How post-Covid symptoms disrupting daily life

Hyderabad: Covid patients shall be cured within a week or two, and three weeks to a month in some cases if they have been suffering from other health disorders. Experts said that people affected by Delta variant to the recent Omicron are suffering with side-effects for a long time even after recovering from the Covid-19. There are lots of symptoms one can have after the virus infection.

Some young people, who have no prior health complaints, are also getting such long-term side-effects after the Covid recovery. These side-effects include tiredness, headache, chest pain, back ache, stomach-ache, soar-throat and drowsiness. People with Covid-19 often have symptoms in the long-term including fatigue, breathlessness, and other difficulties. This is called post-Covid syndrome or 'long Covid'. How long it takes to recover from Covid-19 is different for everybody. The chances of having long-term symptoms do not appear to be linked to the illness after the infection. People who had mild symptoms at first can still have long-term problems.

Srivani, a 40-year-old homemaker said that she was tested positive during Covid second wave when Delta variant hit severely and she recovered after 15 days, but she has been getting health issues often for the last nine months.

"I feel tense when I get chest pain quite often. I don't know it is because of diabetes which I have from the last two years or post-Covid effect. Sometimes I feel difficulty in sleeping (insomnia) and heart palpitations. I have been seeing doctor almost every month for various health complications since recovery from Covid. I have undergone for scan, ECG and all other tests regularly since then due to these problems."

The diabetic and blood pressure patients face this situation frequently though their sugar and BP levels are under control. They are getting additional health complications, which may not be serious symptoms, but affecting their health regularly. It is making them conscious about their health, daily routine and food habits.

MSS Mukharjee, senior interventional cardiologist and the Director of the Cardiology Department, Medicover Hospitals, said: "Many people are facing new problems after Covid recovery. Some people come with increased risk of blood clots, bleeding, and formation of fibrosis in lungs, fluctuations in sugar and BP levels."

"Even youngsters are also getting sudden chest pain, fast heartbeat, and sleeplessness for many days, body aches and weakness after recovering from Covid. They have to change their life style, food habits and need more focus on health as some of these are dangerous symptoms. They definitely need doctor's suggestions and treatment," he added.

A 35-year-old bank employee, Bharath, sharing his situation after Covid, said: "We all tested positive in the family last year. It took almost a couple of months for me to recover fully from the Covid, while the other members in the family recovered in two weeks. But almost every month, I have been facing some health issue like fatigue or leg pain when I walk for some distance, tiredness and joint pains when I stand for a while. I have not faced any of these issues before Covid. And I am not perfectly feeling well till now."

"I lost my father during Covid second wave in which I was also hospitalised for a week due to severe Covid symptoms at the time of Delta variant. Recently, I was tested positive again for the second time during the third wave when Omicron hit. Again, I was hospitalised for couple of days. Though Omicron's severity is very low, the symptoms were not so light. Due to long Covid, the side-effects continued from second wave to till now," said Sharath, a 32-year-old private employee.

A majority of the Covid-affected people are still experiencing side-effects and their impact in their regular life. Doctors say it is better if people suffering from long Covid