Brendan Simpkins
WHILE South Australia edges further into a sense of normality amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, life is yet to return to normal for everyone.
That is the case for Munno Para West’s Kyle Collis who has Cystic Fibrosis (CF).
Mr Collis, 34, has spent much of the year confined to his house due to being immunocompromised and at a higher risk of getting sick from the respiratory virus.
Cystic Fibrosis is a condition which affects the lungs through an abnormal amount of thick mucus which develops in the organs.
This leads to recurring infections, reduced lung function and irreversible damage.
For three months Mr Collis was in lockdown. His wife, Melissa, commenced working from home and the pair made the decision to home-school their two daughters, Charli-Rose and Scarlett.
He said that his anxiety levels had raised due to social isolation and feelings of loneliness that came with being in lockdown.
While case numbers in SA remain low and community transmission suppressed, Mr Collis urged the community to avoid becoming complacent and continue to implement social distancing and good hygiene practices.
“It concerns me, I want to go back to work but at the same time it scares me to go ‘ok, how long before I pick up the next cold or flu’ because someone says they don’t have enough sick leave or it’s just a sniffle,” he said.
“Even before COVID my life has been like that. If I see someone coughing I have always been outspoken and told them to go home.
“(People) don’t understand that there is more than just me in an office who is immunocompromised that potentially could be hospitalised. Just because you do have a cold or a sniffle that could end up being quite severe for us.”
Having the support of his family and friends has helped Mr Collis immensely throughout his time in isolation.
Throughout the early stages of the pandemic, Mr Collis’ parents and in-laws helped with grocery shopping.
Mr Collis was able to sign-up for Woolworth’s priority shopping, however, some essential items were hard to source, with friends doing their best to grab supplies for the family where they could.
He said that having that support network was a big help, however, he felt for his fellow CF sufferers who weren’t as lucky as him.
“I 100 per cent believe that the mental aspects of this has been huge,” he said.
“A lot of CF’s I know suffer from depression and anxiety already and that just comes with having a genetic lung condition.
“We are already dealing with this, we are dealing with hygiene and infection control all the time, surely it can’t be that hard for everyone else to do the same.”
Lucky enough to have remained employed throughout the pandemic, Mr Collis has recently eased back into working in an office environment one day a week.
A social person by nature, being around other people and outside of his house has provided a morale boost.
Also a keen long-distance runner, Mr Collis picked up running again in July – still with a degree of caution.
“I was probably a lot more aware of where I was running. If someone was coming towards me or I was coming up on someone I would generally cross the road,” he said.
“Even now, I know we don’t have cases here in SA, but it has made me more aware of just your general colds and flus.”
Lockdown has improved Mr Collis’ health though.
He said for the first time in 20 years he had gone almost 12 months without intravenous antibiotics and catching a cold or flu.