Two women have spoken out about the devastating impact Long Covid has had on their lives. Around two million people in the UK are experiencing symptoms associated with the condition, 400,000 of which require specialist care.
Shining a light on living with Long Covid, two mums have shared their experiences with The Mirror. Timea Gere now suffers with breathlessness and fatigue after catching Covid in December.
Meanwhile Michelle King has struggled with short-term memory loss since she contracted the virus. For both women Long Covid has changed their lives completely.
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Timea’s story
Mum Timea Gere managed to avoid Covid for some time but caught it in December. Although she wasn’t hospitalised, she ended up suffering with an unpleasant illness.
The 47-year-old is now breathless even when sitting and needs to lie down after ordinary tasks such as washing up. She said: “I could not have imagined this kind of fatigue. It totally paralyses you.
“This has wreaked havoc with my body. Just after being here at the hospital today, I won’t be able to do anything this evening or tomorrow. I’ll just be in bed.”
The mother-of-four, from Enfield, North London, says climbing stairs leaves her breathless and dizzy. She suffers palpitations when sitting still, and a dry cough which gets worse in the mornings and evenings.
When explaining the impact on her life at home Timea welled up, as she has caring responsibilities for her 10-year-old son, who has Type 1 diabetes and autism.
“He is my priority,” she said. “I feel bad just watching my husband go out to work and him get home and sometimes I’m still in bed. Everything is overwhelming.
“I can’t make decisions easily now. I can’t process things. I can’t recall the names of things.”
Michelle’s story
Michelle King struggles with her short-term memory, often forgetting what she is talking about mid-sentence, and has dementia-like brain fog. Previously outgoing, 46-year-old Michelle now avoids socialising in groups and spends most of her time sitting or lying down.
She says: “It feels like everything has gone into slow motion. I can’t think. I can remember things from a long time ago but I can be having a conversation and I’ll totally forget what I’m talking about. I can’t find the words.”
Michelle, from Harlow, Essex, worked in advertising for 20 years before setting up her own gardening business. She also cares for her 18-year-old daughter, who has special needs and requires a wheelchair.
After catching Covid a second time last September, Michelle she has had to close her business and relies on support from her parents at home. Her symptoms include fatigue, breathlessness, palpitations, dizziness, headaches and coughing.
She is shaky when walking and quickly becomes dizzy. On our visit, Michelle did the sit-stand test, and is exhausted after standing a dozen times.
She said: “Before, I was really sharp and quite fit. Now it just feels like everything is shutting down.”
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