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Aug 29, 2022 · Learn why long COVID occurs for some people and how to recover with the help of foods, supplements, and gut health interventions.
Long COVID can appear as shortness of breath, exhaustion and fatigue, impaired memory, even dizziness and chest pain. In a timely new report, Harvard physicians bring you essential information for effectively addressing long COVID’s symptoms.
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- Allow yourself time to recover. “One thing we have seen repeatedly is that patients push themselves too hard while trying to recover. It makes sense. Everyone is so eager to `get back to normal life’ after their infection and isolation,” says Dr. Vanichkachorn, director of Mayo Clinic's COVID Activity Rehabilitation Program and a physician in Mayo’s Division of Public Health, Infectious Diseases, and Occupational Medicine.
- Hydrate and eat healthy foods. “During the acute infection, many patients aren’t very hungry. This can be made worse if there are problems with taste and smell,” Dr. Vanichkachorn says.
- Focus on resistance activity. When patients exercise after COVID-19, they often try activities that elevate the heart rate, such as walking and cycling, Dr. Vanichkachorn says.
- Optimize sleep. Many patients with long COVID take naps, disrupting sleep schedules. It is important to get the best sleep possible, and that starts with making sure your sleep area is ideal, Dr. Vanichkachorn says.
- Overview
- Common long-haul symptoms
- Dealing with symptoms
- When to talk with a doctor
- Long haulers and research
•Medical professionals are still assessing the effects and best treatments for people with long-haul COVID-19 symptoms.
•They recommend people with long-term effects try to get adequate sleep and exercise as much as their body would allow.
•They note there are clinics opening across the country that focus on people with long-haul COVID-19 symptoms.
Most people who get COVID-19 recover within a few weeks.
But months later, some continue to struggle with symptoms.
They’ve become known as the “long haulers.” The phenomenon is also called “long COVID-19” or “post-COVID-19 syndrome.”
Some common long-term symptoms are shortness of breath during exercise and an altered sense of smell and taste.
Some people have lingering headache, joint pain, or cough. And many cite “brain fog” as a problem.
“As a neurologist, I don’t much care for this term. But it does aptly describe the symptoms of cognitive fatigue and difficulty with attention and focus that many people are describing as a long-term effect,” Ashley said.
“Some people might just feel a bit ‘off’ cognitively. Others describe difficulty with even simple things like paying bills or sending an email,” he said.
Another problem that can impair daily functioning is fatigue.
“Many people who get COVID-19 are experiencing this long-term symptom,” Ashley said. “The intensity varies from person to person, but many are having difficulty performing even basic daily activities like getting around their living environment or doing their weekly shopping routines, let alone returning to work, parenting, exercise, etc.”
“COVID-19 has the capacity to infect and affect many different tissues. The ongoing pandemic and other events are stressors and clearly adding to the difficulties for many,” Hornig told Healthline.
She recommends considering your body as its own guide.
“If you’re feeling exhausted, it’s important to figure out how much sleep you’re actually getting. Falling asleep and staying asleep is an issue for many individuals,” Hornig said. “If you’re getting unrefreshing sleep, even though you’re in bed a normal number of hours, work on your sleep hygiene.”
Returning to exercise can be a challenge. If you can’t get back to your pre-COVID-19 level right away, take things slowly and don’t push it.
Hornig suggests using a phone app to chart physical activities, so you have a better idea of how much you’re really doing.
“We don’t really understand the mechanism in post-exertion decline or malaise. We do think it’s prudent to use extreme caution. Be attentive to how you feel. If you’re having respiratory issues, be very careful about exercise,” Hornig said.
With a growing number of telehealth options, you don’t necessarily have to visit your doctor in person.
Arrange a virtual visit if you have any concerns or questions about how to recover from persistent symptoms after having COVID-19.
Sleep disorders, for example, can be treated.
“Sleep is a time when the immune system and brain are doing a lot of work,” Hornig said. “When you’re not getting enough quality sleep, you potentially interrupt these important aspects of the body rebuilding itself to be able to withstand the next round of stressors.”
Get in touch with your doctor right away if you have symptoms of a blood clot, which can lead to pulmonary embolism or stroke. And seek immediate medical attention if you have:
•trouble breathing
COVID-19 research is still in its infancy.
“In general, it remains unknown how long these various symptoms, or others that have yet to be identified, can persist,” Ashley said.
“It also remains unclear what, if any, additional difficulties will arise in people who have encountered the virus and ‘recovered,’” he said. “The only way we will learn more is by doing well-designed and consistent scientific studies as time goes on.”
Researchers need your help.
Solve M.E. is an organization that works to advance treatments for ME/CFS, which has some of the same symptoms as COVID-19.
Through its You + ME Registry and Biobank, Solve M.E. is gathering data and biological samples from people with long-haul COVID-19 to compare with data from people with ME/CFS.
Jun 19, 2023 · Diseases & Conditions / Long COVID is a collection of symptoms that last three months or longer after your first COVID symptoms. It can steal your energy, your ability to think clearly, and your sense of smell or taste. You might feel anxious or depressed, get frequent headaches, be short of breath or have heart palpitations.
Mar 4, 2024 · Addressing Long COVID requires a multi-faceted approach that goes beyond conventional medication, embracing natural remedies, vitamins, and holistic practices such as acupuncture and massage therapy. Natural Remedies for Long COVID. Among the natural remedies, I think resveratrol, B complex vitamins, Vitamin D3, zinc, and magnesium are important.
Apr 2, 2024 · Some treatments revealed by the survey as most effective for long COVID were drugs such as beta blockers and the heart-failure medication Corlanor (ivabradine). These are sometimes used to...
