My Recovery Strategy: Things are getting better

@prancer20, this is good news. I appreciate your sharing your recovery strategy and tips. How are you doing today?

I am 10 weeks post Covid. I have had a few better days last week and today. I have increased gentle exercise and am able to do all my household chores. I am cautiously hopeful and taking it one day at a time. Learning to accept my new lifestyle has helped a lot, while still having hope that I will be able to become more active eventually. I am waiting to hear back from my cardiologist re the heart monitor that I wore.

After a better week last week and a busy day yesterday, I was very tired last night. I felt sort of out of sorts this morning after a good night's sleep, but better around noon. The fatigue seems to be on and off and seems to be worse after too much exertion. I have read today that over exertion will cause post Covid fatigue. So with this info, I will have to try to moderate exercise widely and not over exert myself.

I definitely pushed myself too hard in my early days/weeks/months of recovering from covid. I ran half-marathons before covid, so I was eager to return to exercising. I kept trying, and kept crashing. I pushed myself into pretty deep fatigue after about seven months of that. (I know, you think I would have learned.) Now I am trying to let myself rest for real. All I do is very gentle yoga/stretching. At least until I start to feel stronger and all the chest tightness etc. goes away.

Did the same thing after a month. Had Covid end of October’22. Took me close to a month of being tired to start to feel better.
I walk every day between 3-5 miles and this has really helped. Good luck to you.

Unfortunately, I am getting discouraged. I don't see much hope for recovery anytime soon.
Every time a start to feel better, I crash into that same old fatigue. The results of the heart monitor were negative for anything significant, according to my cardiologist. I still have occasional sensations of tachycardia. I attribute that to the effects of the virus on my body.
My life partner and friends are always positive and encouraging, but they have no idea how this feels.
My prayers to all my fellow sufferers. Maybe the scientists will come up with some answers. Journalists are finally starting to report that Long Covid is a major factor in the labor shortage. My representatives still have not answered my e mails re Long Covid. This problem I think will become more and more significant in future.

Reading all of your comments prompts me to reply. I hope I won't discourage you all. After 2 years and 7 months post covid, I still have recurring symptoms. I am better but get easily discouraged. I have learned through a U of MI Post Covid Recovery group to pace myself - my biggest takeaway. Post Exertional Malaise (PEM) is definitely part of my life. I had shoulder surgery in Nov '22. On Feb 15th, here's what I wrote in my journal (now, 53 pages): "Worst episode in months started at shoulder PT after using more weights. I shouldn’t have driven home. Shaky, dizzy, unsteady walking, blurry vision, tingling in feet, breathing hard, buzzing in ears, OTC oxygen didn’t work well. We took my BP 30 minutes later – 116/65; HR – 65. Drank lots of water-feel disoriented, space perception weird. One hour later, feeling a little better – HR and BP are the same." I called my Pulmonologist - it's been a year and a half since I went through all the tests. Of course, at that time, tests were all negative. She wants me to go through those paces, again, just to be safe......CT Scan, angiogram, stress test, breathing, etc. And, life goes on at my pace - my husband is the only one who gets it.

@prancer20, I think you might appreciate this discussion that @ldropps started a little while back.
- Stalled Long COVID Recovery: What helps you get back on track? https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/stalled-recovery/

Prancer20, I know how you feel. Before anyone asks, I am fully vaccinated and have all the boosters for Covid. I had my first bout of Covid in January 2022. I had a cardiac work up a few months later because I was having tachycardia with minimal exertion. The tests showed some mild valve leakage and a few PVCs. The cardiologist said it was not significant. He did not want to prescribe medication because my resting heart rate is low. Fast forward to Christmas Eve 2023. I had Covid again. Fortunately this time the doctor prescribed Paxlovid and I felt better in about 48 hours. I am still having problems with tiring easily and heart rate elevating with mild housework. It seems to be getting a little better, but it is very frustrating.

I can understand your frustration. I had covid April 2022 and am still experiencing heart rates of over 100 with minimal activity (eg walking up a flight of stairs, slowly walking around the block, etc). The physio at the long covid clinic wants me to keep my HR under 55% of my maximal heart rate to try and control my post exertional malaise. I find it very limiting. Anything more than sitting and smiling gets the HR up too high. Has anyone else received similar advise?