LisaMarie's Long Covid Story: November.

October 26th, 2020…the day LisaMarie’s life changed.

After the announcement of the Coronavirus outbreak, it was a waiting game watching the virus spread from country to country, weaving its way through the continents. Once it hit your hometown, it was time to re-learn how to live life, with the new norm being a purse full of masks and hand sanitiser – and that was on the occasions that you were allowed to leave your house. This adjustment period was a difficult time for everyone, but staying safe was a priority, as LisaMarie could tell you all about.

November

LisaMarie started taking notes of her journey four weeks after her positive result; little did she know that later on, she wouldn’t even remember writing them. A positive result for many led to minor symptoms such as a cough and loss of taste and smell, for some it meant becoming hospitalised and being dependent on a ventilator, and for others it meant grieving the loss of a loved one. LisaMarie fit into a separate category; one that hadn’t been fully understood and explored yet, the rollercoaster that was battling 'long covid'.

“This week I have the addition of constant pain in my shoulders, arms, wrists, hands, fingers and what appears to be my sciatic nerve, spreading from the top of my back to the top of my leg. It became quite unbearable on Tuesday night and once again I needed medical intervention”, she wrote.

The initial feelings of shock that surrounded her family and friends slowly began to fade, as each day they would ask her if she felt any better than the previous one, to which she would deny positive updates. It was after the clarification that she wasn’t getting any better, that she was referred to a long covid specialist who gave her some mundane stretches to do in attempt to ease the pain.

20 tablets and a handful of new symptoms later, and LisaMarie was still submerged in her personal nightmare.

“I’ve lost my taste and ability to smell.

I’ve coughed so hard it felt I was breathing only fire and ice.

I’ve hardly slept, and I am exhausted.

I thought I was having a heart attack.

I have rashes and spots all over my body.

I’ve had scarily low blood oxygen levels.

I’ve wanted to rip my skin off from my chin down as the pressure of my skin felt too much.

I have slurred speech.

I have no attention span and can’t concentrate on anything.

Every muscle burns and I can’t get comfy.

I can’t walk to the loo without holding a wall.

When I get hot my rashes are redder.

I can feel my heartbeat with most breaths.

I can’t lie down; I have to be sat up.

I can feel my breath in my shoulders.”

Waking up became a chore, with the first blink sending a wave of dread through her body as she attempted to figure out whether today would be better… or worse. Thankfully she had her husband, Jamie, caring for her, encouraging her to eat when her appetite was none, helping her to get out of bed when her energy was gone.

LisaMarie still had hope; when the paramedics said there was nothing they could do for her, she found the strength to believe that she could recover on her own. And so, November was undeniably one of the worst times of LisaMarie’s life, but was December going to be any better?