Dr Alex George is finding it difficult to be separated from his girlfriend Amelia Bath amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
The 29-year-old medic – who found fame on ‘Love Island’ in 2018 – is currently working in a hospital, treating coronavirus patients and admitted that self-isolating at his London flat when he is not at work, has been hard.
Writing in the Daily Mail newspaper, Alex explained: "It’s a strange parallel — craving rest yet dreading time off — fuelled by the fact I’m now living, like so many medics, in isolation in the flat I’d normally be sharing with my girlfriend, Amelia. And it’s all such a far cry from my Love Island experience, which is, of course, what made me famous.
"I went on the show in 2018, three years after leaving medical school. That summer seems so carefree and frivolous now, as though it happened to someone else. In fact, I realise now, more than ever before, that fame is not the thing that defines me. The work I’m doing through this crisis, facing life and death on a daily basis, that shapes who I really am: a doctor to my very core.
"I haven’t seen Amelia or any friends or ¬family for four weeks now. Going home from a frantically busy and noisy A&E department to the silence of an empty flat is tough. There’s no one to offload to; no opportunity to touch or be held."
Alex also admitted he doesn’t want to burden Amelia with the trauma of what he is dealing with in the hospital, so they keep their conversations light.
He said: "She’s isolating with her parents in Bournemouth, a place we’ve visited together many times. It feels like a world away now. I don’t talk about work – I feel it would be too upsetting for Amelia, an actress and dancer with no medical experience, if I off-loaded on her.
"Instead, I enjoyed listening to her talk about taking walks on the beach and the meals she’s shared with her parents. I need that kind of distraction."
And Alex believes that the global pandemic will lead to mental health issues for a number of frontline staff.
He said: "There will be time later to allow myself to feel the true horror of it all. When this is over I suspect many front-line medical staff will need a great deal of mental health support. Indeed, I expect there will be cases of PTSD within the profession; I’m sure many will want to quit the job altogether."
Dr Alex George struggling with separation from girlfriend amid Covid-19 pandemic
