She is desperate to get back to work, but feels “embarrassed” that the coronavirus has kept her in a “fog ” mental that prevents you from concentrating.
“I can’t drive far, I forget to lock the doors, I burn the food. And when I’m reading, my brain converts one word into another. I lose concentration”, says this woman from 43 years to the BBC journalist Owain Clarke.
Sian, who lives in Wales, is one of around 1.3 million people in the UK living with long-term Covid, which represents more than 2% of the nation .
There is no internationally agreed definition of what long-term Covid is, so specialists do not yet know how common it is or what symptoms are involved.
Symptoms may differ. They last more than four weeks and may include extreme tiredness, shortness of breath, rapid heartbeat, joint pain, or changes in taste and smell.
Griffiths contracted Covid in May of 2020 when he worked as a physiotherapist in the British public health service (NHS).
He reports that before he got sick “he was fine, he had a full-time job and he cycled through the mountains and traveled 50 kilometers in road”.
“Now I have to have my mom and dad basically trying to remind me to do things all the time. It’s heartbreaking””, he highlights.
Swimming in open water
A specialist told him to swim to recover. He now takes up open water swimming three times a week in North Wales, near his home.
Sian joined an open water swimming group to help her with her long recovery.
“It feels like the fog disappeared, I can think a little more clearly”, he assures.
“It lasts about an hour and a half after I go out and I hope that the more I do it, the effect will last a little longer” .
For swimming, she uses a neoprene suit that helps her understand the blood and oxygen in the brain.
But there are times when she feels ashamed to leave the house to go swimming but not to go to work.
“I feel ashamed of what people think of me because I can go to the water but I can’t go to work. That just doesn’t sit well with me, even though I’ve been told to.”
Nothing during 20 minutes, 3 times a week.
Health professionals are still learning how to deal with with prolonged Covid.
“In Wales we are committed to ensuring that all long-term covid sufferers receive support and care tailored to their particular needs and symptoms, rather than a one-size-fits-all approach to everyone, as close to home as possible”, said Welsh Minister for Health, Eluned Morgan.
“We are still learning about prolonged Covid and this review will help us to further improve services . We will continue to monitor required support and adapt accordingly as we learn more to ensure services are available to all those who need support.”
It may interest you:
COVID: Heart disease threatens survivors even a year after infection One inch shorter : The surprising effect of COVID on a man Getting vaccinated reduces up to a 43% developing prolonged Covid
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