In a volatile state where anxiety is so common among us, I wanted to take the time to share some light. While we sit in the comfort of our homes, scroll through social media and fill our stomachs, essential workers globally are standing on the frontline to assist people.

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Romans 12:12 ✨💕

A post shared by Tasha | PERSONAL GROWTH (@themareemuse) on Oct 20, 2018 at 1:12am PDT

I’ve had the incredible opportunity to chat to two incredible and inspiring women one of which is a medical doctor and the other a COVID19 survivor. So let me introduce to you these lovely ladies!

First up is our beauty with brains who has a passion for medicine and modelling. She’s got a feisty go-getter attitude and her dancing feet definitely know how to groove to the beat. Meet the 32 year old doctor that is spreading hope at King Edward Hospital – Dr. Deodatt Du Plessis

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Every moment we are grateful and give thanks, brings us closer to even better moments, to even greater things. Give thanks to everything no matter how small they seem and watch your blessings unfold. I am happy, I am grateful. And I'm so blessed right now. I have a reason to smile everyday. 😽 😽 #sunday #blessed #happy #itsyou 📸@lost.in.light

A post shared by Doctorfire🔥 (@deocarmic) on Apr 26, 2020 at 12:39am PDT

Why did you want to become a doctor?

“It might sound cliche, But I wanted to help people, I wanted to be of service to my community and put something positive back. During studies and internship this became more personal in the sense that i wanted to help Females and children live  a healthier, more protected and informed life, which inspired me even more to go into Obsterics and gynaecology. I feel in this field, I would reach that goal and I am able to make a huge difference in the way females think and feel about themselves and their bodies and their health and safety – especially the younger generation.”

What has life been like in the medical environment during this pandemic? Take me through your day.

“The dynamic of this disease keeps changing. Every day we get new information that we have to peruse and try keep up with.Currently each hospital and health institution has a specific protocol on how we deal with suspected and confirmed cases.In our hospital in particular we have established what we call ‘Covid Teams consisting of doctors and nurses from multiple disciplines who only work with suspected and confirmed cases, and these doctors will only work from 2 to 4 weeks at a time and then get replaced by a new set. This is done in an attempt to minimize the time of exposure to positive patients. This dynamic will change as the disease influences the health system, but it seems to be working well for us at the moment.
Every day is daunting, we never know what may enter through the hospital doors, It feels like you are sitting on a ticking time bomb, never knowing when this thing will erupt and cause extreme havoc.”

“Since I am in obstetrics and gynaecology, very little has changed in terms of our general tasks and patient load, we however do have to accommodate patient from other draining areas of affected hospitals at times when these hospitals have to get sanitised, which increases the workload even more.”

How important is it that we practice social distancing even in a stage 4 lockdown?

“Social distancing and adherence to Sanitizing protocols are still extremely important during this Stage 4. In order to make any sort of progress in terms of flattening the curve and decreasing the number of infection we need to stop spreading the disease, and the disease does not move if people don’t move, its that simple.”

” I believe South Africa is rich in natural resources and the will of the people of our country is so strong that we will always rise above adversity. Prioritizing social distancing will definitely have a positive impact on the outcome of the disease progression.” 

What are you grateful for?

Our president – I commend him for acting swiftly and listening to health professionals. I am grateful for the opportunity to be able to offer service during this time and earn and income when so many  others are struggling. I am grateful to be in an environment where i am constantly exposed to the ever changing world and learn from that. I’m grateful that South Africa, even though our healthcare infrastructure is not the best, we have some of the best skilled doctors in the world. for this reason, if the general public can play their part, I’m sure we will be able to win this battle. 

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There are darknesses in life and there are lights, and you are one of the lights, the light of all lights Photographer- @lost.in.light #lightphotography #light #portraitphotography #freedom #freespirit #mondaymotivation #lightuptheworld #beautiful #pierre #lagoonphotography #realmodel #authenticity @reality_fitnesssa @sam.naidoo_fitness

A post shared by Doctorfire🔥 (@deocarmic) on Apr 6, 2020 at 5:19am PDT

An inspiring woman filled with hope that as a nation we can overcome this pandemic. With a heart willing to help those around her I am so glad that the medical industry has someone like Dr. Deodatt.

Our next leading lady is a COVID19 survivor with an adventurous heart and a curious mind. She’s a 35 year old entrepreneur with a passion for kitesurfing and the ocean. She is the blogger behind Living Corona Positive – a blog focussed on spreading hope and her journey with the virus. (Give her a follow) This is Megan Smith. Megan was one of the first cases in South Africa and had contracted the coronavirus after an overseas trip to Switzerland.

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CHAPTER 3: My business has been granted its exemption certificate! This is awesome because it means that we can trade but it hasn’t been as simple as opening up and carrying on where we left off! . Like many other businesses, the implications of re-opening have resulted in us not doing so. My business supplies the hospitality industry so although we can sell product, we don’t have any clients. No clients = no business. . However, in the spirit of entrepreneurship, staying positive, leaning into our fears and doing what we can to achieve our common goal; getting South Africa through this epidemic, we’ve partnered up with some great organisations, pooled our resources and tomorrow will launch our new project we are calling “Sparkling Hands”. . And thus, Chapter 3 of Living Corona Positive commences: Giving back & “Sparkling Hands”… details coming soon! . Read my blog, Chapter 3 for more info. Link in bio. . #sparklinghands #chapter3 #livingcoronapositive #givingback

A post shared by Megs – Living Corona Positive (@livingcoronapositive) on Apr 19, 2020 at 2:35am PDT

What made you want to document your journey on your blog?

“We realised very soon after finding out that we had the Coronavirus that although so many people were being affected by it, no one really knew what it was like to have the virus. The reactions and lists of questions and concerns from our friends made us realise that it would be a good idea to make our experience more accessible to everyone navigating this time and so we started to document the process of our recovery on an Instagram account @livingcoronapositive and from there, it just took off and became a whole lot more than I’d expected.”

How did you manage to stay positive mentally during your diagnosis?

“I don’t think that it’s something I tried and focused on doing, it’s rather a state of mind that I’ve been working on all my life I guess and was ready to serve me when I needed it. That and the help of my family who are proactive and positive too.” 

What are your tips for those who may be feeling anxious during this time?

Anxiety is such a tough one. I have had a fair dose of anxiety to deal with in my lifetime and I don’t think there’s any quick cure. Dealing with anxiety takes a lot of slowing down, breathing, cutting out negativity and then both understanding and acting on the terms we hear so often, “self-love” and “self-care”. It’s a journey of getting to know yourself as well as choosing to put yourself and your well-being first.However, for a more practical answer in these times: