When my little girl caught COVID, she was struck down with a curious symptom: exhausted as she was, she couldn’t lie down because it made the room spin like the Luna Park Rotor (without the giddy delight of a thrill ride, just with the pesky nausea). We took turns to sit up with her, night after night, plumping her pillows so she could stay fully upright and offering everything from chamomile tea to foot massages and soothing sleep meditation apps to at least try to help ease her angst that the persistent spinning meant she would be sucked into some kind of other-worldly vortex at any given moment. More than three months later, her circadian rhythm hasn’t recovered and debilitating fatigue and dizzy spells occur at random, unofficially making her one of the estimated 400,000 Australians (and counting) who meet the current clinical criteria for Long COVID.
In 2020, the World Health Organisation formally recognised Long COVID which, under its definition, requires symptoms to last for more than two months and continue to linger more than three months after a confirmed COVID infection. The data varies wildly – between 5 and 54 per cent of COVID patients, depending on the study, have lingering symptoms, of which there are more than 100. The most common include fatigue (especially after activity), shortness of breath (in which, curiously, the lungs can appear normal in tests but sufferers are left feeling totally oxygen-drained), brain fog (making simple tasks difficult), sleep problems, chronic cough, muscle aches, loss of smell or taste, headaches, depression and anxiety.
Denne historien er fra November 2022-utgaven av The Australian Women's Weekly.
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Denne historien er fra November 2022-utgaven av The Australian Women's Weekly.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Hitting a nerve
Regulating the vagus nerve with its links to depression, anxiety, arthritis and diabetes - could aid physical and mental wellbeing.
Take me to the river
With a slew of new schedules and excursions to explore, the latest river cruises promise to give you experiences and sights you won’t see on the ocean.
The last act
When family patriarch Tom Edwards passes away, his children must come together to build his coffin in four days, otherwise they will lose their inheritance. Can they put their sibling rivalry aside?
MEET RUSSIA'S BRAVEST WOMEN
When Alexei Navalny died in a brutal Arctic prison, Vladimir Putin thought he had triumphed over his most formidable opponent. Until three courageous women - Alexei's mother, wife and daughter - took up his fight for freedom.
The wines and lines mums
Once only associated with glamorous A-listers, cocaine is now prevalent with the soccer-mum set - as likely to be imbibed at a school fundraiser as a nightclub. The Weekly looks inside this illegal, addictive, rising trend.
Jenny Liddle-Bob.Lucy McDonald.Sasha Green - Why don't you know their names?
Indigenous women are being murdered at frightening rates, their deaths often left uninvestigated and widely unreported. Here The Weekly meets families who are battling grief and desperate for solutions.
Growing happiness
Through drought flood and heartbreak, Jenny Jennr's sunflowers bloom with hope, sunshine and joy
"Thank God we make each other laugh"
A shared sense of humour has seen Aussie comedy couple Harriet Dyer and Patrick Brammall conquer the world. But what does life look like when the cameras go down:
Winter baking with apples and pears
Celebrate the season of Australian apples and pears with these sweet bakes that will keep the midwinter blues away.
Budget dinner winners
Looking for some thrifty inspiration for weeknight dinners? Try our tasty line-up of low-cost recipes that are bound to please everyone at the table.
