It decreased in severity and became more manageable with medications and self-treatment strategies.

But it did NOT “go away”. It has been reactivated or simply started as a new version due to 2 recent covid infections. I had about 1 year of a more normal life due to getting appropriate medical care (the non-gaslighting kind), helpful medications, and accommodating employment (sort of).

I have not been able maintain, on a regular basis, some of the very helpful self-treatment strategies, mostly due to needing to work. I do them occasionally, aiming for 2 X per week. It's mostly medication because a pill minder is easier and faster that NIR + red light therapy, TENS, or Yoga. Medications are more expensive though.

I'm sure that some people do fully recover; depending on age, gender, when in the pandemic they caught it, pre-existing health conditions, how many active COVID-19 infections they had over time, how acute they were, and environmental conditions, then & now.

I was very, very lucky to stumble upon an MD who was willing to treat me outside of her specialty.

That made the world of difference.

I am also a “responder” to basically almost any vaccination. For a few weeks after covid, flu, pneumonia, shingles, vaccinations etc I feel almost completely normal. Covid boosters especially do this.

I probably have a very damaged immune system. I had ALL infectious childhood illnesses, including measles, and mono. Then starting in late adolescence, transfusions (who knows what lurked in those way back), mysterious infectious type illnesses, then HCV, HSV 1+2, etc. Living a very clean life may have proffered some protection, I don't know.

I know I'm lucky to be alive and functioning. I'm deeply grateful to those couple of MDs who managed to lift the curse on me of “it's all in your head” and see the infectious illnesses I'd had as an entire life package of risks factors after I got sick with COVID-19.

I hope everyone recovers, I really believe it's possible somehow. I hope medical care learns from COVID-19 and LC + CFS/ME and is better able to support and heal people with these illnesses.