What is long COVID, and what does it feel like?
Long coronavirus disease (COVID) means symptoms that linger or return after the infection has passed. The common ones are heavy tiredness, breathlessness, a racing heart, poor sleep, aches and trouble thinking clearly.
It can be frustrating, because tests may look normal while you feel far from it. You may look well to others, and still need to lie down at midday. Your symptoms are real, and a plan can help.
We are the Ipoh branch of Kinesio Rehab Physiotherapy Centre. Home visits across Ipoh are available now, and our Canning Garden centre is opening soon.
Why does exercise need special care here?
For some people, extra effort brings a crash a day or two later, with worse tiredness, aches and fog. If you push hard on a good day, you may pay for it. If you rest completely, you lose strength.
The way through is steady, planned activity below your limit, increased slowly. We call this pacing. It means stopping before you are exhausted, not after.
Our glossary explains pacing, and our page on deconditioning shows how strength returns after illness.
Which symptoms need a doctor first?
Physiotherapy begins after your doctor has had a chance to look for other causes. See a doctor before exercising if you have:
- Chest pain, or pressure in the chest.
- A racing, pounding or irregular heartbeat.
- Fainting, or near-fainting on standing.
- Breathlessness at rest.
- New swelling or pain in one leg.
- Confusion, or sudden weakness on one side.
Go to the emergency department for chest pain, fainting or severe breathlessness. If your lungs were badly affected, see also chronic lung disease and breathing for breathing practice, after your doctor agrees.
What do we check at a home visit?
We begin with your story: when you were ill, what changed, and what a good and a bad day look like.
- Breathing rate and effort at rest and after a small task.
- Heart rate and how you feel on standing and walking.
- Strength and balance.
- How far you can walk or stand before symptoms rise, and how long you take to recover.
- Sleep, mood, and concentration, which we note and pass to your doctor if needed.
- Your routine at home and at work.
How does pacing work in daily life?
Pacing means choosing how much you do, and when you rest, so that you stay in a comfortable zone. Most people find a traffic-light way of judging each day helpful.
- Green day: you feel steady, so do your plan, not more.
- Amber day: tired or foggy, so halve the plan and add rests.
- Red day: unwell, so do the minimum and rest.
Break tasks into short blocks, sit when you can, and rest before you are tired. Keep a diary of activity and symptoms, because patterns show up in it. Breathing practice, such as slow breathing through the nose with relaxed shoulders, can also calm the body.
How do you return to work, family and sport?
Return in steps, one area at a time, rather than trying everything at once. Start with short, light tasks, then lengthen them over weeks, if your symptoms remain steady.
Most people want to be back at the kopitiam with friends, at the school gate or on the badminton court. We agree a simple ladder with you, so that each rung is small. If symptoms flare, step back, rest and resume at the earlier rung.
Our post on exercise after a long break and confidence after injury may help.
What can you do this week?
- Write down your three most important daily tasks and protect the energy for them.
- Take a short walk at a set time, and stop before you feel drained.
- Keep a light bedtime routine and fixed waking time.
- Drink enough water, because the Ipoh heat adds strain.
- Tell family what pacing means, so they stop urging you to push through.
- Note your symptoms in a short diary to show your doctor.
To learn how visits run, read about home physiotherapy in Ipoh.