The Misery of Long Term COVID-19 Effects in "Recovered" Patients

We're approximately 10 months now into the SARS-CoV-2 global pandemic, with over 37 million people who have been infected around the world.

As the pandemic progresses, more data regarding those who have recovered are coming in to health organizations around the world; and amongst those who have recovered, a significant number are experiencing strange long term effects that does not appear to diminish over weeks and months. These symptoms may even appear after mild disease cases that did not require hospitalization and affect people of all ages.

These long term effects may include (not exhaustive list):

• Chronic fatigue

• Chronic joint pain

• Brain fog (dementia-like)

• Shortness of breath

• Skin rashes

• Chronic cardiovascular issues

• Persistent headaches

• Hair loss

• Depression and anxiety

It is currently unclear if these symptoms may become long term chronic health issues for the COVID-19 recoverers that are experiencing them. Some of these individuals have been so debilitated by the lingering effects they can no longer function as they have before the disease; many have been taking long leaves of absence from work or have been laid off altogether.

We need to take this virus seriously, despite what some populist leaders around the world have been pushing that this is "just a little flu", when all scientific evidence points to otherwise. The SARS-CoV-2 virus does not care about your political affiliation or how you feel about it. It is a virus that will continue to proliferate unchecked and cause untold misery and suffering if large segments of the population continue to dismiss it as a non-issue.