Understanding COVID-19 and Hygiene
COVID-19 has raised awareness of the importance of personal hygiene and disinfection to prevent spreading illness. When you have COVID-19, proper hygiene like regular showering can help reduce transmission to others. As COVID-19 is highly contagious and spreads through respiratory droplets, it's crucial to contain these droplets through good hand and household hygiene so healthy household members don't get infected.
Reducing COVID-19 Transmission Through Showering
Showering helps reduce the spread of COVID by washing away germs and pathogens that accumulate on your body and clothes after coming in contact with contaminated surfaces. Frequent showering ensures any stray respiratory droplets with viral particles landing on your skin, hair or clothes get cleaned before they infect someone else at home.
Ideally, you should shower at least once a day when actively infected. Showering vigorously with soap allows the surfactants in soap to inactivate viruses and pathogens. The warm water further loosens grime and rinses germs away. After showering, be sure to promptly change into fresh home clothes to keep any residual unwashed germs from spreading further inside your living environment.
Establishing Proper Hygiene Habits
Apart from vigilant showering, establishing solid hygiene habits should be a top priority when recovering from COVID at home. This includes:
- Washing hands frequently with soap for 20 seconds
- Sneezing or coughing into tissues before disposal
- Disinfecting common household surfaces like light switches, door knobs, etc
- Not sharing personal items like towels, bedding, electronics, etc
Practice respiratory etiquette by wearing a mask around others at home. Masks contain cough and sneeze droplets, protecting healthier household members from exposure. Despite feeling well enough to be home recovering, you still risk passing COVID onto loved ones without proper isolation hygiene habits.
Caring for Yourself During COVID-19 Illness
COVID-19 can be tough on the body, even for mild or moderate cases recovering at home. From fevers, chills, sore throat and body aches to gastrointestinal issues, the symptoms span respiratory and systemic issues.
Caring for your overall health supports the immune system to help you get better sooner. Hydrating well maintains immune cell integrity. Nutritious foods give cells fuel for repairing damage caused by the virus. Stretching promotes blood flow to nourish healing tissues.
Most importantly, adequate rest activates the parasympathetic nervous system, taking your body out of stressful "fight or flight" mode. Since stress hormone cortisol can suppress immune function, relaxing activates the bodys natural healing abilities to beat COVID-19 illness sooner and avoid complications.
Conserving Energy
Severe fatigue often accompanies COVID - a result of the immune systems huge exertion fighting off this virus. Pacing activity helps avoid depleting already taxed energy reserves. Prioritize necessary self-care like showering, preparing nutritious easy meals and media for stress relief and mental distraction.
Otherwise rest, remaining tucked in bed or camped on the sofa to binge that new series on TV. Expending energy on non-essentials prolongs recovery. Only engage in light activity like folding laundry or washing a couple dishes if boredom strikes. Conserve energy stores so your system directs maximum effort toward getting well.
Supportive Home Care Strategies
To support healing and energy conservation, stock up on hydration and nutrition supplements if appetite lags. Electrolyte tablets or powders replenish depleted minerals lost through fever, sweating and poor intake. Nutrient-dense smoothies deliver immune-boosting fruits and vegetables when eating whole foods proves too taxing.
Maintain steamy showers if stuffy, congested respiratory symptoms strike. Let the humid environment drain and loosen mucus secretions clogging airways and nasal passages. Keep showers shorter if dizzy or fatigued since lengthy steam and heat further undermine already compromised endurance.
Listen to your body's limits to avoid accident or injury while bathing or moving about at home alone. Use railings, chairs or mobility aids for stability if needed while regaining strength. Don't push through symptoms suggesting complications warranting emergency care like difficulty breathing or chest pain.
Preventing Household COVID Spread Through Disinfection
Despite best personal hygiene efforts taking COVID precautions at home, outbreaks still occur as family members get infected. Thorough disinfection helps minimize household transmission risk when actively contagious individuals isolate in a designated "sick room".
Disinfecting High Traffic Areas
When recovering from COVID-19 illness, you should isolate yourself in a specific room and connected bathroom whenever possible. This prevents spreading germs into shared common household areas. Only leave briefly if absolutely necessary. Declutter multi-purpose shared rooms like kitchens of non-essentials.
After using common rooms, thoroughly wipe down every surface touched with EPA approved disinfectants. Target high touch areas like refrigerator handles, light switches, shared bathrooms. Let surfaces remain wet with disinfectant for labelled contact time before wiping. When using these spaces, always mask up and sanitize hands after.
Effective Disinfectants
When disinfecting the household to protect others from COVID, stick to EPA approved, Agent N list disinfectants suitable for SARS-CoV-2 inactivation. Typically, this means:
- 70% alcohol solutions
- 0.5% hydrogen peroxide
- 0.1% sodium hypochlorite solutions (bleach)
Always follow label dilution, use directions and contact time instructions to ensure efficacy against COVID. Never mix chemical products - toxic vapors result.
Disinfecting the Sick Room
Maintain excellent hygiene in isolated spaces. Daily disinfect phones, remote controls, tablets or books briefly borrowed during care visits. Contain laundry inside marked bags until machine washing to prevent airborne virus spread.
Open windows regularly to cycle fresh outdoor air into stale indoor air. This dilutes and reduces any airborne viral load accumulating inside closed up, potentially contaminated rooms.
Upon illness resolution at the end of CDC recommended isolation, conduct deep cleaning protocols before healthy inhabitants move back in. This includes thorough vacuuming, sanitizing surfaces and machine washing all linens at highest heat settings.
With diligent personal hygiene and household disinfection, people can safely recover from COVID-19 at home. Containing spread prevents household outbreaks so life returns to normal sooner.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always consult with a healthcare professional before starting any new treatment regimen.
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