After living with COVID for almost a year, we all know what the common symptoms are – such as fever, dry cough and fatigue. However, there may be a thin line between a mild case of COVID and a severe case requiring hospitalization – and some symptoms may indicate this. A 28-year-old Irish woman Rachel Gunn went viral after she posted about her experience with severe COVID on Instagram earlier this month, urging people to heed her warning. “I want to pass this on to anyone who, months after COVID, is experiencing a worsening of symptoms so as not to ignore it,” Gunn wrote. She ends up in the hospital and finds out that she has serious complications. To see for which COVID symptoms you should go to the hospital, to go further and for another subtle symptom to pay attention to, go to If you see it in your mouth, you may have COVID, experts warn.
After testing positive for COVID in October, Gunn said she was “pretty sick” and “two weeks in bed.” She experienced many of the common COVID symptoms, such as breathing, fatigue, body aches and headaches. Although she began to feel ‘semi-better’, she never felt 100 percent. Three months after her so-called recovery, Gunn’s condition continued to worsen, and she began to experience more symptoms. Gunn said she ignored them, however, and reckoned they would “eventually make it easier.” But she would regret ignoring her symptoms for so long.
By the end of December, Gunn’s condition had seriously dived, and she was experiencing another set of narrow symptoms. For a while, she refused her mother’s requests to go to the hospital because she felt she was making ‘too much noise’. After she finally sought care, a CT scan revealed that her lungs were ‘covered with pulmonary embolism’ [blood clots], “and her” heart was tense. “According to the Mayo Clinic, pulmonary embolism manifests itself in symptoms that look very much like COVID, including shortness of breath, cough and chest pain, making it easy to go unnoticed if you have COVID, but the condition can be life-threatening or permanently jeopardize your lung function.
“I was admitted for three days and started blood thinners. I now have to stay on blood thinners for at least a year, maybe more,” Gunn wrote. “I am now prone to blood clots, and it will affect my life forever. I am 28 years old, active, non-smoker, otherwise healthy.” She added that she “feels extremely happy that she found out about my blood clots when I did.” Now Gunn wants to share her experience so other people with worsening COVID symptoms do not ignore them as she does.
These are the five symptoms that Gunn experienced that she says should not be ignored. Look for more severe symptoms if you have any of these symptoms, say the CDC is now going to the hospital.
Gunn was adamant that COVID patients in particular should not underestimate this narrow symptom. “Extreme breathlessness is not something to be ignored,” Gunn wrote. “For almost two weeks I was so breathless that I could not even get up the stairs without feeling like I was running … even getting up and going to the bathroom was exhausting.” And sign up for our daily newsletter for more up-to-date COVID news sent directly to your inbox.
Gunn said she experienced lung pain after the exercise “but considered these normal symptoms after COVID as I could work normally for half a day and do minimal exercise,” she explained. “From what I read, I just had to get on with it, and the symptoms would eventually ease.” Gunn’s lung pain, however, was ultimately an indication of a deeper issue. If you have this common condition, you are more likely to get severe COVID if you see what else could put you at risk of COVID complications.
Gunn said she experienced ‘extreme fatigue’, and that no sleep would make her feel well rested. She said she would eventually sleep 15 to 16 hours a day and then ‘still have to spend the whole day in bed’. Although fatigue is one of the most common symptoms of COVID, you should talk to a doctor if you still feel excessive for weeks after your recovery. And for more signs of long COVID to look out for, look at The 5 Narrow Symptoms COVID Patients Can’t Get Rid Of, says new study.
Another symptom Gunn experienced was palpitations, or ‘feelings of a fast-beating, fluttering or beating heart’, according to the Mayo Clinic. The University of California San Francisco (UCSF) points out that some COVID patients have already experienced them because the heart’s pumping function is damaged. If you have palpitations, UCSF suggests looking for an echocardiogram. And to see which mask you should avoid to stay safe, check out The CDC Warns Against Using These 6 Face Masks.
While back pain is a fairly common COVID symptom, it could be an indication that something is going on, if it lasts for weeks after the virus is gone, Gunn warns. Richard Watkins, MD, a doctor on infectious diseases, tells Prevention that the body hurts for most people for up to two weeks. However, if your back pain persists for a long time, gets worse or is accompanied by weight loss or numbness in your limbs, you should talk to an expert. For more information on this effect of the virus, go check out Ellen DeGeneres Say this COVID symptom only got worse.
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