Extreme Fatigue

I am so sorry 😞 thoughts and prayers. I agree, I want my life back too.

Ditto to everything you said. I can’t wash my hair in a shower any more because it’s too exhausting. I have to do it in bathtub with long soaks in between, then only about 15 second of rinsing in shower.

Thank you for your suggestion about checking on one’s cardiac functioning.

I have Post-Exertional Malaise (PEM). Some attribute that to a malfunction in the muscle cells, so that they can’t generate the energy they need. However, my Cardiologist thinks that it’s a problem with heart function and has scheduled me for a stress-test of my heart. We’ll see if his guess is correct.

I take L-Citrulline and Arginine with Vitamin C to increase nitric oxide production plus Creatine to increase energy. After several months, I have been back to normal. Here are some references to them:

Fatigue. Nitric oxide decreased levels may cause chronic fatigue. Low nitric oxide levels can decrease your body’s natural energy at the cellular level. This is a result of reduced circulation, reducing the delivery of oxygen and nutrients that your body needs.

Our bodies produce nitric oxide in the lining of our blood vessels and the saliva / bacteria in our mouths. As we get older (us “Seniors”), the blood vessel lining stops producing nitric oxide and we are dependent on our mouths producing it. A 40 year old is producing 20% less nitric oxide than they did when they were younger. At my age (80), it is 75% less. The 25% that is produced is from our mouths. (Remember, no mouthwash or fluoride toothpaste that reduces the good bacteria.)

Which means the right diet is very important. We need food with nitrate / nitrite that the bacteria in our mouths convert to nitric oxide. So beets, arugula, blueberries, pecans, peanuts, cocoa, kale, bok choy, celery and others are good sources. So think in terms of cocoa for breakfast, salad (arugula, beets, blueberries, pecans) for lunch, and a bok choy stir fry for supper. Maybe peanuts for a snack. It does take some meal planning and concentration on having what works, but it is worth it.

From the National Institute of Health:
Our survey indicates that the supplementation with L-Arginine + Vitamin C has beneficial effects in Long-COVID
Following a 30-day treatment with L-Arginine + Vitamin C, the survey revealed that patients in this treatment group had significantly lower scores (which means less severe long-COVID symptoms) compared to the other group (L-Arginine + Vitamin C: 8.15 ± 1.3 vs Alternative treatment: 13.9 ± 2.3, p < 0.001); remarkably, the treatment with L-Arginine + Vitamin C had favorable effects on all the symptoms explored by the survey
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9295384/
From Medical News Today:
The study found that taking dietary creatine for three months substantially improved feelings of fatigue, and by six months, had produced improvements in body aches, breathing issues, loss of taste, headaches, and problems concentrating — or “brain fog” — compared to people given a placebo.
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/can-creatine-supplements-help-people-with-long-covid
From Healthline:
Citrulline produces several important effects in the body. One major way it works is by increasing vasodilation.

Vasodilation refers to the widening of arteries or veins. It’s associated with lower blood pressure and increased blood flow (5Trusted Source).

After citrulline is consumed, some is converted to another amino acid called arginine.

Arginine is converted into a molecule called nitric oxide, which causes vasodilation of blood vessels by relaxing the smooth muscle cells that constrict them (6Trusted Source).

Interestingly, consuming citrulline may increase arginine in the body more than consuming arginine itself (4Trusted Source).

This is because of differences in how the body processes and absorbs arginine and citrulline (2Trusted Source).

The increase in nitric oxide and blood flow may be one of the processes involved in citrulline’s beneficial effects on exercise performance.
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/citrulline-supplements#TOC_TITLE_HDR_3

I contracted Covid January 2021. I want my life back too!
Yes, Yes, Yes. I can't keep my house up. I have to unload the dishwasher in stages most of the time. I have to cancel plans a solid 90% of the time. It more than sucks. I don't make plans often for the same reasons that you mention. It not about taking a nap either. It's hard to explain, that is not like you didn't get enough sleep tired. It's my entire body, brain, muscles, joints, eyelids, hair, body is tired, it all hurst and it all need to lay down. There is a long list of other things to accompany that but I can validate you right now - I know how you feel your body feels, how it makes you emotionally feel, how you feel others think they know how you feel or think you are exaggerating or its psychosomatic or the medication.
I don't know what steps you have or have not taken but I will share with you what I have done to this point. This is just what I tried and it may give you an idea of something you have or have not yet spoken to your healthcare professionals about:
I have been on a boat load of medication in many combination's for my Long Covid symptoms: there are a lot - for example: I am on Adderall XR because I cannot concentrate or focus - my husband says it helps (a higher dose would probably be his preference & mine) but it does help
Acupuncture for migraines & joint pain
Collagen Peptides - these were already in my daily diet, but recommended
IV therapy with NAD
FODMAP diet -
Gluten free diet
Miralax - I switched to Prunes - then to Amazing Grass Alkalize & Detox -it works very well
Physical Therapy
Speech Therapy
1 NIH Clinical Trial Study - Medication Paxlovid / I was in the cognitive group. I will know if I received the medication or a placebo by the end of January -ish. It was a 120 day study period.
1 UCSD Blood Brain Barrier Study - to compare Long Covid patients brains with those with Alzheimer's
I have found a few peer to peer groups and my experiences have been very positive. The once I have found are with a heath group and are zoom calls with a medical pro and Long Covid sufferers or long covid and oncology patients or survivors. I have learned a lot from them. You are not alone. Be kind to yourself.

To searcher1:
Thank you for for the link to the Healthline article, and your detailed comments on the topic. I look forward to reading the article today.

Cautionary Note to Readers: Be sure to check with your doctor or pharmacist before taking these compounds as supplements, or any others recommended by our community. Some may be a hazard to you based on your medical conditions, or medications you’re already taking. For example, my Hypertension prohibits my taking nicotine supplements, and my Diabetes prohibits my taking creatine supplements.

I too have fatigue and was experiencing PEM. I had chemical stress test through my cardiologist, which mimics the actual running on treadmills, etc. All came back clear.

Reply to @dawg —
Thank you for sharing your experience of the cardiac stress test. What did your Cardiologist (or other doctors) say about the results being “normal”?
— @friedrich.

Reply to SpicyKim:

Thank you for the detailed report on your LC symptoms, clinical trial participation, treatments — and especially your participation in support groups. They can be so valuable!

Please tell us how you found those groups.
— friedrich

Unfortunately, what most doctors have said. “We don’t understand LC, but as to this area (heart in this case), you’re normal”. I have my first appointment with a neurologist next month, but expecting similar results. I even saw a chiropractor yesterday for the first time. With him my first four visits are free because he is studying the impact (if any) of chiropractics on LC. Obviously everyone is different, and in your case your doctor could be on to something so I wish you luck!