We Just Got More Evidence That Long COVID Is a Brain Injury
We Just Got More Evidence That Long COVID Is a Brain Injury
The exact nature of long COVID is still coming to light, but we just got some of the best evidence yet that this debilitating condition stems from a brain injury.
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As someone with long COVID, I can vouch the debilitating mental effects. I was teaching math to 4th through 8th grade students when I got it. I can remember standing in a classroom talking about a lesson and just having my mind go blank in mid sentence. I couldn't function. Not knowing what I was talking about or even where I was. Thankfully the students where very understanding and someone would finish my point I was making. I still suffer from it yet today, nearly 2 years later.
I have respiratory issues despite every CT scan showing nothing more than a couple of small pneumonia scars form long ago. I should be able to breathe just fine with no reduction of lung capacity. It stems from a lack coordination with my diaphragm - It runs backwards when I exert myself causing shortness of breath. Another sign of probable brain injury. And despite using a therapy tool to try and fix the issue, at best it just helps a little.
The upshot is I have pretty much stopped doing a lot of things I used to do because of the difficulties breathing and I spend a lot more time away from people due to an unreasonable fear of COVID.
It has caused me to retire earlier than I wanted to. And my life has greatly changed - and not for the better either.
Sorry you're going through all of that. There obviously aren't any long term studies on it yet, but hopefully things will improve more and more over time.
According to my Pulmonolgist - Nope. Her observations of all her patients over the years is that if you don't get over it in about a year, you don't get better. And she has been seeing more COVID patients than her "normal" patients for several years now. Long term care is going to be a real problem for society going forward.
I mean this in the kindest way possible, but have you tried both mental and physical therapy?
First, thank you for your concern. You are a good person and a credit to yourself.
I suppose mental therapy might be a path I could follow. But it's more a concern of getting COVID yet again and I'm old and in the high risk age group. And despite being vaccinated and getting boosters as needed, there is frankly no guarantee I won't get it again. It's not that I shun contact and interaction with others, I certainly don't. But minimizing contact with crowds is medically a good thing for me. And messing around in a town/city a lot is asking for trouble. I'm close enough to the end of life that I don't need the extra help in getting there - it's coming soon enough as is.
I did do therapy with a Speech Therapist, it's where I got the breathing device. They are oddly well qualified for issues like mine. But, evidently COVID can create a short circuit in the brain that physical therapy can help some but really can't fix according to my Pulminologist and the Speech therapist. And as far as just getting plain exercise goes, I live in a very rural part of a very large forest. And between daily chores, I spend copious amounts of time in that forest foraging until the snow flies and at this time of the year hunting. In fact, if it stops misting and the fog lifts this afternoon, I will be out with a dog doing some grouse hunting chasing after supper. I don't quit because of limitations. Quitting brings on death much faster. And I've seen that enough during my many years as a medic.
I hate the changes that COVID has forced upon me. But I acknowledge it's existence and I'm fighting it as hard as I can.
*a reasonable caution of encountering people with an unreasonable response to covid