Covid fatigue and house is a tip. Help please

[Invasionofthegutsnatchers]

Family of 4, all tested positive 4 days ago. Kids age 11 and 8 now completely better. DH very tired but managing to WFH. I'm a few days behind them and have horrible flu like symptoms.

This morning I woke up at 9am aching and feeling g like I'd been run over. Went downstairs and kids had made themselves breakfast but kitchen was revolting. Dishwasher needed salt and rinse aid. So I sorted that, cleaned kitchen and fed pets. Had to go back to bed for an hour before I could manage washing my face and brushing my teeth.

Tips welcome please. I'm happy to leave dust and messy floors. We are all in PJs which saves washing. DD has been given the task of making toasties for everyone for lunch. DS is helping me clean out the rabbits later and DH is making dinner.

mini pomodoro - do 10 minutes of something, or even 5, or even 2... then rest and gather yourself again (unless you feel up to keeping going, but fully allow yourself long rest periods between tasks if not)

Am the same. Yesterday I spent most of it in bed, today I have managed to hoover two rooms in an hour and a half and a load of washing up.

I am just taking it a wee bit at a time, but that has exhausted me

Yes good advice. Thanks. The brain fog is quite overwhelming too.

I'm very relieved that we aren't more ill and most things can wait but it's just keeping on top if the essentials and cutting corners where I can

I'm in a similar position but younger children, 1 positive but thankful fine and youngest still negative but nursery closed as they're full of it. Dp had it before Christmas but meant to be wfh, his standards of cleanliness are not the same as mine and my lack of control/ inability to do much is doing my head in!
Hope you feel better soon.

Decide on mim jobs so dishwasher on once day, surfaces wiped, one decent meal, bins emptied.

8 and 11y old should be capable of running hover around main areas and doing basic tidy up of living areas. Just opening curtains and 5m in a room can make it all feel much more presentable. Sit on sofa with cup of coffee and be director of operations, brine with money per job or treat after covid as you see fit!

God I'm so glad my kids aren't tiny. They know they can have unlimited TV and gaming time as long as they let me sleep, tidy up after themselves and get their own snacks and drinks.

I will ask them to help put some laundry away later as well.

I've ordered essential food from a local farm shop and dry stuff from Prime. DH is WFH now and generally cooks so he will continue with that. He's resting where possible too.

Take vitamins and then more vitamins, sorry the fatigue is shocking after Covid and some are more effected than others. Also a herbal tonic like Biostrath Elixir does help.

Argh. DD refused to make lunch. Said she didn't want any so I did it. Then said she did want food so I made hers. Kids

Day 5 here for all 4 of us (be, DH, DS19 and DS20), my house is a bit of a tip as well, but I think due to the sheer exhaustion and brain fog you just have to let some of it pass you by. We keep having 10-15 minute blasts of tidying/cleaning when we all lurch in and do certain things, seems to be working.

Oh yes, I won't attempt to hoover for another few days and the place is v untidy but I do need to tackle the bathrooms before they come a health hazard. Maybe tomorrow

I second the vitamins. Felt horrendous on Saturday - I thought I had food poisioning as was also sick. Slept all day Sat. Sunday I had an insane craving for all kinds of fruits and veg. Pears, peaches and beetroot weirdly. Went and bought loads of chewy multi vitamins as well.

I felt right as rain this morning and got a call to say my PCR from Tuesday was positive. So I think the vitamins saved the day!

Spent the whole day cleaning and now everything is lovely. Dont stres you have multiple days of isolation to sort everything. Good luck

It’s difficult, just do what you can in short stints and accept lower standards for a while. We all caught it mid November and I’m still struggling with overwhelming fatigue, no matter how much sleep i get, I’m always tired, I haven’t yet returned to work because of it. I’ve got no mojo to get up and clean etc. go easy on yourself

I’m on my third day of what I assume is omicron and feeling absolutely horrendous. Run over exactly describes it. With a crashing headache and bizarre hip and back pain. Skin hurts. Facial bones hurt....
DS is 5 and also has it but has had two days of being ill and now fully recovered. I was also trying to WFH but have had to tell them today that I’m just too sick.

The house is a bomb site. Have managed to sort of clean the kitchen & wash up this morning, but living room is a disaster and bathroom best not thought about.

I seem to get a brief reprieve for about an hour after a Lemsip and a couple
Of ibuprofen, so will be timing next lot carefully so can straighten the house and make dinner.

Important to say though that you really must rest when you have covid - there’s a suggestion that long covid could be caused by pushing yourself too hard during illness.

I had it at the start of the pandemic and did exactly that- kept working from home - mad hours because we were in crisis mode- the 5yo was a 3yo so quite full on... and lo and behold- long covid symptoms for well over a year.

Oh no. I really want to avoid long covid. Just doing the bare minimum to keep things hygienic

We were exactly the same when we had covid. Sending empathy.
SIMPLE meals - sandwiches, toast, cold cereal. Or do a grocery order of ready meals, ready made pies, pre-cooked pasties etc. We had a couple of takeaways at the weekend.
Do the bare minimum. You can catch up once you feel better. (We are still feeling the effects 2 months later, mind. Much milder, but still fatigue, muscle aches, brain fog.)
Rest as much as you can. Let the kids watch telly or have screens more than normal to keep them occupied.
I lived on Lemsip for a couple of weeks. Took vitamins, drank orange juice, tea, water.
Hope you all feel better soon OP.

Mines the same atm. So bad but least no one is coming over.

I don't know how to rest with a wild 14 month old and 7 year old with SEN. I was meant to be having lunch made for me but just spent an hour prepping lunch, making lunch, eating, washing up, tidying up and sorting out dishwasher. There are still mountains of laundry to do although at least the school uniform isn't a priority any more!

Things that take a few seconds to do in between resting or dealing with toddlers:

Shove bleach down toilet
Spray bathroom spray in sink and wipe
Open window for fresh air
Shove a load of laundry in

Trying to do one or two small things each day

I think I'm just feeling sorry for myself. One load of laundry is drying, the dishwasher is on, windows are open, I've had a sit in the garden ((it's tiny but better than nothing, must be awful to have no outside space at all), the 7 year old has got the iPad and the toddler is annoying the cat! I will do the bathroom spray thing and then hopefully nap once the toddler finally gives in and goes to sleep.

After writing my first message on here, turns out that was more that I can do and fell asleep.

Going to try another load of washing up. Hang the washing up and hoover the lounge, fortunately DP will be home in a couple of hours and finish up

Blimey, gutsnatchers, if my DD got out of making lunch (ie fulfilling her part in the family divvying of tasks) by claiming she didn't want any, there's no way At All I'd be making any for her if when she changed her mind when I was making lunch!

I'd be reminding her that she should have been on lunch duty but claimed not hungry, so she can now wait til everyone's finished them make her own. Cheeky so and so.

PS hope you all feel better soon 💐

Yeah I was just too knackered for a tantrum. But I did make her fill the dishwasher instead.

I've decided I don't really like any of my human housemates at the moment. Pets are different.

@Invasionofthegutsnatchers
I've decided I don't really like any of my human housemates at the moment
🤣🤣🤣 I’m with you there.
I thought us all (me, DH, DS19, DS22) all isolating together would make it easier for cleaning, washing, avoiding spreading etc, which it has. BUT, I just want to be ill in peace! Sons are xboxing/chatting with friends and DH is doing his business accounts - all 3 are driving me nuts with the incessant chat to others/to themselves.
I just want quiet!

I've decided I don't really like any of my human housemates at the moment. Pets are different.

DS (9)has been a dream, bought me juice in bed, done his own breakfast and amused himself, it was going all very well, till I asked him to clean his room, you would have thought I asked him to go kill his own grandmother.

Imagine this on repeat for a year or more OP, there you have Long Covid - but without the financial insecurity.

When I saw the title I thought you meant you had been dealing with this for ages…