I am a 50 year-old software engineer living with long COVD.

I tested positive for COVID in early August, 2023. My symptoms were very mild. Over and over again I thought I was recovered and returned to work, got exhausted, and crashed. Finally I took medical leave and rested 2.5 months. Then I tried returning to work again, but did not have the stamina even for half days, so now I’m back on medical leave.

Before COVID I was very active, woodworking with hand tools, mowing my grass with an old fashioned reel mower, kayak fishing, walking 2.5 miles every day, not to mention working every day. Now I’m only able to do a tiny fraction of what I used to.

My main symptom is fatigue, but sometimes I also have some brain fog, a weird feeling in my head I call “bobblehead,” and chills. I have been diagnosed with the chronic fatigue syndrome phenotype of long COVID.

You may not want to listen to me. I have no medical training. Furthermore, I’m still in the middle of long COVID.

However, I hope that writing down my experiences could help someone else. Writing is also a way to rehab my brain so I can get back to work.

I have no sponsors, affiliate links, or other financial interests related to these articles.

Remember I am only sharing my experience. Long COVID looks very different for different people.