Long covid - when did you start to improve?

[BG2015]

I had covid 16 weeks ago. Very mild case, I've honestly had worse colds.

However it's now been confirmed I have Long Covid.
Symptoms are:
Breathlessness on any exertion
Cough
Irritated throat
Choking occasionally when eating/drinking

I have asthma so my GP has been trying to tweak my inhalers etc to help but can't say it's made much difference.

I'm managing the symptoms as best I can and still working but the breathlessness is getting me down.

The nurse I spoke to yesterday did say that 'most' people do recover but it can take time!

I am/was self employed . I ended up in hospital and now I have had to retire from a career I loved because I can no longer work . I have both neurological and physical symptoms .
As a self employed person the only thing I was entitled to was ESA because I had savings to pay for my tax bill etc. This is the only time I have ever claimed benefits and I've been working for decades . It comes to about £130 a week as I have been assessed as not being able to work or even prepare for work.
I got another job pretty soon afterwards but could not manage even part time hours .
I would not wish long covid on anyone . Unfortunately it disproportionately has affected healthcare workers and particularly females . I can't help but feel that many of us ran our batteries completely down during covid leaving us with little to fight covid and it's long term consequences.

Thank you @SimoneBristol for your judgemental attitude. We have a business and luckily my H is fine- I on the other hand have been affected since September 2022 and post vaccine- has given me arthritis in the neck, and a variety of really crappy neurological symptoms- buzzing in legs and fingers, dizziness, muscle weakness - some days worse than others.I can quite assure you I am no malingerer!!

@SimoneBristol in my case they coincided- very closely- so couldn't say which caused the issue - but I certainly did have all sorts of issues that were quite debilitating. Luckily because we work for ourselves I've been able to kind of continue but if I worked for someone else I definitely would have struggled immensely as all kinds of stuff set things off, noise, bright light , stress etc --

*So it seems from reading the above that people put any old random symptoms of anything these days down to long covid.

A godsend for the malingerers and scroungers to avoid an honest days work. I don't know any self employed people with long covid. Plenty who work for the public sector with it though. Go figure!*

Much like the "post vaccine" schtick blamed on everything and you piped up with that quick enough.

That fact that you don't know any self employed people with long covid means squat.

You seem to be doing the rounds of the Covid threads at the moment @SimoneBristol

No, it’s because it’s a complex multi-systemic condition that can present with a wide variety of different symptoms.

Hope that helps, now fuck off.

@JumpTheGun indeed- mine have been mainly neuro- almost like MS type stuff plus migraines - whereas others seem to have had more fatigue or heart related stuff- the first thing I had was that my blood pressure absolutely rocketed and I developed something akin to vertigo - I wouldn't wish it on anyone

@SimoneBristol seriously? You come onto a thread where people in a shitty situation are asking others in the same boat for advice to throw malicious comments about? What a strange way to get your kicks.

@SimoneBristol im self employed. Pre long Covid I earnt 80k a year as a LTD providing consultancy to renewable energy businesses and also was doing a Masters. I had to take 18 months off fully (no sick pay at all) then I’ve been back working P/T 2.5 days a week since all remote from home as that’s manageable. So I now earn 40k a year for those days a week. Not bad thankfully and I have a husband working FT but why the f*ck would anyone choose this. It’s meant so much I wanted in my life has / is on hold and I’m one of the lucky ones who is mostly better. There have literally been no benefits whatsoever to me having LC. We are as a family much worse off financially because I was Ill and I’ve received nothing on the NHS other than one MRI scan and a lung scan early days when in hospital. I’m not even angry about it (I probably sound it!) but when people ‘blame’ people for this illness it boils my blood. It is hell and nobody would ever choose it.

@Atissue123 - I'm glad you're making some recovery. I agree it's an awful illness that robs you of so much, including finances. What helped with your recovery?

I think I might have some form of long covid. About 3 weeks after I had it in Feb I developed tingling and buzzing in legs and sometimes head (could be tinnitus but feels like it's in my head). Some days not too bad but some are so awful it's debilitating. Very panic inducing which of course has made it worse and had horrid brain zap the other night - probably induced by anxiety. I'm seeing a Neuro next week to rule out nasties, but the timing seems suspicious. I don't feel to fatigued but am slightly sleep deprived as it keeps me awake. It tends to be worse first thing in the morning and last thing at night. Either way it's awful. Anyone else getting these sort of symptoms?

Not exactly those, but I got tinnitus, headaches and neck and shoulder pain about 3-4 weeks after covid. I don't know that it was related to covid for certain but I suspect that it was. I am not completely over it 10 months on, but it is a lot better and I can deal with the tinnitus fine now. It doesn't really affect me any more. The first couple of months were very difficult though, but hang in there and it will get better!

@Goodcoffee @sonjadog youhave the same things I did- buzzing and tingling in legs , headaches (mine were back of head) neck and shoulder pain - I also got pins and needles in feet a lot and a weird light headed kind of thing alongside sore eyes. It took months and months to decline , vitamins, gallons of water, long walks, gluten free, massively reduced carbs , lots of breathing and stretching stuff- I still get bits and bobs but not as often as I did- more bearable 10 months later. Initially it was incredibly frightening and I literally couldn't sleep due to the internal tremors and dizzy feelings - the neuro actually helped me-saw her at 2 months and she was very matter of fact, said these symptoms were hugely common post covid and vaccine too and have utterly screwed up some peoples nervous system for a very long time - and also given people issues they never had like blood pressure problems, POTS, pre diabetes, diabtetes, fibromyalgia, arthritis , vitamin deficiencies -

@Crikeyalmighty OMG - that's awful. I had such a hugely bad reaction to the vaccine it's hardly surprising if it's contributing to all this.

Can I ask whether your Neuro suggested anything to calm the nervous system. My head fizzes and buzzes so badly I think I'm going to go crazy sometimes! And the pins and needles in my feet radiate all the way up my legs. Urgh! And yes, I get the internal tremors too sometimes. I'm glad you're on the up though!

@Goodcoffee things that worked for me were gallons of water, magnesium spray on feet and legs , lots of quiet and calm and deep breathing , no sugar and going gluten free and initially 4 months of low dose beta blockers which I have since weaned off- I found the constant migraine type headaches , the weird lightheaded feelings and the pins and needles really debilitating and gradually it just got less and less-although I still get odd spells of them even at 10 months. Losing weight (i was4 stone overweight) and walking a lot has helped I feel too . Initially I was convinced I had MS or a brain tumour but the neuro said I wasn't presenting in that way and that the anxiety about this and the lack of sleep was contributing to the symptoms too. Get full bloods as well- I had a vit D deficiency and was pre diabetic - none of which I had pre covid and pre vaccines

@Goodcoffee I never had chronic fatigue either and neuro told me that some people had mainly heart and respiratory stuff and others mainly neuro stuff (like me) - quite why some are affected and others not is an absolute mystery as it's often perfectly fit and well people who eat well and they are yet to get the bottom of it

@Crikeyalmighty thanks so much - that's really helpful. Yes, Google is not our friend in this as it always points to MS! But I don't have any other symptoms so not sure it's really presenting like that either. The buzzing/ringing in my head is the worst thing to manage. I have actually had chronic fatigue 20 years ago so I'm obviously susceptible to post viral syndromes - sod's law that I may well have another one. Magnesium spray is a good tip - thanks for that. I'm pretty good at keeping Vit d levels up. Keeping everything crossed that I can get on top of it but 4 months in it seems to be getting slightly worse! Tried acupuncture and I think that made it worse too!

@Goodcoffee to be honest it's mainly I think time that helped , although beta blockers definitely helped dampen down the head buzzing

This is so weird to read - since I had Covid (very badly) a couple of years ago, I have been diagnosed with severe vit D deficiency and my blood sugar keeps spiking into pre-diabetic and diabetic range. I’ve also been suffering from pins and needles. My vision is deteriorating more rapidly than it was, and I am suffering from itching and inflammation. I was really starting to worry about things like MS.

@TheOnlyLivingBoyInNewCross Yep- since I mentioned these things I've had others say to me too that they had similar kind of things . I'm not sure if mine were post covid or post vaccine (I've had 4) as my 4th vaccine and 2nd covid coincided very closely. I had otferxweird things too like one leg felt weaker than the other but intermittently and I had a burning feeling on my forehead - it seems my nervous system simply freaked out for months and months. Started ironically the day the Queen died and Gradually started to tail off somewhat in early April - I've just done 10 days on holiday (very very hot) and was fine whereas 6 months ago I couldn't deal with heat or cold at all

I ‘joke’ (because it doesn’t actually feel that funny or untrue) to DH that the right-hand side of my body is fine, all my symptoms happen to the left ( my vision deterioration is significantly more marked in my left eye to the extent that my optician was surprised by it).

Obviously, whatever is going on with me is massively complicated by the menopause.

@Crikeyalmighty i had covid in 2020 and then 3 times more. I have never been the same since the first time!
i now have pots , neuralgia, visual snow , tinnutis, fatigue. The lost goes on, but as they years have gone past im definitely better :)
amitriptyline helps with head /ears buzzing! Im not as worked up over it anymore. As i couldnt sleep because of it.
since ive taken probiotics capsules i feel better, and high dose of magnesium as night :) i also take a high dose of iron tablets. Drink 3L of water a day without fail, eat small and often. And make sure i get 8 hrs sleep a night.
eating healthy also helps, by doing these things i have felt better :) positive thinking has really helped me. Before i was soo upset to think this was my life. Now ive accepted it and now think i need to make the most with what i do have.
im glad you managed to go on holiday, i bet it was lovely :) xx

Also another major symptom i get on and off if burning skin. As it somethere has burned me but nothing is there. I usually get this after covid for a few months until my immuy system/nervous system calms down xx

@TheOnlyLivingBoyInNewCross Yep- my weaknesses are all right sided.