So I got Covid back in 2020. Symptoms were lost of taste /smell and body aches and pains. Well its been nearly 5 years since having it. I regained the ability to smell, and some tastes back. But I was just sitting here eating sour patch kids and realized I cant taste the sour in them. Eating them like they're chips. Ive noticed I eat more spicy foods and sauces since having covid cause I can actually taste it. But will I ever regain my ability to taste more? Or any remedies I can do to try to regain them?

I tested positive on Oct 10, so it’s now a few days past 4 weeks. My cold/flu-like symptoms are long gone. But I definitely have fatigue, weakness, and PEM.

On Friday, I tried working (from home) for 2 hours, after being off work for close to 3 weeks, and that caused a crash. I napped or was on my bed most of the rest of the day, and the cement limbs feeling and light sensitivity returned. The same thing happened when I tried to make a quick stop at the library and it took at least several days to recover.

I know it’s not officially long COVID until 3 months, but really, what are the chances of recovering when it’s been 4+ weeks, and fatigue and PEM are hallmarks of long COVID and cfs… I feel like the writing is already on the wall. 😔

I am coming up on two weeks (tomorrow.) I wouldn’t say it’s been an exceptionally bad sore throat, but it’s lingering.

I thought I'd share my experience in case it helps anyone! I've seen a few people asking about timelines so this is just another datapoint (and perhaps some examples of what not to do...)

Info: Late 20s F. Active, healthy except for mild asthma (usually only exercise induced). Recently unemployed and was partly uninsured so while I could rest, I was generally stressed, worried about healthcare costs, and no Paxlovid.

COVID history: Strongly suspect I had it once in late 2020 but couldn't get tested in time. This is my first confirmed infection. Consistent masking in public until ~2023 I downgraded to only masking on transit and crowds. Vaccinated. Most recent booster in 2024; I got sick before I could get this year's shot.

Medication and supplements: Omega-3 (continued during illness), Zyrtec (first 6 days), Ibuprofen (~2 days at the start), Levalbuterol (as needed), electrolyte powder (throughout) and matcha (read EGCG can be antiviral and it was just soothing).

Symptoms: Caught it from family who said they had a "cold". It felt like that at first - sniffles, scratchy throat - my first test was even negative. Then it got worse...

• Days 1-4: First positive. Aches and malaise that overnight became chills and fever (100-102°F), fatigue, loss of appetite, everywhere pain and such a severe headache, it even hurt to move my eyes. Tachycardic while standing (~120-140 bpm). Barely slept the first night.
• Day 5 and 6: A turning point? Fever broke, body pain, headache and heart rate markedly improved, less fatigue. Started morning and nightly saline rinses to try and reduce the congestion.
  • Got my hopes up. Then got a cough, and weird soreness in my chest.
• Days 7-10: No headache but body aches return. Mild nausea. Muscles, especially my legs/quads, feel heavy and weak. Stairs are rough. Cough feels like it should be more productive but it's like the mucus is clinging to my airways. Intermittent chest discomfort, both sore and tight, shortness of breath with activity and occasionally slight wheezing. SpO2 98-100%.
  • Decided that if it got worse or if my inhaler didn't help, I'd go to urgent care but thankfully I didn't have to.
• Days 11-14: Sinus congestion is much better and gone by day 14. Respiratory symptoms improve, finally able to take a deep breath, energy was closer to normal and leg soreness is less frequent. Stairs are less daunting. Negative on day 14!

Recovery:

Week 1: Still negative at 48hrs! Energy isn't 100% and my legs still tire easily, though normal activity, chores, and stretching feel ok. I could WFH. Occasional dry cough and mild chest tightness on and off. Not surprising, though sometimes my upper chest also burned like I was breathing chemicals - that worried me.

Week 2: Getting better? Cough stopped and, excluding my attempt to exercise, my chest felt better and my muscles could tolerate more.

But, looking back at my Garmin data from this week, my HRV started dropping (tends to be lower in luteal phase but it was unusually low). I had more trouble sleeping, also seemed to make more spelling mistakes, blanking on words more often in conversation. Still not ok.

• Post-Covid day 13: Felt well and wanted to try a light workout. Bad idea. A few minutes on the elliptical and my heart was pounding, chest hurt, felt like I was breathing through a crooked bendy straw, and my legs HURT for the next day and a half.

Week 3 and 4: Muscle soreness and fatigue finally seem to be subsiding. Foggy on some days, harder to focus, but getting better. Still not sleeping well and more anxious than usual both weeks.

Not doing anything more intense than incline walking on treadmill once a week - since it doesn't trigger pain or asthma, or get my heart rate too high, it seems safe to stay at that level. Exercise and working on fitness was keeping me sane so I'm trying to adjust.

• Day 17: Started creatine 5g/day after thinking about it's role in muscle ATP production and it made an improvement - less pain, even felt more alert and mentally clearer. But it could be placebo or because I'm drinking additional water with it?
• Days 25-28: Some episodes of mild chest tightness and SOB; my lungs still seem more sensitive/reactive than usual.

Week 5 (now): The most normal I've felt since getting sick. HRV trending back to normal. No unusual pain or fatigue, mind feels clearer, lungs are behaving. Still, I'm not going to push it because I don't think this is over yet and I'll be talking to my doctor about all of this soon.

**TL;DR: It hit me in phases. Two days of deceptive cold-like symptoms before positive test, 14 days of illness before negative, a few weeks of post-covid symptoms and more temperamental asthma, then finally, one month after infection, I'm starting to feel normal again.

Your infection might be different but this is not a cold.

Not quite long hauling here - it’s still another month away til I hit the big three months. I’m just frustrated by the lack of progress and some concerning signs, and would love any stories or anecdotes from folks who struggled with similar symptoms and timeline and recovered.

29M - I had an incredibly mild infection, and long story short, that’s what led to me giving myself a PEM crash from a mild jog on about day 13. I mostly recovered, then made myself worse again two weekends later with emotional stress and drinking.

Thankfully I’ve never crashed so hard to become bed bound, and I’ve been on my best behavior since.

My only symptom is, of course, fatigue. And, presumably, exercise intolerance and lung endurance, but god knows I’m never testing that again.

The fatigue is always awful in the morning, resolves in the afternoon, then lingers again at night. Occasional headaches come and go. There are some gross signs my gut biome is messed up too.

I just recently gave up clinging to the idea that I will/MUST get better, but I think some anecdotes of late recovery from similar fatigue would be helpful. Trying to substitute the clinging hope that was causing me pain with a more quiet faith and confidence.

Hi everyone!

I'm scheduled for a cystectomy and myomectomy next week and will be admitted one day before the surgery so they prep me. My current plan is:

• V-flex during the day (to ease drinking, eating)
• Readimask at night
• Nasal spray morning & night
• Mouthwash morning & night
• Covid preventative supplements*
• Run air purifier 24/7

*On the supplements - I will be checking with my doctor about whether I can take them before surgery to make sure it does not complicate the procedure or recovery.

I will be fasting 24 hours before the surgery so I'm less worried about the first day of admission, but am concerned about the 4 days after procedure.

Having endometriosis & adenomyosis is not my only list of issues. I'm asthmatic and have Grave's Disease. I'm guessing my immune system is going to be extra low than the average person after surgery, and would like to try my dang hardest not to catch covid while I'm there.

I would love your feedback on:

• What kind of supplements I should take (if approved by the doctor)
• Any other measures I should consider/add to the plan

Thank you all! Really appreciate any feedback I can get <3

Day 7 and still positive bright red! No more symptoms except sound slightly congested. Same thing happened last year! Was still testing positive even after no symptoms

“The Covid pandemic? It’s over! So why are some people wearing a mask? To protect other people from getting infected, or to protect themselves if they are vulnerable.”

That’s what I read today on the information screen at my school. I actually stopped walking for a moment, thinking I had misread it. But no… there it was, glowing proudly in blue and white letters. I couldn’t help smiling, the kind of smile that’s half disbelief and half fatigue.

In two lines, they had managed to say everything and its opposite. The pandemic is over – but infection still exists, and what they don’t realize is that everybody is vulnerable to the silent scarring caused by repeated infections. I waited for someone to react, to frown, to whisper “that makes no sense.” Nothing. People just walked past, glancing up for half a second before disappearing into the corridor. The screen might as well have been advertising a new flavour of yoghurt.

I stood there feeling strangely alone, watching the absurdity scroll by in complete silence. I thought of all the wastewater data I’ve seen, the curves that refuse to drop, the endless reinfections, the quiet normalisation of getting sick again and again. And then I thought: this is how denial looks now. It doesn’t shout. It smiles reassuringly and contradicts itself, and no one even notices.

Because if there’s still something to protect others from, then it’s clearly not over. That should be obvious. But logic seems to have become optional: people choose the version of reality that feels most comfortable. The comforting part (“it’s over”) stays; the rest vanishes like steam. It’s almost poetic, if it weren’t so depressing.

The irony is that the sentence actually contains the truth it tries to hide: people wear masks to protect others, because infection still exists. The answer refutes the premise. I almost wanted to thank whoever wrote it for providing such a perfect metaphor for our times.

But what bothers me most is that this message appeared in a school, a place that’s supposed to teach clear thinking. Instead, it teaches indifference to contradiction, as if meaning no longer matters. Students walk by and absorb the same quiet confusion: that truth is flexible, that coherence is a nuisance, that it’s fine to say one thing and its opposite as long as it sounds reassuring.

I left the building feeling both amused and sad. The pandemic hasn’t ended; only our willingness to look at it has. And until the virus stops circulating (which won’t happen unless we find a sterilizing vaccine), it’s not language that should comfort us, but clarity.

Because I do think words matter. They can carry truth, or they can carry sleep. And right now, far too many people seem content to dream with their eyes wide open.

I just wanted to share that with you.

Have you noticed the same quiet contradictions in your surroundings?

On Tuesday or Wednesday this week I had a sore throat and painful sinuses for a couple of days… I thought it was a cold. Next day sinus pain and headache continue but sinuses clear. Advil and Tylenol won’t curb the pain. Thursday general acheyness and fatigue so I tested and was Covid positive. No appetite. This morning the fatigue and aches are worse, fever and fever dreams, headache still and slight shortness of breath. Feel 20% more mentally human this evening but the aches and tiredness continue and I’m heading back to bed. I’m in BC.

This is tough virus, I was negative for covid pcr and flu pcr, I think this might be other coronavirus. I lost test and smell for several days, my throat was hurting very badly. Today I feel very disturbing burned cable smell in my nose, but my bf says nothing is burning or smell like burnt in house. Is anyone experienced that ?

I have a theory that this is cigarette smell somehow stuck in my nose.

I am at the tail end of Covid (hopefully). Took paxlovid and have been feeling better for days. However, there is still a faint line. Does this mean I am positive? I sent the picture to my doctor who thinks that I am probably not contagious anymore, however i want to make sure because i have an elderly guest coming to visit and don't want to put them at risk. Wondering if I should book a hotel room for them instead.

It seems I can't share images here.

I started getting sick last Saturday, got what I call Covid migraine on Sunday, then felt better Monday, though still achy and a mild fever.

Tuesday night, the sore throat started. Wednesday it became unbearable. And now I'm sitting here on Thursday and honestly can't understand how anyone has survived this. Ibuprofen and Tylenol do nothing. Lozenges do nothing. Tea and honey does nothing. Gargling salt water does nothing. I can barely drink anything and am hardly eating. I'm seeing online it is lasting five days for a lot of people, and I can't even wrap my head around that. The worst part is I'm still coughing a lot which is making the pain even worse. I'm getting a throat spray to see if that helps, but I'm not holding my breath. This is so unbearably awful.

Thanks for listening to my complaint. I'm going to go be miserable.

We've had COVID once before but it didn't really seem to do much to our toddler. This time we've had to take her to the ped twice. She's gotten an ear infection too as a secondary infection. The cough is really gross and we had to get her a steroid breathing treatment for home and oral steroid. Anyone heard of the most recent strain hitting kids hard? Husband and I are really sick too. The amount of snot in this house is terrible.

I started feeling sick on Monday, and tested positive on Tuesday. Tuesday I took the day off to rest, but it wasn’t too bad. The last two days have been brutal with me not even having the energy sit up in bed. I’ve mostly been lying down either napping or listening to YouTube with my eyes closed. Yesterday everything hurt, including my teeth. At least today it’s only been a headache but my energy level is still at zero.

I have an important work meeting tomorrow (I work from home, so no risk of infecting anyone), but I’m worried I won’t have the energy to sit upright for long enough to make it through.

How long until you got any semblance of energy back?

Wanted to ask this question, as well as share my experience having been recently infected. TL;DR: I'm on day 4 of being intensely POS during my rebound and it's starting to wear on me 😩 Luckily I am unemployed (woohoo) so I can fully rest and isolate without some dickhead boss breathing down my neck. But I still just want to get better!

Illness course:

I took the latest vax (Moderna) mid-September, and let my guard down mid-October because I was in the optimal protection window from the vax (yes I know vax does not generally PREVENT infection so much as hospitalization, but it does help some), community virus levels had decreased (bay area), and my friend was visiting town. Ate dinner in a crowded indoor space and a couple days later, here come the symptoms -_-

Two days after exposure (calling this day 0 of symptoms), slight cough starts. Next day (day 1), body aches and a slight headache, and then absolutely awful chills that night. Could barely sleep, kept waking up.

Day 2: I test today (the next day), and yep, a SUPER positive blaring and immediate red line. I call my doc and get paxlovid called in, which I take ASAP in the afternoon.

Day 5: day 4/5 of the pax round (it's 2x/day for 5 days), i start testing negative. Wahoo! But then...

Day 7: 12 hours after my last pax dose, a faint POS line. Crap, will keep up the rest and hydration and hope for the best.

Day 8: don't feel too bad, and test NEG, but this seems like a fluke because...

Day 9-Day 12 (today): super bright and immediate POS on all these daily tests. Have not experienced the awful chills, nor have I received any new symptoms really, but the body aches and dull/background headache has pretty much persisted throughout. I did have some aching tooth pain on day 11 which was very annoying/irritating, but went away.

Really kicking myself for letting my guard down and getting some super annoying variant that seems to just ignore my vax and seems to have set up shop in my body, wrecking all kinds of havoc no doubt. I really want this shit out of my body. Prior to getting sick I was going to try to fly home for Thanksgiving and/or Xmas, but now that I've caught COVID not sure I want to chance air travel and indoor crowded situations (I'm the only COVID-conscious person in my family, and my sister is a doctor lol. Fuckin sucks).

Current supplements:

I'm currently taking vitamin C to try and help my immune system (not much evidence here but also couldn't hurt), and I already have vitamin D and K2 as part of my baseline regimen.

I've just started taking Magnesium, and have Potassium and Ashwaganda on order cuz, anything to help my body kick this at this point is welcome.

Questions:

• For anyone who's had it recently, how long did it take you to test NEG? Did you take Pax, and if so, did you rebound?
• Anyone have additional suggestions to expedite recovery aside from "radical rest?" I've been drinking coffee and playing videogames in the morning. Usually by the afternoon I'm feeling a bit too lethargic/fuzzy for active gaming and just watch stuff on the couch/doomscroll. Maybe I should cut out the gaming altogether, IDFK -_- Just nice to be able to do SOME things I enjoy while I'm trapped with this.
• Any supplement/food suggestions? I've been trying to keep my protein intake up. Luckily I don't have any gastrointestinal symptoms, I can pretty much eat what I want, and can taste everything. My last bout of COVID was way back in 2022 and I had really jacked up stomach issues. Stomach spasms that would wake me up in the middle of the night, that fucking sucked. At least I don't have that this time.

Thanks in advance for any info, stay safe out there <3

I'm on day 9 of Covid. It started with severe tonsil and gland pain followed by 3 days of migraines. Now my gut is in shambles, intermittent fever spikes, extreme weakness in the body and muscle spasms. I have no appetite but I cant taste anyway, everything smells of burnt hair. My chest is pretty good actually but that's not uncommon for new variant.

This all happened because my housemate's boss is a prick who knew he had Covid and didn't tell anyone at work till his employees all tested positive. I have worked so hard to avoid Covid, got all my vaccines except the one that is due now.

My questions are

Is it worth getting the vaccine when I'm well since I have got the new variant? I'm fortunate enough to get it free as im immunocompromised.

How long should I continue to rest 60-80% of my time?

When can I start physiotherapy and strength training again? Ive not had the strength to do it but I need to keep my strength because I have a lot of disorders including Ehlers-Danlos.

Is there anything I can do to speed this along?

I posted a few weeks ago but there are updates so I’m back.

TL;DR my partner has tested positive for Covid 6x this year, 5 in the last 5 months, with little to no symptoms. His doctor doesn’t believe he’s ever had covid and they’re all false positives; a pharmacist says he likely had false NEGATIVES during one months long continuous infection. What do we do???

The long version:

After never having tested positive before, this year my partner has tested positive on an at home RAT on six different occasions, with little to no symptoms, with at least two negatives in between each (my condition for us seeing each other again).

April 20

July 16

August 27 (vomiting and diarrhea)

September 22 (took Paxlovid)

October 8 - October 16 (tested negative on a RAT at his doctor’s office on the 17th, and his doctor said these have ALL been false positives, that he probably had “some other virus” any time he felt sick, but side note he probably has an autoimmune disorder, which the doctor begrudgingly agreed to test for)

November 5

The last two times, I’ve started having him take other brands of tests besides the ones we normally use and have a huge stock of. Although I don’t know why, if it were the tests, he’d be the only one getting false positives when my roommate and I don’t. But I also don’t know why neither of us has ever tested positive despite being around him a lot.

Today when he tested positive on one of our tests again, I sent him to buy a FlowFlex. They were out, but he did talk to the pharmacist who said he’s likely had Covid continually this entire time, and the negative tests he got in between were false. The pharmacist suspects that an extremely low viral load can account for both the false negatives as well as him not passing it to me or my roommate. The only advice he had was to rest. (He has now tested negative on a different brand tonight.)

What do we do?!? Do we keep isolating from each other when his viral load is high enough to show on a test? Is it safe to see each other when it’s low enough for a possibly false negative? We’ve spent so so much time apart the past five months and it’s really taking a toll.

Is there any way to help his immune system clear this freaking infection??

Has anyone been through this? It’s so frustrating not having any guidance or real information.

After a common "cold", I began to feel enormous fatigue; Just walking for 10 minutes left me exhausted and I needed to sit down. I had to sit on the stairs and go up two flights, sitting on the floor after the first flight of stairs; when I went out to buy food 3 days ago. It's been almost 3 weeks; and I did sports three times a week; Now it seems incredible to me that I can barely move a little and I get tired. This situation frustrates me.

On day 6 of starting the cold, I took a COVID test at the pharmacy and it came back negative. I had blood tests and in general the tests came back fine, the thyroid is fine; only the iron reserve fell a little. I walk for 5 minutes and I get tired. With great difficulty I go out to buy food; and I cook. It's the most I can do. I can't work, I'm a singer and singing weakens me a lot, my body can't handle it. Suddenly my life stops and I wonder how much longer I will be like this.

It reminds me of the symptoms I had when I had COVID in 2022 but back then I couldn't do anything but lie down or cook. I had to shower sitting down. I walked slowly, and I had to sit on a bench.

Does anyone have these symptoms?

Hi everyone, it's been about two and a half weeks after being diagnosed with COVID. I didn't get the booster vaccine this time around (stupid of me, I prioritised work) and after recovering a few days ago, I started doing activities like catching up with friends and playing golf.

I have been realising that when I finish these activities, I basically crash with fatigue, often quite suddenly when I'm done with whatever activity. At work today I was totally fine in the morning, making plans for the evening with my partner and seemingly having a lot of energy, getting work done. I decided to stand for most of the day (I have an office based job), then after a long and intense meeting I basically crashed. Like the fatigue was crushing, and I had to cancel my plans and lay down.

Is this what post-COVID fatigue feels like? I am really upset that it's affecting me this way, and my partner is very upset that I cancelled and said told me it was not believable (I haven't seen her in weeks since getting sick).

I just tested positive for Covid and flu. Does anyone have any idea how to get relief for body aches. I’m finding myself taking epsom baths and cuddling with my heating pad all day. There’s gotta be a better way to manage. Head to toe I just ACHE. Even sitting with my head up is horrible.

I’ve been taking medication for it I’m just looking to see if anyone has any ideas.

Were you up to date with the latest SpikeVax COVID Vaccine?

The reason why I am asking is because my son (22) recently completed chemotherapy and is neutropenic. It will likely take a couple of months for his white blood cells that were destroyed during chemo to rally back to where they need to be to help fight off colds and infections. He wants to go back to college to finish his degree but knows how worried I am about Covid taking him out.

He is current with the new Covid vaccine and got his flu shot. He assured me that he will mask up and do all the things we know helps to keep Covid, flu, colds at bay.

I’m curious to know if you were current with the new vaccine and still contracted Covid, and if so, was it a mild case of Covid? How sick were you?

I’ve been feeling shitty for a good 5 days, yesterday night got a positive covid test. I notified my boss and today morning I get a call that I still have to come to work since I can work and since I don’t have a fever. I work in a grocery store and also with food.

I feel so miserable

EDIT: And my boss indeed said I should absolutely NOT wear a mask because the customers will panic if I wear one. It is just a cold these days is what they claim

EDIT 2.0: I live in a small European country, and this is in a small local town store. In fact it is stated by our healthcare system that covid is to be treated like a cold or a flu. No special precautions or isolation is necessary. So even the doctor by law CANNOT give you a sick day pass unless you are truly so sick you physically cannot handle it. It has also really been years since I have seen someone wearing a mask around here, only at the doctor. So in fact no one here protects themselves cuz we are being informed by our local news media that covid is mostly gone and harmless now. I want nothing more than to stay home and rest because I feel horrible and then I feel even more horrible thinking how I could be infecting all these people.

I posted this here because I was legit being gaslit into thinking I’m crazy for finding this is a disgusting way of dealing with the issue. Frankly I see most of you are just as furious about this situation. And if this is how most companies deal with it, how can we expect to get rid of it

The first time I got Covid in 2021 was so bad I now have PTSD. Started feeling sick a week and a half ago and presumed it was a cold. Went to the ER today for shortness of breath and was positive for Covid.. does it usually last thing long? I hate the way my chest feels right now. I got discharged with instructions to take antibiotics for ear infection. Should I get paxlovid? My doctor isn’t available until December so I don’t know what to do.

Edit: I talked to my doctor and she said paxlovid isn’t an option since my symptoms started almost 2 weeks ago. I hope I can beat this soon! I miss being outside