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[WorriesomeDad]

Thread for continuing long-term Coronavirus support

For the ear pain yawning with chin forward to pop ears. Drink lots of water.
Maybe hold nose to pop ears

Anyone else having pleurisy issues after having the virus?

Discharged from hospital 5 weeks ago but pleurisy returned last week (despite having 3 weeks of feeling absolutely fine).

@Lightsabre it must be a false negative. Your symptoms are the same as lots on here (and some of those have tested positive). Did you lose your taste/ smell?

@godhelpusall, I lost my sense of smell and taste on the first day and that lasted for about a week.
Up early as I'm going to try to book a CV again (keyworker)

Hello all. Been reading this and precious thread for a week or so.

Slightly complicated history here. I had what I wondered might be CV in mid March (tightness in chest, a cough, no fever) mid March - though of course then the lack of temperature meant it wasn’t really classified that way. Lasted about five days then went away.

Fast forward to mid April (so I guess 30 days ish) and had week of being really, really ilL -much more chest tightness, pain in lungs, not sleeping more than about 50 minutes at time, waking really hot bit again no actually temp, burning sensation in arms mostly, wheezing etc . felt like smoker about 60 cigs the day before. I’d Had a very dark few days over Easter when kept ringing doctor and 111 and obviously no one would actually see you but was prescribed a blue inhaler and doxycilin. It seemed to clear up after about 10 days but overnight ive found myself back in that awful territory of being uncomfortable in bed and twanging sensation on bottom of lungs when I lie down.

I’m a single parent to two under fives and have no help. The time before this I literally lived in fear I wasn’t going to wake up and they would be shaking me cold.

Depending on how the day goes can anyone g if e me any advice or words of help ? It’s making me start to feel that I have something more sinister long term kind of thing and no one will see me to check it out 😕

Day 30-34 (Depending...)

Morning everyone. Hope you're coping.

After 2 days of improving, feeling stronger and the best night since this began I've just had my worst night in weeks.

Yesterday morning was my best yet -- I pottered quietly and rested in between but sure enough the low level pain and breathless ramped up over the course of the afternoon. Full-on stabbing lung pain, breathlessness, heart soreness and pain, pounding heart and extreme fatigue.

During the night my heart was pounding so hard again and felt so sore and achy. My body and breath was shuddering so much due to the strong beat that not even the gently body wiggle I seem to have adopted would mask it.

I spoke to a GP about my heart on Friday. They said they weren't concerned due to my heart rate and oxygen. They offered up an ECG but subtly advised against it.

Thanks. Hope everyone has awoken to improvements.

@MillStone, it's so bloody horrible, these never ending symptoms. I think I would take the ECG option as it should be in the 'non Covid' part of the hospital - maybe you could check with that dept. It might put your mind at rest which would then hopefully lower your heart rate.

@Wingingit15, the lung sensation seems to be one of the symptoms that lingers the longest as it becomes inflamed. Difficult with two children but I think I'd call the GP again tomorrow and rest as much as you can.

Thanks for replying. I think the most difficult part of all this physiologically is the unknown isn’t it - without a test you don’t know if it’s CV or not. It’s the latter which is starting to worry me - bloody dr google making me conclude I have a longer term terminal Ill ranging from lung cancer, copd, etc depending which day I’m on

@Lightsabre

Hey. Thanks that's a good point. I might leave it a few days and see.

What seems to be changing now is that symptoms are ping-ponging between feeling pretty good and totally awful. The middle ground seems to be waning -- although who knows with this...

I'm sorry your test result was a disappointment. It must be another unnecessary stress.

Thanks for the very interesting neurology article @Gunner30.

Sorry your antibody test was negative @Lightsabre. It may not be accurate or you may have just not have developed (enough) antibodies yet I guess. It seems unlikely to me that you haven’t had Covid-19 given your symptoms.

Day 36/37 here and I am feeling mostly OK (touch wood) apart from intermittent chest burn, breathlessness and sore throat. I managed 10K steps and 20 minutes cycling yesterday and will try to increase the cycling today.

Sorry you had bad nights @MillStone and @wingingit15. I hope you feel a bit better today.

@wingingit15 just wanted to pop on to say that although I have had this horrid illness for over 6 weeks now (with better days and worse days) I’ve never felt fully better at any point. However my friend has also had it and has been more as you describe. Unwell for a week at the start (as you describe, no fever or cough of note) but all the other symptoms, she then thought she was better but it’s come back twice for her. Both after exertion. One time was worse as she was in bed for a couple of days and unwell for a week, the other time more mildly but still there and unwell. I think generally she’s been much less ill than me but I wanted to let you know that she has had it like this sort of in waves. She’s not been tested but the symptoms are as you are describing. I have had the cough, fever etc also and we spent a lot of time together before lockdown so I can only assume I passed it to her.

Good luck and try and rest as much as you can do.

@Egghead68

Hi, it's great t oread that you're making such a good recovery.

The inability to cycle and run is really depressing me.

Do you mind If i ask how long you've been suffering for and what / how severe your symptoms were?

Thank you, that’s a little reassuring. Find it so ridiculous there is no testing and no help unless needing hospitalising but appreciate that’s the position we all
find ourselves in. Can’t help but wonder how the health system is going to stack up in the longer term dealing with fall out but that’s probably another bleak aspect we want to avoid turning minds to I guess. X

@Egghead68 please take it easy! I was like you are 10 days ago...and then took another dip. Just don’t push yourself too soon. (I know it was hard as I also love exercising!)

And yes I still have some pleurisy pains inn and off and it’s day 46 I think.

Brain fog here, so apologies if this has already been covered... anyone with racing heartbeat for no apparent reason?

Mine tends to race each time I stand up, and it’s fast even just sitting up from lying down.

@Lightsabre was it a blood test where the lab analysed it? Or was it a blood test on a strip test thing like a pregnancy test?

@Countingsheeps yes mine does that. It races to 135 average on standing. But this happened before Covid too. I used to Google POTS and was actually in the middle of investigations before this started. Could you have had it anyway but are only noticing it now?

I’m a day behind @longshot and I’m still not 100%.
I ventured taking an ibuprofen for the upper back pain this morning. I’m thinking what I’m left with is the post viral inflammation, and hopefully this might help.
Still coughing slightly, still slight sore throat, still fatigued.

Very fed up.

@Dorual thanks. I have had a quick look at that- no, I’m pretty sure I didn’t have it before this.... how did it effect you before all this kicked off? X

@CanIdoItLater yes I am week 6 ish and feel completely better apart from slight breathlessness (although this is much improved) and chest twinges and pain which I imagine could be pleurisy. My doctor didn't seem concerned just said could go on for upto 8 weeks.

@countingsheeps

I kept having episodes of waking up gasping for breath snd tachycardia, and a few episodes of pre-syncope and racing heart or possibly panic attacks. So I had a pulse oximeter anyway, which is when I discovered my pulse races on standing and for a while after. It is normal for it to race a bit on standing, but not as much as mine does I think. I didn't really feel the racing on standing beforehand, only knew if it from the oximeter. I had a 7 day ECG which I'm awaiting results from, and awaiting an Echocardiogram too.

@dorual I get that if I’m really anxious, waking up gasping, it’s horrid.

Today is 5 weeks since I had to go to bed, add to that the two weeks when I thought I had a cold.
Currently sore throat, fatigued, with waves of being totally fatigued, runny tummy every morning first thing followed by nausea.

@Dorual

Thanks for your reply. Sorry to hear that you were going through this even before the stupid virus. I have a history of panic attacks (10 years ago now though) and my heart was checked out back then, but all was fine. I’m wondering if some of my current symptoms are being exacerbated by a return of my anxiety currently. It’s so hard to know what’s what at the moment. Xx

Hi everyone,

Been a while since I've posted as I've been trying take time out from sitting on the laptop after weeks in bed doing very little else.

I'm just past the 6 week point - 44 days today I think. I really started improving about 9 or 10 days ago. It hasn't been a straight upwards trajectory - still very tired, stomach not quite right, very swollen glands , neurological twinges, blocked ear, ongoing now-chesty cough (although I'm prone to coughs lasting for ever and ever after I'm otherwise well). Very occassionally the burny chest feeling flares up, but not in any very dramatic way.

However, I feel 100% times better. I went back to work (from home) this week and have been able to walk about 45 mins each day, do a few chores around the house etc. I think the poster who said they were measuring progress in weeks rather than days has it right!

My main ongoing concern is chest pain - feels like little twinges or not-very-painful stabby pains, occasionally a slight ache, and it moves around near my heart. I have this sensation of 'weakness' in my heart too at points, although this might be me imagining things. However, I've spoken to two separate GPs in the pat few weeks who dismissed this as nothing to worry about. Still feel like if I tried to run or cycle I'd go into cardiac arrest! Anyone else still experiencing this?

I'm also missing running, cycling etc but I'm going to stick to walking for another few weeks, then assess how I feel.