Is this long covid?

[HowtoStop]

I had covid 4 weeks ago. I made an excellent recovery after 5/6 days of a heavy cold like symptoms. My cough disappeared for about 2 full days and I thought I was completely fine.

But then L ast 2 days my cough has come back, my body is aching, hot flushes and I’m sure I was in fever last night as I felt wet when it broke.

Is this long covid or something else?

Something else by sounds of it. Do another test?

It’s negative. can you get it again this soon after having it?

My symptoms are just exactly the same as when I got covid. No one else has a cold or bug in the family and I’ve been mostly at home.

I had Covid same time as you. I believe you can't catch it again until the next variant comes out. Get better soon!

Thanks. Still coughing and feeling muscle pains. If this is long covid, telling work I’m ill or wfh as I can’t physically get in every time will get embarrassing.

Wondering if anyone with actual long covid can advise?

For me long Covid started kind of immediately after the acute bit of Covid. I was never 'better' although I did feel moderately better and resume some normal activity (eg have a shower) only to find it made me feel terrible again. However this was before vaccines and I was very unwell with Covid itself (2 weeks bed bound, in hospital twice).

However some people report that long covid 'hits' them some time after the initial infection has ended. Have you done anything especially energetic / stressful? Most people with long covid say they went for a run / went back to work / had a stressful event etc that triggered it.

My advice is to rest and allow yourself to fully recover, even if this is something else it's not worth the risk if it is long covid you want to give yourself the best chance of recovery. When you feel better take it really easy. Long covid isn't like a normal illness where you just 'get better' it seems to come and go for people so building up slowly etc and being very careful not to overdo things is key.

There are two versions of omicron and they think one may be able to catch both... have a google as it seems one doesn't show up on tests so well.

@popsickle555 thank you, that’s really helpful. I actually went back to work after 2 months wfh last week, but only 2 days. But I had a particularly stressful day on Monday with little sleep and the cough/muscle pains started after this.

I haven’t fully recovered, as in, my cough disappeared for only 2 days before it started again. I’m still getting out of breath when I do something strenuous.

Is it worth going to the doctor for this? Not sure what they’ll do, if anything.

It really could be long covid OP. I'm 7months with it now and it's shite. Every day I have a least a low level of fatigue, but I also have flare ups, that happen if I do too much physically. A month ago I was convinced I'd caught covid again as I had so many symptoms, but negative lfs and pcr. Was just a really bad flare up. The only thing I can advise is to pace yourself, try to rest. If you have a busy day, try and schedule a lazy weekend. I'm a runner, now after I run I have to have a sleep.

I have long covid. I was hospitalised with covid pneumonia in August and now under the long covid clinic. The consultant said if you still have symptoms after 12 weeks from the initial infection then it becomes long covid.

Thanks for the advice. I’ve woken up feeling a bit better today, less muscle pain, but had a good 8 hours of unbroken sleep which is unlike me, so will continue to take it easy and pace myself.

Today is exactly 4 weeks since I got my positive, so will start recording if I get any further bouts of illness like this before approaching doctors.

Thanks everyone.

It’s not long covid a month after infection 🥴 you just haven’t fully recovered from covid itself yet.. post-viral illness is never diagnosed until at least 3 months post illness. You’ll probs be a bit up & down for a while. Took me a couple months to feel ‘normal’ but I had days I felt fine & days I really didn’t throughout that!

It's too early for long Covid. Even with 'just' flu there is a recovery period of up to 6 weeks. Take it easy and rest when you can. My son had Covid pretty mildly but then caught a horrendous virus that knocked him sideways.

@HowtoStop don't bother with the Dr yet, you are right they can't do anything anyway! But I would be careful, pace yourself and assume you need more rest and recovery time than you think. Also be wary of doing a lot / stress on a 'good day' as my experience is that seems to set me back. I would often feel good and go for a walk / do half day of work etc and then be back bed a few days recovering. Took me a while to realise there was a pattern. Also look up Run DMC long covid videos on youtube as they are helpful.