From Newsgroup: rec.sport.tennis
HELSINKI resident Emma Lyra, 27, fell ill with severe coronavirus in
March 2020, when the disease had just arrived in Finland. As an
asthmatic, Lyra had such severe breathing difficulties that she felt
like she was suffocating. Lyra was taken to the hospital.
rCLI didnrCOt get treatment. They didnrCOt think I had coronavirus because I hadnrCOt been to Italy.rCY
Later, her coronavirus diagnosis was confirmed.
But in March 2020, Lyra lay in her studio apartment with a fever and
labored breathing. Lyra suffered from arrhythmia and paralyzing fatigue.
rCLI was so exhausted that I crawled to the door and dragged the grocery
bag towards the refrigerator half a meter at a time, resting in
betweenrCY, Lyra describes.
She was terrified of her poor condition and shocked that she was not
receiving treatment.
rCLI was on the verge of death,rCY Lyra says.
After two weeks, the symptoms changed. Breathing became easier, and the flu-like feeling subsided. According to Lyra, however, what remained was
a bottomless fatigue and a host of other symptoms: arrhythmia, pallor,
mild fever, pain in the joints and various parts of the body, electric shock-like tingling, and the occasional loss of short-term memory and
speech.
Lyra had to put her studies at the Sibelius Academy on hold.
About three months after falling ill, in the summer of 2020, Lyra (then Myllynen) told about her experiences with the prolonged coronavirus
disease in an article in Helsingin Sanomat. In the picture in the
article, Lyra is sitting in a wheelchair because she was afraid that she
would not be able to return home on her own.
NOW, six years later, Lyra has recovered, but time did not heal her.
Over time, her condition only worsened. Most of the time, Lyra could not
even sit. This continued for several years.
rCLIn good times, I was able to heat up microwave food for myself and lie
down in my studio apartment, in bad times, I had to live with my
parents, and I even had to be fed and helped to the bathroom with a wheelchair.rCY
In healthcare, Lyra was sent from one specialist to another. After Lyra
had been a bedridden patient for two and a half years, she was losing
hope. Lyra says that she even investigated the possibility of euthanasia.
Then Lyra received an interesting contact. She had occasionally managed
to use her phone and posted on social media groups related to COVID-19. ThatrCOs where Lyra got a tip from a UK-based Mind Body Reconnect neurotherapist.
rCLI was so desperate I was willing to try anything.rCY
Surprisingly, this started the healing process.
LONG COVID, or prolonged COVID-19, is different from the actual COVID-19 infection. Prolonged COVID-19 is triggered by the coronavirus, but not everyone who suffers from it has had a serious COVID-19 infection.
Common symptoms of prolonged COVID-19 include severe fatigue, various
pains, sensory hypersensitivity, and brain fog. Studies have described
more than 200 different symptoms. The disease has been a mystery to
medicine, and there is still no complete consensus on its mechanism.
According to H|-l|?ne Rotkirch Virrantaus, a department physician at the Rehabilitation Unit for Prolonged Symptoms at Hus, most doctors accept
the definition that long COVID is a rCLmultifactorial symptomatology
involving functional mechanisms.rCY
According to Rotkirch Virrantaus, the symptoms are a protective reaction
of the central nervous system rCo a kind of false alarm that causes the
body to exhibit symptoms without any organic defect or damage.
How can a physical symptom indicate something other than damage to the body?
Rotkirch Virrantaus explains: A false alarm in the central nervous
system can arise as a result of any physical or psychological threat,
such as a virus or a traumatic life event. In this case, the biological mechanism of the nervous system reacts without conscious thought. The
reaction is as automatic as a person pulling their hand away from a hot
stove.
Sometimes a cycle is created in which the symptom arouses more fear,
which in turn intensifies the state of alarm and symptoms.
rCLFor example, if a person is exhausted, the central nervous system is sensitive to the stress as a threat. The brain begins to anticipate: if
I do that thing, I wonrCOt get exhausted again,rCY says Rotkirch Virrantaus.
Prolonged coronavirus disease is thus like an extremely strong state of hypervigilance, which is, however, completely curable. This observation
is supported by a recent study by the University of Turku, in which
imaging revealed that long covid does not cause a widespread
inflammatory state in the brain. Instead, the emotional regulation areas
of the brain are in overdrive.
The same mechanism is also seen to cause, for example, fibromyalgia, environmental sensitivities and chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS).
IN FINLAND, all symptoms that arise in the central nervous system,
called functional disorders, are treated by the Hus Rehabilitation Unit
for Prolonged Symptoms. There, patients are tried to be rehabilitated by changing their behavior and strengthening their sense of security. The rehabilitator is guided to approach the symptoms with curiosity instead
of fear and to respond to false alarms in a new way. The aim is to break
the conditioning to the symptoms.
rCLIf, for example, you immediately lie down when you feel a symptom, you
are signaling to the brain that the symptom was an appropriate reaction
to the situation. Instead, you can try to think that it is interesting
and funny that my nervous system is now reacting so strongly. Then it is
worth continuing what you were doing. Changing your activity causes
changes in the brain.rCY
According to Rotkirch Virrantaus, Hus's treatment is based on recent
research evidence and the World Health Organization's long covid
treatment recommendations.
However, Hus's methods have also been criticized. Some patients have experienced that Hus claims that they cause their symptoms themselves,
for example through incorrect thinking. Some have experienced that the symptoms have become more difficult as a result of treatment.
rCLWhen you start responding to symptoms in a new way, the symptoms often
get worse at first, before the false alarm is returned to rest and the symptoms begin to ease,rCY says Rotkirch Virrantaus.
According to him, due to the intensity of the symptoms, it can be
difficult to believe that it is a central nervous system alarm. The
patient may be very worried that the symptoms are due to an organic
defect and the idea that it should be treated with medication, for example.
Some patients, on the other hand, do not have the resources for rehabilitation.
According to Rotkirch Virrantaus, the majority of patients have
benefited from the treatment, however. Official figures on the treatment prognosis will be published in the near future.
rCLWhen I explain how the symptoms arise, I can sometimes see from the personrCOs expression how the pieces are falling into place and recovery begins.rCY
EMMA Lyra's recovery began with video calls with a British
neurotherapist. Her methods were also based on the idea that physical
symptoms are caused by a nervous system stuck in a state of overactivity.
After just the first month and a half, Lyra was able to walk a kilometer.
According to Lyra, the essential thing about neurotherapy was that she
had to think of herself as healthy but with her nervous system
overloaded. Her brain was stuck in an emergency mode, but there was no
longer any emergency. That's why she had to try to do the normal things
she wanted to do.
"If I had just been told that I could act like I used to, I would never
have believed it. Fortunately, the therapist was able to explain how the brain's threat system works. She was also able to tell me that there was
a physical problem, because my nervous system is on overdrive and
therefore in a state similar to an illness."
The therapist also helped Lyra notice how memories of traumatic
experiences contributed to the worsening of her symptoms. Lyra has food allergies, and she had had anaphylactic shock many times.
When Lyra was in better health, she was also able to receive therapy at Hus.
rCLThe staff told me the same things I had heard in neurotherapy. It
helped me to feel less hopeless. I felt secure that the system was
supporting me.rCY
Lyra has gradually returned to her studies. Her majors are singing and composition. At first, Lyra could only go to university once a week
because it brought up fears that her symptoms would get worse.
rCLI was afraid of many things, including giving up my wheelchair. I also believed that I could only do one or two things a day.rCY
The doctor advised that after a chore, such as cooking or filling out a
form, it is essential to do something that gives you pleasure. Lyra
listened to music, studied French or called her mother.
Lyra still does not study at the same pace as others.
rCLI need three days a week when I can just recover, such as walking in
nature and meeting friends.rCY
Otherwise, Lyra is still starting to experience deep fatigue. However,
she believes that she will be able to get rid of this symptom as well.
Lyra is not worried about her remaining symptoms but is happy to have
her life back. She has already experienced that with the right
treatment, her condition improves.
rCLI know that the symptoms will eventually subside completely.rCY
https://www.hs.fi/lifestyle/art-2000012027464.html
Congrats if you made it here.
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"Cough cough"
-- Suzanne Lenglen
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