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Anyone out there on Guanfacine?
Post-COVID Recovery & COVID-19 | Last Active: Sep 26 10:13pm | Replies (65)Comment receiving replies
My biggest and most horrible symptom is the ANXIETY & DEPRESSION. Has anyone found medication that has helped.? Because Covid affects our nervous system, it's the worst! I tried Zoloft, then Escitalopram and remember waking up one morning feeling like my fabulous self again. It was the best feeling ever. No strange feeling in my arms or under the skin, no anxiety and actually went into work. Unfortunately, that was short lived. A couple of week later I started to get nerve pain in my upper thighs, had to go for terrible spinal tap. All turned out fine, but then newer symptoms set in. 3 yrs later, I am so much worse and barely functional.
The fast pulse and feeling like your heart is jumping out of your chest (like now as I type) is terrible and feeling all shaky, but also for me the extreme 'fight or flight' feeling 24/7. I can't sleep or even try to rest of take a nap. The minute I do, my body is jolted - like if you were dreaming and falling off a cliff and it jolted you up from rest. I know I need the appropriate medication, but docs don't know what to prescribe.
If only when I had Covid the doc gave me medication they typically use and/or monocolonal antibodies, but it wouldn't give me anything to stop this beast of a virus from invading my body and here i am today.
Replies to "My biggest and most horrible symptom is the ANXIETY & DEPRESSION. Has anyone found medication that..."
What you described about fight or flight for 24/7 I totally relate to! For months straight my heart and body was just racing and “on”. I did acupuncture, tried herbs, meditation, and nothing was helping…
I was on verapamil for the heart palpitations cause I was throwing PVC’s every 10 seconds and didn’t want beta blockers.
I found I had to rest, like a lot! I was bed and couch bound all day. Finally after 4 months it started to lessen. But then other symptoms started of extreme weakness in my body, extreme weight gain (37 pounds), aching, dizziness, brain fog, feeling like I had the flu that just wouldn’t go away.
My life as I knew it ended without warning and within a days time. One minute I was folding laundry and the next I was having never had before heart racing and palpitations that devolved into full body disability…
When I said ‘rest’ that didn’t mean sleep, that meant trying to keep my body calm. I would tell my husband I prayed for sleep. I just wanted a good night’s sleep. It didn’t come for a year.
I took Paxlovid when Covid hit me again 8 months into these symptoms. My son brought it home and I was worried. My doctor prescribed me Paxlovid at the very beginning of feeling slightly off, I took it the first day and the next day my heart palpitations were better!! Despite my coming down with Covid again. I felt better than I had all year for the first 3 days, then I got a little bit sick but not bad. But I only had 5 days of the Paxlovid and 7 days of symptoms.
I seemed to be better for 7 days then got really bad rebound. I begged my doctor to give me more paxlovid after sending him some research showing rebound was possibly due to insufficient drug exposure and the viral load hadn’t been completely cleared from the first round.
I was super sick and I think that if I would have been prescribed 10 days instead of 5, I wouldn’t have been sick again.
As well as I really wanted to try Paxlovid more. I had a glimpse that it could really help me!
I’ve stayed on Paxlovid for months now and it does really help! I take a half dose as a full dose messes with my gut.
Maybe antivirals are the answer
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Besides seeing a therapist regularly since Long COVID onset September 2020, I have been on prescribed 300mg Wellbutrin XL (Bupropion - generic) since October 2022. My therapist has used the word "miracle" in describing my progress. ... I recommend both. Blessings to you and all!
Other meds:
Metoprolol 25mg/day - has significantly lowered my average heart rate from 80-90's to 70-80's and decreased my other heart symptoms racing/spiking/palpitations.
Low Dose Naltrexone (LDN) 1-4mg/day. Increasing by 1mg/day each week for first month. Shown to improve fatigue, brain fog, and pain. I am just entering my 2nd week.
[ https://www.peoplespharmacy.com/articles/should-doctors-consider-low-dose-naltrexone-for-long-covid ]