I caught covid this past october and nearly died. This is not an exaggeration. I had a severe inflammation response which not only caused dramatic swelling but actually blistered my hands (which has left scarring). My oesophagus was affected in a similar manner which made it impossible to swallow solids and even made drinking water nearly unbearable. I was very lucky that it didn't go to my lungs, but even so it was painful to breathe, and I had blood pressure so low that I had to pause going up the stairs, even if I went on all fours. One night I felt overwhelmed a strong, oddly calm sense that I was 'about to die'. I lay down on the floor and did not move until this sensation had passed: talking it over with doctors since I probably was very close to having a heart attack, and it is simply luck that I did not.
All in all I lost two stone, almost all of which was muscle mass, and over two months of work. I am now at the bottom of the hill, trying to recover to the state of helath which I was at before covid, which was already bad due to my condition of EDS. I already had chronic pain and fatigue, and we don't know how much either of those will have increased, permanently, due to covid.
The next time I catch it may very well be the last, and I say 'the next time' because at this point it seems a sad inevitability. I have taken every precaution, but if nobody else does, it's only a matter of time.
blakekathryn
dededos
germansingergirl
origamiaround
stormborns
turnnoffyourmind
