After a brush with death due to coronavirus, a former Gold Coast police officer says she is treating every day like it is her last.
Kym Watkins contracted COVID-19 after falling ill during her travels to the United States for a 60th birthday gathering.
When she arrived home, Ms Watkins was placed on a ventilator at the Gold Coast University Hospital and was given a 50 per cent chance of surviving.
She said she was feeling well after being given time to recover outside of hospital.
"I feel totally different," she said.
"I look in the mirror and I go, that's not my usual look, that photo of me in the ICU."
Close to death
Ms Watkins did not realise how dire her situation was until a doctor informed her later.
"He didn't expect me to live," she said.
"He has since told me that even after the first lot of antibiotics, I deteriorated and they honestly didn't think I was going to make it.
"That blew me away … I never thought that I was going to die."
Ms Watkins is worried when she sees people not following social distancing and coronavirus restrictions.
"This thing can blow up again so easily and you only have to see how many people in the shopping centres," she said.
"We still need to be so very careful — it's just a such an awful thing to go through."
New outlook on life
After her stint in intensive care, Ms Watkins is now aiming to live her life to the fullest.
"I'm wanting to get out there and do more," she said.
"Catching up with my boys, my friends ... the people that I love know that I love them and I can spend time with them when I can."
Seeing Australia
Since being released, Ms Watkins has also taken time to exercise, looking for work and even taking online Pilates classes.
While going overseas has been a goal for the couple, Ms Watkins said their priority had now turned to travelling domestically.
"My husband and I have even started to look at caravans to do Australian trips when we can," she said.
"Australia was always on the list but that was just going to be a bit later in life ... now it's been pulled forward."
She has ruled out going back to being a rideshare driver — her previous occupation before contracting the virus.
"I feel there's something bigger out there for me," she said.
