Breathless and POTS-like symptoms for a year, now recovered after exercise and prednisone
- Condition
- Long COVID
- At worst
- Moderate (mostly housebound)
- Ill before improving or writing
- 1 year
- Last post
- Sep 2024
In their words
- Condition: Long COVID
I developed long COVID as a marathoner and triathlete.
In context ↗ - At worst: Moderate
I went on very slow walks every day listening to podcasts until my hr was too high and then I’d sleep.
In context ↗ - Now: Recovered
I’d honestly say I’m fully recovered — with occasional relapses here and there.
In context ↗ - Began after: COVID
I got COVID in July 2022
- Says they never had: Post-exertional malaise
I never had PEM
Read from 22 of their posts and comments; links to the 13 this page draws on
Summary
Creek 71098, an endurance athlete, got COVID in July 2022 and spent a year with breathlessness, a reduced RVEF, POTS-like symptoms and heart-rate swings, hospitalised for bradycardia at 33 bpm walking. After her heart MRI normalised she built up exercise at Orange Theory, backed by prednisone and vitamin C. She was racing again by late 2023 and called herself fully recovered by August 2024, with occasional relapses and residual asthma.
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What they tried
What they credit
Also tried
Their words about each treatment
- exercise progression · Helped a lot
I recovered fully after a year of it by jumping back into cardio (orange theory first b/c they have heart rate monitors
In context ↗ - macrodose of Vitamin C in an IV · Helped a lot
except for the macrodose of Vitamin C - that definitely helped me
In context ↗ - vitamin D and sun · Helped
Honestly laying in the high UV sun one day for 8 hours made me feel alive again
In context ↗ - coq10 · Helped
Tried every supplement - COQ10, Magnesium/Zinc, Rhodiola, Vitamin C/D/B12, Fish oil
In context ↗ - acetyl-carnitine · Helped
acetyl-carnitine, l-arginine, coq10, iron, magnesium, multivitamin, turmeric, ginger, salt/electrolyte tablets
In context ↗ - l arginine · Helped
plus l arginine and acetylene carnitine
In context ↗ - iron · Helped
potassium and iron that can affect cardiac functioning
In context ↗ - B12 · Helped
Vitamin C/D/B12
In context ↗ - anti-inflammatory diet · Helped
Eating an anti-inflammatory diet, lots of turmeric and ginger and salmon and greens and herbal tea
In context ↗ - prednisone · Helped
I went on four rounds of prednisone at different points and that seemed to help me so much each time
In context ↗ - Montelukast · Helped a lot
this medication called Montelukast which has been a miracle in breathing issues
In context ↗ - Steroid inhaler (symbicort then breo ) · Helped
Steroid inhaler (symbicort then breo )
In context ↗ - over the counter allergy med · Not said
over the counter allergy med
In context ↗ - therapy · Worse
I went to therapy and my therapist was absolutely awful
In context ↗ - raw coconut drink · Helped
I bought a raw coconut drink off one of the guys price gouging them in the beach
In context ↗ - acupuncture · Not said
coq10 and acupuncture and vitamin d and iron
In context ↗ - sound wave disc thing · Not said
acupuncture&sound wave disc thing
In context ↗ - multivitamin · Not said
And a multi vitamin and sometimes magnesium supplement
In context ↗
Approaches: Amino acids and carnitine · Diet · Physiotherapy and rehab · Supplements
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| July 2022 | COVID with heart palpitations and breathlessness; ER visitI got COVID in July 2022; went to the ER for it after having heart palps for the first time ever that dayIn context ↗ | Moderate | |
| December 2022 | hospitalised for bradycardia of 33 bpm while walking; only slow walks allowedthey hospitalized me for the bradycardia in December of 2022 when it was sitting at 33 bpm walking and I felt like a ghostIn context ↗ | Moderate | |
| February 2023 | heart MRI normal; began self-monitored exercise at Orange TheoryAround February…I did orange theory and reallllly monitored my heart b/c I couldn’t afford cardiac rehabIn context ↗ | Moderate | Graded rehab and self-made programmes |
| October 2023 | back to cycling races and triathlons, with occasional relapsesNow I’ve gone back to completing in cycling races and triathlons and though I still have relapses I’m basically back to normalIn context ↗ | Near normal | Graded rehab and self-made programmes |
| November 2023 | symptoms returned during a sedentary weekthe one week I was pretty sedentary last month I started to feel symptoms again….but admittedly not nearly as badlyIn context ↗ | Mild | |
| 2023-12-01 | no longer feels the effects; keeps up daily cardio to hold off POTS symptomsI don’t feel the effects anymore, at all. I do cardio everyday, however, simply because I love itIn context ↗ | Near normal | Graded rehab and self-made programmes |
| 2024-08-20 | relapses with severe asthma attacks and hospital stays; heart rate instability in a stressful weekSometimes I still have relapses. Severe asthma attacks that have put me back in the hospital. My heart rate sinking again and shooting up randomlyIn context ↗ | Mild | |
| 2024-09-07 | feels healthy again and mostly has her life backI feel healthy again and like I’ve mostly gotten my life backIn context ↗ | Recovered |
Adverse events
- Graded rehab and self-made programmes“my heart rate was well above my max” In context ↗ Heart rhythm problems
- Graded rehab and self-made programmes“those first two months my heart rate would max out at 180-190 within the first mile of running on the treadmill” In context ↗ Heart rhythm problems
- Corticosteroid pulses“I went on four rounds of prednisone at different points and that seemed to help me so much each time even though my bones felt brittle after” In context ↗ Side effects
- IV vitamins and Myers cocktail“I also felt so nauseous with that for a day” In context ↗ Gut side effects
Symptoms mentioned
Their words about their symptoms
- POTS & dysautonomia
My heart rate sinking again and shooting up randomly
In context ↗ - Breathlessness
it felt like I couldn’t catch a breath from air leaking out
In context ↗ - Heart symptoms & palpitations
the issues that do remain (asthma/heart palps) I treat as their own illnesses
In context ↗ - Anxiety & low mood
I honestly didn’t care if I died at that point
In context ↗
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