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Long Covid Fatigue - Exhausting Physically and Mentally
Post-COVID Recovery & COVID-19 | Last Active: Oct 4, 2022 | Replies (40)Comment receiving replies
Since I have had COVID-19 12/24/20 I still feel exhausted. Sleep does not help. Today when I woke up I feel like I have been run over by a truck. Some days are worse than other. Does any one else have this problems.
Replies to "Since I have had COVID-19 12/24/20 I still feel exhausted. Sleep does not help. Today when..."
@sheila1946 You are far from alone. I've heard this from many people including people who have had COVID more recently with the new variants.
We both had COVID about 5 weeks ago. My partner who has always been very active with bicycling, weightlifting, and hiking experiences fatigue on a daily basis. When he decided to mow the lawn the other day he needed a long nap afterwards. That was never the case before COVID. His symptoms during COVID were worse than mine were too. He has an annual physical exam coming up and plans to discuss this with his family physician.
You are not alone. I have had chronic fatigue from Covid for the past year and a half. I am very slowly getting better after learning to pace my activities and take daily naps. After meeting with CFS specialists and blood tests, it turns out that Epstein Barr virus was reactivated with Covid. I had mono in college, 36 years ago, the EBV that caused the mono laid dormant all these years until I got Covid Dec 2020. I am happy to understand why I have had this long Covid and hopeful that the anti viral, Valtrex, will put the EBV back in its sleepy spot. I’ll let you know if the anti viral helps, it’s been a few weeks.
@sheila1946, in addition to all the responses you've received from fellow members, I merged your discussion about fatigue and long COVID to this existing discussion that @julesmango started
- Long Covid Fatigue - Exhausting Physically and Mentally https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/long-covid-fatigue-exhausting-physically-and-mentally/
I encourage everyone to read the thread from the beginning. Some insightful resources and experiences have been shared.
Sheila, are you familiar with the term COVID crash?
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OMG, yes!!!
I don't have fatigue. Fatigue is staying up too late watching Netflix. I have profound, overwhelming, incapacitating, leaden exhaustion with muscle PAIN (not aches), severe headache, nausea, loss of appetite, chills. Sports drinks with sodium and potassium replacement somehow really helps. I use Propel or Gatorade, sugar-free. The powder is much less expensive than liquid & is by the crystal light and kool-aid powders in the grocery store. LOTS of water/sports drink, like 16 oz every couple hours. I usually just have to go back to bed, even an hour after getting up, in a very dark & quiet room. Hot baths feel good on the muscles.
I have this when I do too much 1-2 days before. Limiting myself to 2-3 hours of brain/thinking/concentration a day and no more than 2 hours physical activity (bathing, cooking, laundry, grocery shop, errands, walking, standing) helps to decrease the frequency, severity and duration of these episodes. When I know I have a 'hard' day coming, I do very little the day before and don't put anything on my calendar the day after.
It is hard to explain to others because I look normal. Look up "The Spoon Theory", it describes this well.