Amy Watson has had a chronic fever for 344 days.
Nearly a year after COVID-19 was diagnosed in her, the Portland, Oregon teacher is still suffering from persistent symptoms.
Aside from the fever, Watson told Insider that she still experiences chronic fatigue, ‘brain fog’, intense migraines, gastrointestinal problems and severe body aches.
The 47-year-old, who had no underlying health condition before contracting the virus, also developed tachycardia and says every time she steps under the shower, her heart rate goes up more than 100 beats per minute.
“It’s really challenging. I don’t want people to know from personal experience what it’s like,” Watson told Insider.
Watson is among a growing group of COVID’s longtime victims, or so-called ‘long stretchers’, whose bodies have been weakened by a virus about which little is known.
But now, post-recovery clinics, which specifically cater to long-distance guards, are opening across the country, offering people like Watson much-needed hope.
Post-COVID clinics provide a “centralized” way for long-distance patients to access care
According to a CDC study published this summer, about 1 in 3 people with COVID-19 will have symptoms that last longer than the normal two weeks.
The symptoms, which can range from persistent cough to scarring, affect not only people who have had to be hospitalized with COVID-19, but also those with a milder illness.
Care centers after COVID aim to bring together a team of experts from a wide range of specialties to address all the major problems facing long-term staff, based on the latest understanding of the disease.
One of the first such clinics was Mount Sinai Hospital in New York. It has treated 1,500 people since it opened its doors in May.
Dr. Ruwanthi Titao, a cardiologist who works at the clinic, told Insider: ‘The aim of the center was to fill this gap of patients seeking care, who feel frustrated, worried and anxious that they are not getting access. to the proper care in the community.
“And it was a nice, centralized way to get them access to care, to get their symptoms documented so we could start recognizing patterns in terms of illnesses, and then refer them to the appropriate specialist to get the right treatment. , “she said. added.
Patients usually have an hour-long appointment to review their medical history before examining their current coronavirus-induced symptoms.
“From that point on, the COVID office will make appropriate referrals. This would be, for example, to cardiology, neurology, rehabilitation medicine or psychiatry,” said Dr. Titano said.
But treating people with multiple – and often severe – symptoms is a challenge for a disease that does not yet have long-term research.
Dr. Greg Vanichkachorn, medical director of the Covid Activity Rehabilitation Program (CARP) of Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, told Insider that his center follows a “slow and steady” approach based on treatments used before the coronavirus pandemic. is.
“You know, this is not the first outbreak of the coronavirus. We had SARS and MERS, for example, and we already have research from that time that definitely shows that there was also a post-viral syndrome,” he said.
“What we have emphasized with our patients is to help them adapt and develop a ‘Paste’ therapy program, where they slowly, with practical help, participate in rehabilitation,” said Dr. Vanichkachorn continued.
“It’s all about the slow, consistent activity with small gains.”
The therapy often includes simple measures, such as encouraging patients to increase their fluid and salt intake or giving compression socks to help blood flow.
“And if we really need it, we can also use medication to help the symptoms increase blood pressure when needed or to help things like fast heartbeat,” said Dr. Vanichkachorn added.
Dr. Titano of Mount Sinai confirmed that her recovery clinic follows a similar approach.
“We are correctors and healers, we want a clear diagnosis, and we want to correct it. But if there are symptoms, or if you have relapses or setbacks, we obviously take it very seriously,” Dr. Titano said.
But although dr. Titano acknowledges that ‘it was a very difficult, slow process of improvement’, she remains hopeful.
Mental health is also an issue
Clinics, such as the one on Mount Sinai, also give patients access to social workers or therapists to work through their trauma.
Many long-distance caregivers, especially those admitted to the hospital, have left behind depression or, in some cases, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
This is the case for Heather-Elizabeth Brown, a 36-year-old corporate coach from Detroit, Michigan, who had to sit in a ventilator in April after pneumonia caused by coronavirus caused her lungs to weaken.
Brown, who was in a coma for 31 days, said her experience was ‘traumatic’.
Shortly after doctors told her a ventilator would be the only way to save her life, Brown had to hold a ‘FaceTime Family Meeting’ to make her decision. Her mother had to take the call from the hospital parking lot.
“I remember writing my will on a napkin and putting it in one of my boots, and having to tell the nurses where it just fell in,” Brown said. “I just did not know at that stage if I would come out alive.”
Heather-Elizabeth Brown in the hospital. (Heather-Elizabeth Brown)
“I have very strong faith. I trust God. But that’s one of the things you do not know. It was just a very big question mark,” she added.
Brown is currently doing therapy with a range of different treatments.
“I’m happy that a lot of my care is under one health care system. So all my records are in one place,” Brown said.
“But for people who have other challenges or different barriers to entry, it’s a phenomenal idea to have one center that also offers mental health assistance. It’s like a one-stop shop,” she added.
Long distance riders feel forgotten
Schoolteacher Watson said it was frustrating to find treatment for all of her conditions, and she often felt fired by health care workers.
The US is still grappling with tens of thousands of acute COVID-19 cases a day and many states are now focusing on administering the vaccines as soon as possible. This often means that long guards are eliminated.
“When we go to our appointments, doctors tell us that they do not feel our symptoms are serious enough and say that they are not going to waste their time with us. And it’s quite upsetting as a patient,” Watson continued. .
That was part of the reason why Watson started one of the largest Facebook support groups for long guards.
For Watson, it would be ‘life-changing’ to have a program tailored specifically for long-distance guards.
“I would personally like to go to one, but unfortunately there is not one in my area at the moment. But it is definitely something I advocate for,” she said.
“People just need to understand that we are getting a little impatient. We want to get better and return to our lives and hopefully not be a significant part of the population disabled by this disease,” she added.
This article was originally published by Business Insider.
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