Long COVID with extreme fatigue and brain fog, some improvement then back to the start
- Condition
- Long COVID
- At worst
- Moderate (mostly housebound)
- Ill before improving or writing
- 4 years
- Last post
- Mar 2026
In their words
- Condition: Long COVID
I'm 19 months into long covid.
In context ↗ - At worst: Moderate
I think I get about 5 hours worth of energy from waking up before I need to rest.
In context ↗ - Now: Relapsed
Improved slightly since the beginning although I feel this is more managing the symptoms than recovering as such. ... I feel as bad as I did in the beginning.
- Began after: COVID
Feb 2022 for my infection.
In context ↗
Read from 27 of their posts and comments; links to the 17 this page draws on
Summary
A UK man in his forties developed long COVID in February 2022, with extreme fatigue, brain fog, joint and muscle pain, tinnitus and breathlessness. Pacing, rest, cutting sugar and alcohol, and a Symbicort inhaler for his chest helped somewhat; he described slow improvement, more managing symptoms than recovering. After a month on a low dose of something in 2026, he felt as bad as at the beginning.
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What they tried
What they credit
Also tried
Their words about each treatment
- resting, pacing and fatigue management · Helped
so far, nothings helped other than resting and fatigue management.
In context ↗ - cutting out refined sugar and alcohol · Helped
reducing my sugar and alcohol intake has helped somewhat.
In context ↗ - breathing steam from boiling water · Helped
I found breathing in the vapour from boiling water really helped my chest.
In context ↗ - phenergan · Helped
I found an anti histamine called phenergan which relaxes and helps me sleep. I feel drousy the day after but I do feel better after a proper rest.
In context ↗ - ginger biscuits · Helped
This is gonna sound crazy but plain ginger biscuits helped my nausea. dunno why but it helped.
In context ↗ - long covid clinic · Not said
my experience with the long covid clinic was positive however, with regards to answers regarding recovery there wasn't any.
In context ↗ - simbacort inhaler · Helped
overall though, I've seen an improvement since using the symbacort inhaler.
In context ↗ - salbutamol inhaler · Not said
I still use a salbutamol inhaler when my chest feels really bad
In context ↗ - sauna · Worse
I tried cold water first and then a sauna hoping to ease the pain in my muscles and joints ... extreme cold/heat made my symptoms worse
In context ↗ - cold water · Worse
I tried cold water first ... extreme cold/heat made my symptoms worse? and stole what little energy I had.
In context ↗ - supplements · No change
supplements didn't help
In context ↗ - energy drinks · No change
energy drinks certainly didn't help
In context ↗ - cleaning up my diet · No change
'cleaning up my diet' didn't help
In context ↗ - drinking more water · No change
drinking more water hasn't helped.
In context ↗ - exercising more · Worse
excersizing more made things worse.
In context ↗ - walking, stretching, press ups and crunches · Not said
instead, I walk for cardio. 3 times a week, I stretch with stomach excersizes with 5-10 press ups
In context ↗ - UK calorie restricting diet · No change
I recently tried a UK calorie restricting diet which didn't work.
In context ↗ - low dose naltrexone · Worse
me neither. been on a low dose for a month now and I feel worse?
In context ↗
Approaches: Pacing
Their path
How ill they were on the ME/CFS severity scale, estimated from what they describe at each point, with time counted from when the illness began. Hover or tap a point. Dates are when they posted. What the levels mean.
Show as a table
| When | What happened | Where they were | After |
|---|---|---|---|
| February 2022 | COVID-19 infection followed by long COVIDFeb 2022 for my infection.In context ↗ | Moderate | |
| October 2023 | slow improvement, symptoms better managedI've seen some improvement but it's very slow I'd say.In context ↗ | Moderate | |
| May 2024 | chest symptoms settled and breathing improved with an inhalermy chest was horrendous in the first year but luckily those symptoms have now settled.In context ↗ | Mild | |
| May 2025 | basic calisthenics three times a week and cutting refined sugar, less joint painI've started a very basic calisthenics plan which i do 3 x per week ... also less pain in my joints and hands as well?In context ↗ | Mild | |
| March 2026 | felt as bad as the beginning after a month of low-dose naltrexonebeen on a low dose for a month now and I feel worse?In context ↗ | Moderate | Low-dose naltrexone |
Adverse events
- Cryotherapy and cold exposure“extreme cold/heat made my symptoms worse? and stole what little energy I had” In context ↗ Made symptoms worse
- Hyperthermia and sauna“I tried cold water first and then a sauna hoping to ease the pain in my muscles and joints ... extreme cold/heat made my symptoms worse? and stole what little energy I had” In context ↗ Made symptoms worse
- Everyday exercise and activity“excersizing more made things worse.” In context ↗ Made symptoms worse
- Low-dose naltrexone“been on a low dose for a month now and I feel worse? I had hoped that this would be the game changer but unfortunately not. I feel as bad as I did in the beginning.” In context ↗ Made symptoms worse
- “tried cutting calories but it affects my energy levels.” In context ↗ Made symptoms worse
Symptoms mentioned
Their words about their symptoms
- Post-exertional malaise
its like I hit a wall and crash.
In context ↗ - Brain fog
Brain fog. there's alarms and lists for everything.
In context ↗ - Pain & fibromyalgia
muscle and joint ache. especially in my arms and legs.
In context ↗ - Tinnitus
tinnitus. this is there all the time and I'm unable to escape it.
In context ↗ - Heart symptoms & palpitations
heart races and pounds inconsistently, mainly when I get tired later in the day.
In context ↗ - Sleep problems
I wake to feel like I haven't rested.
In context ↗ - Breathlessness
my chest was horrendous in the first year but luckily those symptoms have now settled.
In context ↗ - Neuropathy & tingling
numbness and tingling hands and feet
In context ↗ - Gut problems
plain ginger biscuits helped my nausea.
In context ↗
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