Hello
I got COVID in October 2020 when there were no vaccines and had extreme peripheral neuropathy afterwords when it really wasn’t studied very well. I then went on to have long COVID which stripped me of my 30 year nursing career. Prior to COVID I was healthy no smoking drinking or diabetes about 20lbs overweight with medication managed hereditary hypertension. I got COVID through work. I had every symptom with COVID. Fevers at night of 103. Nausea vomiting no smell constant coughing diarrhea pulse ox would drop into 80s for no reason. No beds open in local hospital. I was fortunate enough to have a husband of my friend that is a doctor and he gave me dexmethasone and azithromycin which I feel I would not have made it without those medicines. 2 weeks into covid I began to have severe pain in my shins to my feet no one could even touch my legs. It felt as though someone was skinning them alive. I went to the hospital then as I was scared even being a nurse I was scared as I just didn’t know what this could be as I was healthy and not diabetic. Prior to the COVID i put in many 12 hour days and exercised even after work. The Er provider said nerve inflammation from Covid. At that point I started taking gabapentin which does help but I also got Covid again in 2022 and have continued to have peripheral neuropathy and also post exertional malaise and brain fog so that any job I try when I even try to push through one 8 hour day my body revolts and I am set back for a week or longer. I wish there were some answers as this disease has made my life so very different. I glad to be alive but would like to live better after helping others for 30 years. Now no one wants to even hear the word covid or that you have any lasting effects from it. If you are unlucky enough to have not made a complete recovery you are forgotten about or not believed.
For me the only help for my peripheral neuropathy has been 300 mg of gabapentin at night and if I need to I can take 300 mg two more times a day which sometimes happens. I also use lidocaine roll on topically and icy hot with lidocaine and Tylenol. Otherwise I try to not push myself too hard as that sets me back and try to stay calm as stress also exacerbates things. Best to you and my hopes are for more help and research for people like us and for healthcare workers who now after caring for others are unable to work