It took ~2.5 weeks to recover fully but that period was filled with confusion and frustration. 

I realized (and later confirmed with my doctor) that COVID troubled me more and for a longer period because of my overall health condition. Though I did not require COVID to get that realization but this was more of a wake-up call. I realized that the ability of my body to fight infections has significantly decreased over the years and if I do not take care of it now, things would soon go spiraling down.

Over the course of next couple of weeks, I discussed my concerns with my family but no one had a clear solution. In the past, I have made several attempts to take control of my health. Each attempt was successful [till it lasted] but not sustainable. I am someone who has always subordinated my personal life to my work and I have failed to create the right balance. Sustainability and momentum are extremely important in such attempts and I needed to address them. 

Finally, we took a call that everything else is secondary and my health needs my 100% attention. I spoke to my reporting manager and was prepared for every outcome. We have started working together fairly recently and to my surprise, he was extremely supportive. Not that I expected him not to be supportive but in organizations, several other factors [and people] can come in the way. He spoke to the HR team and was communicated about the challenges. However, he managed to find a way!! 

So, for the next few months, my life would be very different. I have not taken such a break since the beginning of my career. There is a long battle to fight and I would need support, motivation and best wishes.   

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