A COVID-19 survivor is calling on New Zealanders to take extra care when the country goes into alert level 2.
The father-of-two - who has asked to only be known by his first name, Sanjay - is in his early 40s and had no underlying health conditions, but is lucky to be alive after spending 16 days on a ventilator.
He's returned to North Shore Hospital for the first time since being discharged to thank the doctors and nurses who worked around the clock to save him.
"I thought that I would never breathe again," Sanjay says.
He recalls the moment he took his first breath on his own after 16 days on a ventilator. He says babies don't remember their first breath but he remembers his and it was like being given a second life.
"Taking that breath, it was just blissful, like I would never forget it."
As a fit 41-year-old father-of-two, he didn't fit the profile of an at-risk person.
"Started coughing, started vomiting, breathing became difficult and then that's when the doctor came and told me that, 'we're going to put a ventilator in you'."
He spent 26 days in hospital, most of it in intensive care, even missing his youngest daughter's 11th birthday.
"She blew the candle and she made a wish that daddy comes back to life today."
She got her wish and he's returned to North Shore Hospital to say thank you.
"I wouldn't be here if you guys didn't look after me and I thank you from the bottom of my heart," Sanjay says. "Thank you for being there, thank you for looking after me, thank you for bringing me back to life."
Clinical lead for COVID-19 response Dr Willem Landman says it was incredibly emotional to see.
"Looking at the team, I have goosebumps when I look at them and just how humble they are, and I'm just so glad that they can see just how worthwhile their work is."
But he says Sanjay's experience is a lesson for all.
"He's the exact reason why we need to adhere to social distancing and take the precautions, because everyone has it in their mind that we're dealing with only older people and I think it's alarming to a lot of us when we see this is very real for all of us and what we do really matters," Dr Landman says.
A total of 94 New Zealanders have been hospitalised for COVID-19.
Sanjay says it can happen to anybody and he doesn't want anyone else going through it.
"We should still keep our social distance. Let's be careful, let's wash our hands all the time, let's put masks on and let's stay vigilant."
When the pandemic is over he's planning another visit to the hospital. Next time he'll bring his family and give those who saved his life a hug.
