Post Covid Exhaustion, tips and tales

[Hisgirl]

It finally got me and I spent the last week in bed.

Now, I'm in recovering mode but the level of exhaustion is stunning.


I"m in the middle of caring for my elderly parents and had just got them moved into memory care. Then I disappeared.

Can anyone suggest things to increase my energy level? How long does this typically last?

 

[monsterkitty]

It finally got DH then me the first week of December as well. DH had a much easier time with his COVID than I did.

I lost my smell and taste and had huge energy issues. My taste and smell are still not fully back. I can't eat anything sweet because it is nauseating.

As for energy, that has returned slowly as well. The first week after I felt well enough to try and do a workout, I only managed half of my swim. It still took a 3-hour nap after that swim to get enough energy to make dinner. It gradually did get better and I am back to my full workouts, but swimming is still much more draining than biking or running, and I'm a swimmer. Looking back at my training calendar, it's taken 5 weeks to get back to not needing a nap after a workout.

Now if only my smell and taste would return to normal...

 

[cvjw]

It took several weeks for me to feel like my old self after covid. I had a pretty bad case. My husband bounced right back, but he had a milder case.

My worst symptom was hair loss after covid. My hair was falling out for months. Scary stuff. At the 6 month mark, it stopped falling out and is regrowing. Thank goodness I had really thick hair to start with!

 

[barkley]

so glad someone started this thread-

got me at the end of august-still dealing with bouts of the fatigue. for me it's reminiscent of when i was pregnant with my first-i would just get random times where i couldn't keep my eyes open. i can literally be 3 hours from just having woken from a very full night's sleep and i feel like i need to lay down and take a nap.

only thing i've found is to get my brain moving on something-reading, doing some paperwork, even reorganizing a shelf or cabinet. seeks to reawaken me. at this point i'm thankful that the brain fog lifted after a couple of weeks b/c that was terrifying.

p.s. my doctor says he's seeing it allot

 

[mousefan73]

You are still actually acutely recovering from it so you’re gonna need to give it time. A friend of mine works in the health department who speaks a lot of Covid patients anecdotally notices that if people no longer have symptoms they tend to jump right back into things without giving their body more time to rest. So still take it easy and give yourself more time. A lot of people I know it takes about four weeks but unfortunately can often linger for months as long Covid. Same friend also sees people with long Covid who get relief by getting a booster. I’m attaching an interesting read.

https://www.yalemedicine.org/news/vaccines-long-covid

 

[White_Rabbit18]

It took several weeks for me to feel like my old self after covid. I had a pretty bad case. My husband bounced right back, but he had a milder case.

My worst symptom was hair loss after covid. My hair was falling out for months. Scary stuff. At the 6 month mark, it stopped falling out and is regrowing. Thank goodness I had really thick hair to start with!

Thanks for sharing. I also have hair loss from COVID and just hit 4 months. A lot of people say that hair loss after Covid usually last 12-14 weeks so I am feeling down that it isn’t the case for me.

Did you do anything specific to stop the hair loss?

So frustrating... I wish more people were aware that this could happen. So frustrating when people dismiss Covid as just a cold when I know several people that were really sick for weeks/months

 

[Christine]

I completely lost my stamina after COVID and it took me until 2 months to feel like I could get back to any sort of normal activity.

A tip I will give you is "do not push yourself." I say this because the unproven suspicion on the Long COVID forums is that getting back into any sort of normal activity too soon seems to be a trigger for long COVID. Keep in mind that while the overt symptoms of the virus may be gone (cough, nasal congestion, fever), it leaves many people will bodily-wide inflammation (vascular/cardiac as well as other areas) and if you stress these systems before the inflammation subsides, you can cause your recovery to slow down or start to feel worse when you think you're getting better.

 

[mylilnikita]

Thanks for this thread OP.

I had Covid a few months ago, vaxxed as well.

My taste and smell are very slowly coming back. For smells it has too be super strong or I cannot smell at all.
My taste has changed for example I like Pepsi, it is now not as sweet to me.
Brain fog was wicked.
The exhaustion I can honestly say in over 50 years of having flu, virus etc , the exhaustion was Covid has been the worst.

I was out of work for 5 days and my job very physical and it took me a couple months to not want to sit down between work orders.
And when I went back I got out of breath fast for a few weeks .

 

[cvjw]

Thanks for sharing. I also have hair loss from COVID and just hit 4 months. A lot of people say that hair loss after Covid usually last 12-14 weeks so I am feeling down that it isn’t the case for me.

Did you do anything specific to stop the hair loss?

So frustrating... I wish more people were aware that this could happen. So frustrating when people dismiss Covid as just a cold when I know several people that were really sick for weeks/months

I finally figured out that it takes 6 months for the cycle to stop. 6 months of hair loss. Then it stopped. Just like that. And started to regrow. People had told me that would be the case and it was.

I switched to a shampoo with zero sulfates. I stopped using dry shampoo and spray root touch up. I tried to limit all the chemicals. I already took collagen and biotin, so I just continued with them. I would add them to your diet if you don’t already take them.

Hang in there. It is a tough 6 months, but it does get better!

 

[Kathryn Merteuil]

Although *knock on wood* I never had it bad... it took me probably a good 6 weeks to get back to what I would feel like is "normal". I had something back in October that was worse, symptoms were similar to covid only more intense, but I tested negative twice. It was the middle of December before I felt right.

 

[monarchsfan16]

My husband and I both had VERY mild Covid a year ago. For both of us, the worst fatigue lasted two weeks but it was a month before we were back to normal energy levels

 

[mamamary]

My dd woke up Christmas Eve morning with covid. She quarantined the 5 days and felt fine. Very mild symptoms. She was out and about for 3 days and even went back to work. Then boom. She got really sick. Fever, cold and the worst cough ever. We did a tele visit to a dr who prescribed 3 different medications.

The dr said she considers her having post covid syndrome. Dr said big problem for people is that by the time you get really sick it’s too late for something like paxlovid to take.

My daughter was quite sick this past Friday and I called her general doctor for some more guidance. She never called back and then when I did she was gone for the day. I was pretty livid but by Friday night she seemed much better and better even by now. So she will be going back to work tomorrow. I’m just hoping it doesn’t start getting worse again.

 

[BayouQueen]

For me, a B-complex supplement seemed to help. My stomach was so messed up from the covid, I don't think I was absorbing vitamins properly. Gotta have the B's for energy.

 

[FQLover]

Zinc and Vitamin C, too.

 

[lisaviolet]

I have never had Covid, that I know of, but I want to share that everyone should be checking their b12 levels.

Long Covid symptoms are very similar to those that people have with Pernicious Anemia/b12 deficiency. And unfortunately one can not rely on medical professionals in this area. They spend merre hours in med school studying vitamin deficiencies, and often spread a ton of erroneous information.

Also OP please get your parents' levels checked as well. You can have low b12 due to Pernicious Anemia but it can be because of any reason that one is not absorbing properly, including an aging body. Its deficiency can also include memory loss, delusions & other cognitive issues. It causes head to toe issues, including exhaustion.

 

[superme80]

Vitamins and sleep. LOTS of sleep. We had it last year. It took DH and I 4 weeks to fully recover. My kids were back to normal within 5 days.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

I think the holidays also take a lot out of people. This year we had sudden horrid weather, flight fiascos, illnesses that caused last minute disruptions of plans, huge increases in prices at grocery and other stores to contend with, many losses of family members, which caused a lot of stress for a lot of people (in addition to everyday stressors of life and work). We sort of get through it on adrenaline, but when it’s over, we feel a let-down. Add in the doldrums of winter in many places, and cleared calendars, and exhaustion finally reveals itself. I’m feeling it, too.

Mind you that’s not to poo-poo long Covid symptoms. I had Covid for the first time in October along with a rebound case right away, worse than the first, and it’s taken me a long time to get back on my feet fully, too. I already take B12 daily and Vit D four times a week. My sleep’s been a little off but I’ve gotten plenty of sleep, yet I’m still exhausted. Quite a while back I cut out caffeine for the most part, so that doesn’t help (or hurt). You always wonder if something else is going on, but it’s good to realize that others are in the same boat. Hoping everyone feels better soon!

 

[GreatLakes]

Today is day 5 after testing positive a second time with COVID. After I got it the first time the day I felt up to it I went out for a run. The fresh air and exercise made me feel better immediately and I felt like I was back to 100%. That is my plan after work today. I've feeling very sluggish but it is likely due to 5 days of laying around which is not something I would generally do.

I average about 12,000 step a day and at least one day a week over 20,000 steps. I haven't had a day over 1,000 since Wednesday and I'm sure that plays a big part. A body at rest and all.

 

[leahgoogle]

The fatigue does linger some after you start feeling better. You just have to rest when needed and slowly get back to normal activities. I took vitamin C, Vitamin D, Zinc, NAC and Quercetin and I think that helped me recover faster. We went to Disney 2-weeks after we had covid and I was able to make it though the trip pretty well even with all the walking.

 

[lifesavacation]

Start small and work your way up. Walking every day, even if it’s a few steps. Don’t push too hard.

I’m dealing with long-Covid according to my doctor. I do worry that this may be a de facto diagnosis for when nothing can be found. I can’t do my usual workouts, but what is helping is walking/hiking. It’s rainy season in the PNW so I bought a treadmill and every day I’m getting my steps in. I do agree with @Pea-n-Me that the holidays can really take your energy. Plus, with the shortened days it can make it harder to stay moving.