My lungs Part 5

[Spacecadetagain]

New thread for us

I had nighttime sweats quite a lot in the first week or two.

Day 21 for me. Three weeks since I woke up with 40 temp. Woken up with heartburn feeling but feeling better. Temp 37. Definitely feel I’m on the road to recovery. Went for a nice walk yesterday. Nice to feel the sun. My last walk there was a bitter cold wind which didn’t help my chest. Cough still hasn’t cleared completely, but improved,

Hello. I have dipped in and out of the threads and I am now in day 22.

I am much better than I was but do find that if I overdo it I get the burning lungs thing. For me it is like the feeling you get when you are out of breath from running which I believe is caused by an increase in lactic acid. I have had most of the symptoms described on here apart from fever as my temperature has stayed within normal range despite waking up sweating or having chills. I had a course of antibiotics which did nothing for me but I took the anyway as let’s face it we will try anything. My latest bizarre symptom is wind and diarrhoea now I’ve had the diarrhoea before when I’ve felt the most unwell both at the beginning and when I relapsed about day 10 but not the wind. Does anyone else have this or is it just me? It’s a reason to isolate on its own

@LetsBeSensible you are both wise and sensible and I find great comfort in your words. It’s a horrible time for anyone to be unwell right now with little support available, but we will get through it and it will end

Bornlazy - that’s a good description of the burning sensation. I try to describe it as going out in very, very cold weather and the cold air burns your inside,

I find it akin to breathing in cold air after menthol. Really stark, cold and stinging.

An interesting graph I saw today, from a doc tho I don't know his source. Thought it may be of interest. Looks like 14 days before one starts to recover. I actually find this heartening.

@findingschools4myboys @Porcupineinwaiting thank you so much for sharing about your dizziness. Day 20 today and didn’t sleep well which I think contributed to my dizziness and now I feel a bit nauseous for the first time this illness but I know I won’t vomit, just feel flu-y, fatigued and was cold downstairs even though I don’t have a temperature. I’m puzzled why I can’t seem to sleep well as my breathing is fine now. I just seem to wake up multiple times in a panic or uncomfortable or feeling flu-y. Spent an hour this am downstairs on the sofa with the kids as I am just so fed up with being ill even though I felt yucky. The good news I suppose is my breathing is ok now, I just feel ill and fatigue! I really thought I’d be seeing more improvement by now but that doesn’t seem to be the case yet.

@EMichel102

I had terrible nausea/dizziness for a few days, all I could do was lay in one position in bed and not move. Combined with a headache and breathlessness it was pretty grim. Seems to have passed since Friday morning - on day 23 now. The nausea first hit at the same time as breathlessness so it was easy to feel like I wasn't getting enough oxygen to my brain since I felt so heavy headed, woozy and disorientated. After a period when the breathlessness subsided I realised they were two separate things, so whilst it feels horrendous I'm slightly less worried about it now which makes it easier to handle when it comes on. Feels more like an ear infection.

Also, another one here with night sweats. I was feeling a lot better yesterday but the night sweats are making me fear another relapse is on its way...

Day 26 here.

I’m up and have put some fake tan on my legs so I must be feeling better!! I would say I feel 7/10 now. Low energy and slightly sore chest but definitely able to do simple stuff around the house. I wanted to go for a nice walk today but I can already tell it will make me feel worse so it will be a 20 min stroll max.

DD is still suffering. I am worried about her. It seems like she has the flu like symptoms less than any breathing issues so I’m not sure it’s worth calling 111...but she is just sad and says everything aches. It’s gone on 20 days for her (worked it out) so she obviously caught it from me. Some days she’s been fine though or almost fine and then some she struggles to get out of bed like today.

Re vertigo, I had this too, approx days 18-22 I think, it’s gone now unless I am walking and I get tired and then I feel slightly weird but not bad. Very strange sensation. It was never terrible for me but it was definitely there and made me feel nauseous. Sadly nothing has put me off eating really! I’ve put on about 4lb but I’m not bothered. I can fit in my jeans still and am on the slim side so think my body needed the food to stay strong for the virus!

For the record I don’t have CFS my mother did so I know a bit about it but she has recovered. I do have endometriosis, it’s not severe and I don’t think there’s a link but I do get tired at certain points of the month and I get pain from it so I guess it could be worse due to the virus. Drs said it wouldn’t interact but who knows!

@ScrimpshawTheSecond great chart and thank you for sharing. It seems they count the asymptomatic days 1-5 in their 14 days Which makes me a bit sad (which I don’t think we are). But hopefully we’re all on the tail / recovery end now anyway and have built those antibodies!

Wow that chart is so so so reassuring. Thank you so much for sharing, my friends husband has likely had Covid too and she was fretting at how it was too long to detect the antigen and I was trying to explain how the eventual test should show the antibody. But god that curve at least shows a significant convalescence doesnt it.

Day 9 here. Had a good nights sleep and feel, dare I say it, slightly stronger. I'm going to attempt to go downstairs and sit in the sun for a short while. Still feel very dizzy and a bit breathless but sats are at 98% so reassuring.

Can I ask what CFS is please? Sorry to hear how many people are affected by it.

Also, I feel very wary about mingling with my dh and son - I know the advice says after 7 days it's okay but I feel like the virus is still in me (lumpy, stabbing feelings in throat). Anyone mingling after 7 days with the household?

@ScrimpshawTheSecond that chart is great!! So basically by Day 28 + 5 days (asymptotic bit) most people should feel better. So that is approx 33 days. I reckon given how I feel that’s bang on.

My mum told me I am ‘convalescing’ yesterday. Not a term I’m familiar with but it’s right. I’m ok now but my body has taken an absolute battering and needs to build strength back up

Day 24.

Night sweats, broken sleep, upper back aching, feeling light headed and as if oxygen not getting to hands and feet dreaded taking a reading but it's 97/96 so that's good.

On a positive note lung burning and chest pain is almost gone.

@Tangledyarn yep mild asthma, RA and overactive immune system so not straight forward. But do agree although it is, I think easier to cope with this right now it's the long term e/affects? that really worry me.

@TheDrsWife46 Dr Myhill is my daughters consultant so hopefully will get info first hand on credible long term recovery statistics. Keep refreshing my inbox.

@longshot re your mum do take care during your recovery as cfs does have a genetic component and is passed through the female line, I had NO idea of this for years!
Wish I'd known that before DD got it as would have been so much more cautious with her post glandular fever.

@Lightsabre I waited 14 days and am now mingling on the days I don't feel acutely ill. Sometimes I think I should have waited longer but it was really starting to harm my mental health and made me feel more incapacitated than I actually am.

I have lost track of days but I am in Week 8 (not confirmed but known indirect contact with confirmed cases returning from the Alps in late January so very likely). Yesterday I spent a few hours doing non-strenuous gardening jobs outside in the sunshine and today I still feel ok and have not regressed. I couldn't have imagined this just a week ago so I am feeling so happy to have come through it. I think I am well on the road to recovery although I still have a few twinges of what is probably mild post-viral pericarditis (discussed via telephone with cardiologist as I have had episodes of it before). It is scary to feel so ill, but keep positive and it will pass, hopefully quicker than mine did with all the complications I had due to existing conditions.

@ScrimpshawTheSecond do you remember where you found that graph from at all?

CFS = chronic fatigue syndrome

@Notgoingouttoday that's a fantastic update!
Would you mind sharing a timeline of you symptoms? Would be so helpful.

@Lightsabre

I was seen at a covid GP hub a few weeks ago and they suggested I was probably no longer infectious (had been ill for 12 days at that point). But to continue to self isolate until all major symptoms had cleared - i.e. symptoms like fatigue are probably fine.

@stayathomegardener thank you for that. Yes my mum has mentioned this. I think perhaps one of the reasons this virus has hit me so hard is I had a stressful year last year, significant health concerns (turned out to be endometriosis related so ok) but was really worrying for 2 months at the end of the year. I also have anaemia and so feel I am sometimes on the edge of something bigger it that makes sense. I’m going to rest and not return to my usual busy / fit self for some time. Thankfully I have a relatively easy job at the moment and only need to do 1-2 days a week so manageable with the kids. I’m not looking to take on more for a few months as I’m realising my body perhaps would react badly.

My mum was very stressed and a workaholic before she got CFS. She did something called reverse therapy (!) to help cure it. She’s qualified in that now and has helped others so at least I can ask for advice etc. It’s a horrible condition so I really feel for you all who have it xxx

A friend shared it on Facebook. The fb account is a doc from Ninewells hospital. There's no attribution or anything- I've no idea the source, sorry. Maybe medics are roughing these things up just for their own use? Not sure if that is something that might happen!
I am wary about info that is so vague, but thought even as a rough idea of the mechanism s of how antibodies tend to move it may be useful.

The lung clearing video was as follows...

Breathe in deeply and hold for 5 seconds. Breathe out as normal.

Do this 5 times.

On the 5th time cough out hard the last breath.

Then lay on your front and breathe normally but slightly deeper than you usually would.

This helps to clear the lungs and allows air to get to the smaller air sacs at the bottom of the lungs.

The doctor did get a little dizzy doing the exercise so don’t worry if you get dizzy too.

Thanks mumlurker and Porcupine.

@lightsabre - I didn’t stop mingling with my family. We took the view that if I was infectious before symptoms, then they probably would have caught it. We think dh May have had a mild form in retrospect. We self isolated for two weeks, so all germs were kept within this household.