©Arlene R. Taylor, PhD
www.arlenetaylor.org

The voice on the first call of the afternoon belonged to a good friend who had avoided “death-by-covid” after multiple hospitalizations and a long and painful recovery. “It’s been several months now,” he said. “I’m still not back to my pre-illness level of health. My last doctor suggested I might be dealing with long COVID, but I don’t really understand much about that.”

On the heels of that call, an email arrived from a woman who introduced herself as someone “who is learning so much from the videos on your YouTube channel.” Turned out that she had just received a text from her mother who had been diagnosed with long Covid. The woman hoped I could tell her “what in the world long Covid means.”

I promised to write a brief summary and send it to each person. Here is that summary.

Post-COVID Conditions, or more commonly known as long COVID, is a label for a complicated condition that affects one in five adults under the age of 65. It involves at least one lingering symptom that persists from one to several months after having tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes the disease known as COVID-19.

The results of a study by researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine, published in the journal Nature Medicine, reported that after studying 35,000 cases in the United States, scientists identified four main subtypes of long COVID. Based on their symptoms, patients fell into one or more of four categories:

• Symptoms involving the cardiac and renal or kidney systems (about 34%)
• Symptoms involving the respiratory system, sleep, and anxiety (about 33%)
• Symptoms involving the musculoskeletal and nervous system (about 23%)
• Symptoms involving the digestive (about 10%) and respiratory systems

The National Center for Health Statistics reported that over 3,500 Americans died of long COVID during the first 2.5 years of the pandemic. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention provided a list of symptoms that have been associated with long COVID. These include:

General Symptoms

• Fatigue that interferes with daily life
• Symptoms that get worse after physical or mental effort
• Fever
• Joint or muscle pain
• Rash
• Changes in menstrual cycles for females

Respiratory and Heart Symptoms

• Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
• Cough
• Chest pain
• Heart palpitations

Neurological Symptoms

• Brain fog
• Headache
• Sleep problems
• Dizziness when you stand up
• Pins-and-needles feelings
• Change in smell or taste
• Depression or anxiety

Digestive Symptoms

• Diarrhea
• Stomach pain

There is no one test for long COVID. Consequently, the CDC suggests that if it has been 30 days since you tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, and symptoms persist, see your health care practitioner as you may have long COVID.

Write down your symptoms so you can provide an accurate description. Some individuals developed persistent symptoms but had no idea they had even been infected. They just knew they felt fatigued or were having headaches or other symptoms. Those, too, should see their health care practitioner sooner than later, as there are treatments that may help with recovery.

The best way to avoid long COVID is to avoid becoming infected with SARS-CoV-2. Unfortunately, there is no way on Planet Earth that you can prevent everything. The SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19 and that can lead to long COVID is said to be as contagious as a cold or the flu—and variants are likely here to stay. That underpins the recommendations for wearing a mask when going out shopping or using public transportation, staying six feet away from others when possible, washing your hands frequently, and avoiding large gatherings of individuals. Making healthier choices consistently may help you experience a milder case if you become infected and reduce your risk of developing long COVID.