I am slowly getting over my Covid and have been in the throes of long Covid now for about 10 days. I have been suffering from excessive fatigue, breathlessness, no energy and other frightening symptoms like fast heart beat and sweating. Everything I have follows the path of long Covid so some fear is alleviated by what I am reading on the internet. There is really nothing you can do but go with it and rest. You really have no choice but to rest because your body will not do otherwise. Everything I have had in the diary since being back from holiday has had to be cancelled. The W.I. outing to Kings Lynn and a poetry reading were both cancelled.
I have had to place a chair in the kitchen because I am unable to stand for more than a few seconds and all tasks require me to sit down. Stirring my porridge for five minutes in the morning has been abandoned more than once whilst I rush for the chair in the breakfast room before collapsing so I have moved a chair to the kitchen. It is still there but this morning I was able to make my porridge without sitting down.
I have been too weak to shower.
I believe I have turned a corner. Yesterday I was able to at last clear up my return from holiday and finish the unpacking of my rucksack of the odds and ends of paperwork and put them away. I also folded and put the clean laundry away. It had sat at the end of the table for two weeks.
I did the laundry on arrival home and as it was during the hot week of Whitsun I was able to merely throw the washing over the chairs and bench near the backdoor for drying as I was unable to walk to the linen line to hang it out. At that point I was actually suffering from the Covid itself which was the heavy cold and respiratory infection of coughing and sneezing and lack of energy. When that went I thought I was better but I wasn't. The long Covid settled in after the sneezing and nose congestion disappeared and actually made me feel worse than the Covid itself.
I have not attended the doctors surgery because I see no point as there is no cure. I have been taking anti-inflammatory ibuprofen this week just before bed and I believe this may have helped. I did manage to go to the dental hygienist on Monday and he informed me that I had gum inflammation. I have never had this before and now believe that this is also an indication of the long Covid and prompted me to take the ibuprofen. (Long Covid is not contagious).
Since being back from holiday apart from the Covid I have been happy living at home alone, reading and writing and thinking myself lucky that this is only a temporary illness. I would not wish to be housebound in this way for ever. At worst it can last six months or longer but hopefully I am seeing light at the end of the tunnel and will be out and about again soon. Yesterday I did 10 minutes of light chair exercise, the first exercise I have done since arriving back from holiday. And I took a shower. Things are getting better.
Hi Rachel, Sorry to hear you were struck down, but you do sound on the mend. We had covid about 3 years ago and it lingered for months, but it gradually eased, so after the innitial bad period, it just made us feel unwilling to do anything. We thought old age at hit us. But it did go eventually. You are 'made of sterner stuff' so I am sure you will recover.
ReplyDeleteI have missed your posts and hoped you were ok.
The warmer weather is coming so hope that will help.
Kathy xx
It is the same thoughts for me: what is it, old age or the virus. This is the second time it has happened so I feel a little bit more familiar with it but it is still quite frightening not to have the energy to do anything and I worry will I ever have normality again.
DeleteI didn't write for a few days because I wanted to see what reaction my Yorkshire post received and as blogger is so slow up-dating posts I decided to leave it as it was only just appearing on reading lists for some people. It still did not receive much comment but it was viewed over 350 times. Thanks Kathy. xx
Sorry to hear this Rachel. Hopefully you will be back to feeling healthier soon. The best thing you can do is rest. No need to rush back to 'normal'. I think we instinctively know what to do for ourselves. I feel better when I have had a good uninterrupted sleep. If I can't sleep but I feel unwell, I will listen to a podcast or classic FM.
ReplyDeleteIt's a shame you have had to cancel plans but you can make some new ones for when you feel up to it. Hope you feel increasingly better as the day goes on. X
I think I have turned a corner and am improving. You can do nothing but rest because you do not have any energy to do anything. It is sapped and gone. I have been sleeping ok which is important and must have helped.
DeleteI was sorry to miss the things I had to cancel but I had no choice and my life feels different now anyway. The holiday put ma ny things into perspective and my way of life is one of them. Thanks Simone. xx
I am glad that you are slowly regaining strength and stamina, it is a slow process for all but even slower for older folks. Everything takes more time doesn't it? And time seems to move differently or really my awareness of the passage of time has changed. A massage at 11 am seems at least a day ago by bedtime same day and yet so many things seems to have happened not that long ago.
ReplyDeleteThe passage of time does seem to change with age. What was once only yesterday now seems long ago and what was long ago seems like only today. I know what you mean. xx
DeleteBest wishes. I hope you return to full health before too long. A few years ago I suffered from excessive tiredness (not Covid related), and found it to be totally debilitating. I still have no idea what caused it. Luckily after a few weeks it just disappeared.
ReplyDeleteI have had this post viral thing before, all too recently in fact, and it takes me six months to get back to anything like normal. Last time I visited the doctor and they can't help so this time I am just going to take it as it comes.
DeleteOh dear, you have been through to a lot, Rachel. I am very glad to read that you seem to have turned a corner and were able to do some exercises, have a shower and finish unpacking and so on. Living alone has its advantages - there is nobody you have to be "up and about" for, but on the other hand, there is also nobody who can look after you when you are too weak even to stir your porridge.
ReplyDeleteHopefully, now that you are getting better, you can slowly pick up all your usual activities again. From what I know about you, you'll not be overdoing it the moment you start to feel some energy return, but you'll carefully pace yourself according to what your body will be able to cope with.
Gute Besserung, as we say here!
Living alone does have its advantages like no pressure to put away my holiday stuff or fold up the clean washing. On the other hand living alone also makes it all a little bit harder and a little bit of fear creeps in as to whether you will ever get back to normal. I have had a few panics about getting food and didn't manage an on-line order for food because my payment failed. I have eaten my way through the store cupboard and used the emergency cat food that I keep in case I am snowed in in winter. Pacing myself is the way forward and the energy is returning. Thank you for your understanding words Meike.
DeleteYou describe how I've been feeling the last few weeks and I've not even had Covid. Because of the onset of palpitations, I've just had an ECG so it'll be interesting to see what they can tell from it.
ReplyDeleteI have had this before and the doctors could find nothing wrong. I think it was about 4 years ago. I was also given an ECG which was normal. I later became an emergency with a Vitamin D deficiency the test for which took me a year to persuade them to give me. This accounted for many things wrong with me at that time. However this time I think it is viral fatigue. My heart rate seems to be settling down. As others have said, it is difficult at our age to know what is going on and one is always asking oneself, is it just my age.
DeleteI have read about Long Covid of course but had no idea it could be so debilitating. At least you can Google and knew what it was. But until you started to feel a little better it must have been daunting to say the least.
ReplyDeleteI hope your gums are healing and your weakened health doesn't bring on anything else.
Hopefully you will slowly get your strength back, and your life
It is also known as post viral fatigue if you didn't have the actual corona virus in the first place but it is the same thing. It is both debilitating and frightening at the same time when you can't even walk between two rooms without having to collapse into a chair. I have several times got up to make a cup of tea and been unable to get as far as the kitchen before slumping down let alone filling the kettle. The inflammation in the gum seems to have gone. I have an aching knee which the Covid jumped to one night when it headed for a weak spot which I believe is also inflammation and I am hoping the ibuprofen is helping. I am getting stronger not weaker so hopefully I will get back to normal. Thanks Linda.
DeleteRecovery can take a long time, as you are realising and there is little you can do, other than allow it to take its course. I'm sure you're making sure you're drinking enough fluids, and eating fresh fruit and vegetables, if you can find someone to bring them to you. Be well.
ReplyDeleteI have plenty of frozen vegetables in the freezer and they are as good or better. I have some tinned fruit. Nobody visits me and I haven't seen anybody since I got back from holiday apart from when the neighbour returned my key. I told my brother on the phone that I thought I had Covid two weeks ago and have heard nothing further from him. That's what happens when you are known to be independent! My own fault!
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