40 plus plus

[WorriesomeDad]

Thread for continuing long-term Coronavirus support

@Coleoptera This is my experience. I have not had any cough at all, main main symptom was breathing issues. I was given an antibiotic over the phone and after that didn’t help, I called 111 a few Sundays back who then arranged a GP to call me back. She in turn made an out of hours appointment for me - after a doctor listened to my chest he said viral inflammation to the lungs (I think it was on the way out then and he heard some sensitivity, not sure of the exact terms).

@Rosesofeyam thanks, my mind was wandering with concerns of a heart attack or a blood clot! 

@Coleoptera i've had two lots of antibiotics which I don't think done anything and I had a chest x-ray which came back as clear and normal. So I assume it is just what Covid does?! I'm coming up to 5 weeks and it does feel like an excessively long time to be ill. I'm exhausted from being in constant pain.

Maybe have a chat with your GP if you can. I'm going to ask mine to get referred for a blood test and ECG (or anything else?!) as I just feel I need a check up for some kind of medical reassurance. Feeling a bit hopeless today.

a bizarre episode of what I assume was an aura migraine and general feeling of not myself, the symptom I found hardest was like an internal shaking feeling, could not sit still and when I had to sit down had to shake legs to get some sense of peace, at these times I also felt a chill down my spine and honestly felt fearful with an impending sense of doom that I was going to die, I do not know what prompted this feeling because I had not experienced a lot of breathlessness or other major symptoms that some of you have been suffering

This sounds exactly like a classic panic attack.

@TheDrsWife46 how are the anti-anxiety meds helping? Years ago I had a panic disorder and I have to say buzzing at night etc was a symptom. Your body just becomes incredibly wired. Anti-deps transformed me.

@Gunner30 The throat feels raw, blistered and swollen, but not too much discomfort most the time. It's useful to know that you and @Moodgie seem to have similar issues. What day are you now? I'm also trying hayfever tablets, as that has kicked off this week, so we'll see if that helps along with the ibuprofen.

Interesting that we're both taking ibuprofen. Are you too @Moodgie? Ibuprofen can sometimes cause a sore throat/mouth ulcers. I often get them with prescription NSAIDS but maybe at the moment I'm a bit more vulnerable to the effects from ibuprofen too. It really does feel more like an allergic reaction than the last two sore throats I had which were linked to this virus. The pain is more on the surface of my throat, if that makes sense, the last two felt deeper.

I've taken my walk and done a 10 minute stretching session. Still don't know if it's a good idea or a bad idea yet but I'll keep on for a few more days.

I have decided that a positive thing about this relapse is that when I recovered initially, I went from having obvious symptoms to feeling great in the space of a few hours. That meant that I ended up going from 0-60 in terms of activity right away. My head was telling myself I should take it step by step and build up, but I felt like my old self and it was just too hard to not throw myself into everything I'd been missing for 3 weeks. With the pleurisy/relapse that I'm having, while there are good and bad days (thanks in large part to my stupid period), overall I feel like I'm having a more phased recovery. So I can gradually increase my activity and get back to normal at a slow steady pace. That way, hopefully when I'm fully recovered, I won't suddenly over do it and relapse again.

Good way to look at it @alittleprivacy like our body is forcing us to rest to recover properly.

This thread has been a lifesaver for me. Thank you all. Can't wait to have a virtual drink with you all once we're better! Hopefully soon

@alittleprivacy I have not taken ibuprofen. My throat started to be scratchy last week and I then I have had the phlegmy feeling on and off, yesterday that turned into sore throat when swallowing, today more pronounced on the right side.
This is all so demoralising.

@Coleoptera I have upper central chest pain too (day 36). Went for a short walk (just 200 steps) this morning and that brought it on towards the end and I'm sitting here now with it. It's radiating off to the left armpit, I get it every time I do any activity and each time it seems that less activity brings it on. I'm very worried that there's so much strain on my body and it's a symptom that's getting worse. The closest thing it seems to be like is angina. I'm meant to be going to a chest clinic next week and am not going to do any more walking until I've seen someone. Currently taking a week's course of amoxycilin (halfway through) but it doesn't seem to be making any difference so I'm doubtful it's a secondary infection. My GP made noises about GTN spray (for angina) on Friday, as well as suggesting medicine. He's having me monitor my blood pressure for 2 weeks and I'm meant to speak to him again next Friday. I think they're just clueless about this though because we don't fit the obvious pathway of the virus. Maybe in future these symptoms will be taken more seriously and there'll be either reassurance they'll clear up with rest, or we'll be given medication. I feel like we're all doubly unlucky in that we came down with this so early on with little information available, and that we're having such prolonged and atypical symptoms.

Oops that should be 2000 steps.

I have slightly lumpy sternum and an wondering if it's xyphoid process pain as a result of acid reflux. Anyone heard of this? Might explain some of chest pains

www.healthline.com/health/xiphoid-process

@godhelpusall

Another posters G.P was thinking -

www.nhs.uk/conditions/costochondritis/

Day 26
Impending period has shot everything to shit. Had a shower, came out and felt weird. Took sats. Bpm 170 and o2 95.
Crawled to bed. It did die down but everytime I moved my heart shot up to over 100, sats stayed at about 97- 98.
DH said enough was enough and rang 111 who said hospital.
I went and I've never been made to feel worse. First off because I didn't start my illness with a cough and a fever I'd never had coronavirus. They kept banging on about how people watching the news got anxiety and felt they had got the symptoms from it being in all the media.
Then they went on and on about the possibility I was pregnant. I said I was starting my period in the next few days and I was on the pill.
They tested urine for an infection and told me it was clear, and that they'd done a pregnancy test just to be sure.
Then i was discharged, shaking from chills, dizzy, chest pains from all the exertion, bpm 110 lying down, and feeling completely tearful because unless I am unconscious I am not going back there again.

Oh @Crayfishforyou I'm so sorry. They seem obsessed with a cough and a fever, it's so frustrating! So if it's not Covid, what was their explanation? Anxiety?! I'm so angry for you.

That's shocking treatment @crayfishforyou at least you know you haven't got an infection of the kidney or liver as that could become really serious. Everyone here would agree that the symptoms vary dramatically and it seems that the gps are better informed than 111 or the hospitals in some cases. Take it easy this weekend and try the GP on Monday if no better,as mine has been really helpful and don't appear to be overly busy.

@alittleprivacy I've only started taking ibuprofen yesterday to see if it helps and last night it seemed to. However, today doesn't really seem any better, but I'll keep monitoring and let you all know. 4 weeks of a sore/inflamed throat seems too long, but nothing with this virus is predictable it seems.

I was told to take iron the other week as I was anaemic. I've since been told by a very helpful person on the slack group mentioned on here before that increased ferritin levels massively increases cytokine spells. A marathon runner nearly died from it.
I've been on it for over a week!
I'm not taking it anymore. I just hope I've not done any more damage.

Is anyone else feeling absolutely shattered? I literally have no strength today to do anything.

@Crayfishforyou I am sorry the hospital were so shit. I am assuming you are female. I think there can be quite a bias to dismissing women’s symptoms in general as anxiety. The A&E doctors in your hospital sound very ignorant of the different ways Covid-19 can present. Jenny Harries the Deputy Chief medical officer did not have the classic symptoms when she caught it. Was hers just hysteria too??

@Moodgie I spent weeks with no energy even to sit up in bed. The fatigue is very debilitating (let alone the other symptoms).

@egghead20 I have not been that shattered throughout. Had two days like this last weekend and then was much better. And now it’s back. I know that fatigue and sore throat can be post viral but I still have diarrhoea in the morning and I don’t think that’s a post viral thing.

Diarrhoea can be a post viral thing if the virus has mocked about with your gut. It is possible.
But with this virus, who knows?

Yep absolutely shattered here.

@crayfishforyou

I thought the Ferritin thing was that if you get cytokine storm, Ferritin levels go through the roof, not that increasing your own Ferritin levels will cause a storm?

I believe that you're suffering loads. But I also believe these lingering awful symptoms are causing us all stress and therefore psychosomatic symptoms arise too. And it's hard ro differentiate.

For example I had a bout of extreme health anxiety years ago when I was convinced I had a certain disease because my muscles were twitching. I obsessed over it, googled it, and sure enough, the twitches went body wide. I mean they were violent twitches that my husband could see through my clothes. Painful spasms too. I was causing my own debilitating symptoms through extreme stress.

@Needsomegoodnews have the wine. Had one glass last night and feel no different today really. Still feel hayfevery and tight chested but that's the same. I just sipped it slowly and didn't go overboard.

@Crayfishforyou why don’t you try humouring the doctors and looking into some treatment for anxiety to see if it helps?

I absolutely think there's a degree of anxiety, I'm not writing that off at all. But it isn't just that.
But I just can't seem to fathom the right bits from anxiety to reality, if you see what i mean.
The other day I was horribly dizzy and breathless. I told myself I was fine, not to be silly, did some stuff and the next day felt as though I'd pulled every single muscle I had.
I just can't gauge it.
I did a lot of yoga before and doing the breathing does help, when I can actually do the breathing.
This whole thing has tested my sanity to the max and I've never doubted myself more.
I've never had anxiety before, or had a panic attack. So its hard to tell what is what.
I do feel most panicky when the bruising feeling under my arms gets bad and then it sort of comes in surges

@crayfishforyou
Yep. Totally get you. It's impossible to tell between the two sometimes. I still don't trust my ability to differentiate between psychosomatic symptoms and illness symptoms. I just know that I'm better off not watching the news. The constant death rate daily utterly ruins me mentally.