40+

[MilesJuppIsMyBitch]

A thread for people with CV19 symptoms that have lasted for more than a couple of weeks.

First thread here

(Called 40+ to keep a rough tab on when the first symptoms started being reported on MN).

Morning all. So glad people are making progress. I feel stuck and really deflated today. Day 42 ish. I was hit by huge fatigue yesterday and it is here today. The lumpy thing in my throat I got two days ago that then changed into scratchy throat is not as much there anymore but I almost feel like I have mucus lower down now and I’m trying to clear my throat and cough it out.

Hello everyone. As ever, sorry for those who are having disturbed nights and still in the thick of it, and great to hear from those who are continuing to improve (2 steps forward 1 step back!).

I'm not posting so much as still in a dark place and not sure how productive my posts are for everyone but then I suppose if others have a similar experience then they know they're not alone.

Day 45 (I think). No breathlessness for last 2 days. Mild raised temperature afternoons and evenings (up to 38). Still in bed. At my best, complete fatigue but okay in self, but frequently nausea, lightheadedness, cold and clammy hands and feet, chills, and it sounds dramatic but often feeling of impending doom. Difficult to even get to the toilet.

I don't know if anyone has anything similar, but waking up in the morning feels a bit scary as I feel like my body is encased in concrete and I literally can't move. It then takes me about 20 minutes to feel more human with small movements and deep breathing exercises. I often wake up with a headache too.

Another new symptom that began yesterday was a feeling of swollen glands/throat/ funny feeling when I swallow.

Over the last 6 weeks I've had lots of support from my doctors but I feel like they've slightly given up on me now. I saw a different doctor at a hub earlier in the week and he has implied a lot of my symptoms are caused by anxiety/peri menopause! This makes my blood boil. I've always been very open about how anxious I've felt about being so ill for so long with all these random symptoms, and I'm sure this anxiety isn't helping, but it's been driven by my illness/ symptoms not vice versa.

I've been prescribed some sertraline but not sure whether or not to take it. On the one hand, I'll try anything if it helps calm me down a bit and handle this better. On the other hand, I've never felt particularly anxious before and reluctant to pump more medicine in to my body right now, and also conscious it will take up to 2 weeks to have any effect.

So far this morning I'm only feeling knackered and none of the other symptoms so far so hoping for a better day!

@Moodgie I didn't catch your post before I posted, but I see we still have some common symptoms... I'm really sorry you're feeling so deflated, me too. It's so hard!

@fedupofbed My son was prescribed sertraline last autumn as he struggled with uni life. I think it took about 4 weeks to kick in and those 4 weeks made him unwell, he was very nauseous and at times physically sick, he also struggled to get out of bed at times. He was warned by the doctor that he may get side effects at the start. Just thought I’d let you know, sorry if you don’t want to hear this.

Thank you @fedupofbed. It is so hard. I have a phone GP appointment - I don’t know whether to speak to him again or to cancel - I don’t want him to think I am mad but I don’t know what to do. I took an antibiotic week in week 4 and I’m wondering if I should take another one.

Thank you @Moodgie that's really useful to hear about your son. It's my gut reaction too not to take it - I couldn't bear to feel any more anxious right now and I genuinely don't feel I have long term issue with anxiety.

I should definitely speak to your GP, especially as it's Friday. I always find it reassuring to speak to mine even if no concrete help! At the very least they need to know that you're still ill after all this time so they can feed this back/ build up their knowledge.

I don't think there's any harm in taking more antibiotics either. I took amoxicillin very early on, then started the really nasty one (can't remember name!) some time in the middle but had to stop due to side effects. Finished doxycycline a couple of days ago. Not sure if it's helped but willing to throw anything at it, especially as I've rarely used antibiotics in the past.

I can really identify with the 'lump in throat' feeling right now!

Does anyone find a hot water bottle on the chest helps?

Another update from me.
Day 38 I think. Had a couple of days of catching my breath earlier this week but that has disappeared and I think it was more related to indigestion as my stomach felt bloated during those days and it made me feel full and nauseous too. Back to normal since yesterday though!

And took another test at the clinic in London today and can report that I tested positive again. IgG line much stronger this time and igM line very faint. So again makes sense for me.

Sorry haven’t been on here much! So don’t know what’s going on. Hope everyone is feeling better??

My first post (my sister alerted me to this group and I've been lurking for a few days and found it helpful). I'm on Day 28. I have a (mostly) dry cough but produce a bit of white phlegm in the morning. I have had light-headedness, ringing in my ears and high blood pressure for 9 days (148/94 today) which is very bad in the morning. I have pains in my chest on the left side, which seem to move around. I went to A&E 2 days ago and they ran loads of tests on my heart and lungs and said everything looked fine so they sent me home after 3 hours. My GP this morning has asked me to monitor my blood pressure for 2 weeks.

I'd lost my appetite and sense of taste/smell for a couple of weeks but last week they started to come back (although are a bit weak). My stomach's producing too much acid and it gurgles all night. For the past 26 days I've had an on/off pain in my sternum which is worst after hot food/drink or when lying down. I'm taking Esomeprazole and Gavascon and have just finished a week of Doxycycline (my GP thought I might have a secondary infection) which I thought had improved things but last night the sternum pain came back and was so bad I had to sleep sitting up all night. I've been averaging 4 hours sleep a night for the past month. My GP advised this morning I should double the Esomeprazole but won't prescribe more antibiotics.

My partner had a typical 2 week, high temperature experience of the virus and has shook it. My symptoms were mild by comparison, I didn't even have a high temperature. I'm fit, I swim, don't drink, my BMI is under 25. I don't understand why I feel like this and I've experienced anxiety like nothing else before over this month. The first couple of hours each morning are the worst and I just feel like crying and that I can't get through another day feeling like this. I feel like I've been in a month-long nightmare that I can't wake up from.

While I was in A&E they tested me for COVID and the next day it came back negative. They said the tests aren't always accurate. I don't know if I'm still infectious or not but I definitely don't feel over it. I get tired out and breathless doing most kinds of activity. Slopes and stairs are a nightmare. I've seen quite a lot of people posting about gastric issues on here, but not so much on high blood pressure (maybe because people don't own a monitor).

It's so frustrating trying to engage with medical staff - I've been passed around so much, and frequently feel that I'm been fobbed off or not taken seriously. "You're probably not using your blood pressure monitor right" or "It needs recalibrating". This despite it showing a normal reading for my partner. I just wish I could see some signs of improvement.

@fedupofbed and @Moodgie sorrybthat you are not feeling good, it is really frustrating. For the last two weeks my throat has been really inflamed and swollen. Glands are also right up and my gp thinks it is probably a viral infection linked to all my earlier symptoms. I've had white and yellow spots on the tonsils, but today is the first day that they are looking better. I've been gargling salt water a couple of times a day and sucking normal throat lozenges, which seems to help . If it's not cleared up by Monday I'll be speaking to the GP again, but I got the feeling it was just a case of letting to body fight the infection. Hope this helps.

Hi @Linus1972. Sounds like you have had lots of the symptoms people on here have also been experiencing. Interesting you mentioned sternum pain, I've experienced that too.. also with you on breathlessness especially with stairs and slopes Must be reassuring that the tests on your heart and lungs showed nothing concerning but I know it's horrible having ongoing symptoms. I'm also in the same boat having no other conditions, being fit and healthy normally, and rest of family have all recovered and I'm left as weak as a kitten 4 weeks on! Stick with it and keep following the thread, people are very supportive as we're all in it together

@fedupofbed Do you also feel like like something in your windpipe?

@Findingschoolsformyboys that's good news isn't it? Confirmed for sure.

Did that second clinic say they can pick up late covid? Is it a blood test? I've held off from a test as I'm not in London but I could get a swab test locally, although not a blood test, which I presume would be necessary at this stage (34 days).

Damn our government for not making testing available to a all.

@Linus1972 hi there- welcome to the group nobody wants to be part of! It is very dispiriting being ill for so long, I have suffered anxiety in the past and this has brought it back with a vengeance. That hasn't helped as sometimes I'm not sure if the symptoms are the virus or anxiety. Or both. It is a slow recovery- there are some useful articles by people who are in our category which I found helped. Not sure who linked them though.

@fedupofbed similar here with the ongoing fever up to 38 - how can they suggest that’s anxiety related! I’ve had similar path of antibiotics to you - think it’s maybe helped my chest a bit but have felt more feverish.

@findingschools4myboys positive testing at 38 days is worrying but pretty much what I expect is going on :-( They need to be evaluating these chronic/long term infections as it undermines everything the public is being told. Are you having any further investigation?

Today (day 31 I think), I’m suddenly sneezing!! Haven’t sneezed since very early on! Anyone else? With that, the fever and exhaustion I feel like I’m back at the beginning again..

Oh @Linus1972 I'm so sorry, it sounds like you're having such a tough time too and a lot of what you say really resonates with me. I too tested negative but was swabbed about 2 weeks after first symptoms and doctors (and me) now think it is covid. I was always fit and healthy too, and yes feel like I'm living in a nightmare with all these strange symptoms. I feel like the virus is randomly attacking different parts of my body.

@Gunner30 thank you, and hope your throat completely clears over the next few days, do let us know.

@Moodgie it feels funny and uncomfortable just where the hollow bit of my neck is between my clavicles if that makes sense. It's not a pleasant sensation but trying not to dwell on it as another thing to worry about!

Hi all, update here on day 38.

I am ok, most symptoms have gone now other than chest wall aches and a little tightness if I breathe deeply (i think this is the chest wall inflammation).

Sorry I didn't update yesterday, DD is unwell again (same as i have been, a few days behind) and we needed to look after her a lot / call 111.

I went to be checked over by the GP yesterday, i had bloods (back this PM) mainly checking me for anaemia i think as am getting palpitations, raised heart rate and dizzyness when I stand sometimes. I have been anaemic before so could be playing a part.

I also had an ECG (fine) and Dr listened to my chest (clear).

I want to reiterate that while I don't feel recovered or pain free yet I am soooo much better than I was. And this is after a relatively sleepless night looking after my DD. I am tired today but certainly not exhausted, no aches other than my chest and back which i think will take a long time to go. No headache, fever, cough, sore throat etc that has all faded now.

Here's what i do...actually very little but i aim for 30 mins activity (hanging out washing, pottering, cooking, short stroll - I am NOT exercising more than that) then I rest again for 30 mins and I do my day like that, if I feel a slight bit tired or 'weird' i sit and rest or have a nap. Listen to your body.

If my pains get bad I take paracetamol but am needing that less now. I have an epsom salt bath every evening (back and chest pain is worst in the evening).

I feel like i will have another week of this and gradually build up my movement and hopefully in another month or so be 'normal'. I am usually very fit and healthy and doing stuff all the time. This has made me re-assess all of that. I can't go back to what I was doing, i need to recuperate and take it step by step.

The good news is my brain feels mostly fine so a bit of working and lots of reading a book is definitely possible now it's just the physical stuff and group zoom calls etc i can't handle.

Good luck to you all, i really hope you all start seeing signs of improvement.

@Linus1972 welcome - I think all here understand the anxiety (I’d never felt like it before but this has been the worse month) and the exhaustion is across the board. Glad you got some reassurance from A&E but now that just leaves limbo doesn’t it. All we can all do is wait but sharing helps x

I'm sorry you're feeling rough @linus1972. I get the impression that the NHS is ill prepared or supported to know how to support those people long term but not critical.

@needsomegoodnews a change in air temperature always makes me sneeze first thing. Could be that?

@findingschools4myboys presumably you had an antibody test, so it would be positive because it's saying you have had COVID. But the faint line shows that you are moving from recovery into post viral stage so thats good.

@longshot thank you for your update. Really positive and good to hear constructive tips on how you're managing recovery. Very pleased for you, but so sorry to hear about your DD. Really hope she improves soon.

@Moominmamma33 @godhelpusall @fedupofbed @onlinelinda @Needsomegoodnews thanks for the replies and support, it's helpful knowing none of us have to go through this alone.

The mental struggle is often as bad as the physical one, and this has made me realise that while in the past I've done a lot to stay physically fit, I am not very good at dealing with adversity. I am not stoic. I panic (I had paramedics out on Day 5 with a panic attack - very humiliating, I couldn't breath and thought I was dying) and I ruminate and think of the worst case scenario a lot. I suspect that due to the uniqueness and awfulness of this situation generally, and the unusualness of it for people like us, a certain amount of anxiety is normal. But my partner was laid up for 4 months with a virus and post-viral fatigue 10 years ago and coped much better than I am now.

To try to make things better, I'm limiting the amount of time I spend reading news as a couple of stories I read early on have stuck in my mind and made me terrified that the same thing would happen to me. I've also blocked lots of scary words from my twitter feed. I find that work is the best distraction and I try to push through the daytime light-headedness and work on my laptop as much as I can (I'm lucky I have a job which mostly involves writing). I should probably try to stop counting the days as it's demotivating me. I've tried mindfulness and breathing exercises but they don't really work for me, so it's more a case of finding absorbing things to distract myself for a while. I wish I could stop waking up at 3.30 every morning - which is something I always do when I have a bad problem.

It is encouraging reading that people are starting to feel like they're recovering after a long time - it gives me hope that I will too. Part of the issue is that this is such a new thing and we're the rare cases so there aren't enough people yet who have been through it and can point to a recovery trajectory.

Thank you @Gunner30. I’m gargling salty water too.

Is anyone actually feeling more exhausted now on their 6th week? I didn’t feel too bad in myself before, but now completely wiped out and it scares me.

@longshot I’m glad you’re recovering. I think intolerance of zoom calls should be listed as a symptom! I can cope with quite a lot of my job but 20 mins on a call tips me right over the edge!

@Moodgie yes I'm feeling worse if anything.

@Linus1972 I agree that this has really tested my mental resilience. I'm so used to fighting off the odd cold or being able to see a GP for a quick fix and I find it difficult to cope with the feeling of helplessness this situation has created. I feel like I've lost control of my body and my life.

I find the Queen's exercises good for my breathlessness but also they have a very grounding, calming effect on me. I haven't had much joy with anything more mindful or meditative though - any close focus on what's happening within my body seems to send me more in a tizz. I'm finding the Fortunately podcast series really comforting - just the right level of humour, mundanity and distraction! Nearly worked through the whole back catalogue now!