After living with COVID for almost a year, we all know what many of the common symptoms are – like fever, dry cough and fatigue. However, there may be a fine line between a mild case of COVID and a severe case requiring hospitalization – and certain symptoms may indicate the latter. A 28-year-old Irish woman named Rachel Gunn went viral after posting about his serious COVID experience on Instagram earlier this month, asking people to pay attention to his warning. “I want to pass this on to anyone who is experiencing a worsening of their symptoms months after COVID, who doesn’t ignore it,” wrote Gunn. She ended up in the hospital and found she had serious complications. To find out which symptoms of COVID you should look for in the hospital, read on and to know another subtle symptom, check If you notice this in your mouth, you may have COVID, warn the experts.
After a positive test for COVID in October, Gunn said he was “quite sick” and “bedridden for two weeks”. She had many of the common symptoms of COVID, including shortness of breath, fatigue, body and head pain. Although she started to feel “semi-better”, she never felt 100 percent. For three months after the so-called recovery, Gunn’s condition continued to worsen and she started to show more symptoms. However, Gunn said he ignored them, imagining that “they would eventually calm down”. But she would regret having ignored her symptoms for so long.
In late December, Gunn’s condition worsened greatly and she experienced another set of frightening symptoms. For a while, she refused her mother’s requests to go to the hospital because she thought she was “making too much noise”. When she finally sought care, a CT scan revealed that her lungs were “covered with pulmonary embolisms. [blood clots], “and his” heart was tense. “Pulmonary embolisms manifest themselves in symptoms very similar to those of COVID, including shortness of breath, coughing and chest pain, according to the Mayo Clinic, which makes it easier to go undetected if you have COVID But the condition can be fatal or permanently compromise lung function.
“I was hospitalized for three days and started taking anticoagulants. Now I have to stay on anticoagulants for at least a year, maybe more, ”wrote Gunn. “Now I am susceptible to blood clots and it will affect my life forever. I am 28 years old, I am active, non-smoker and otherwise healthy.” She added that she feels “extremely lucky to have found out about my clots when I found out”. Now, Gunn wants to share her experience so that others with aggravated COVID symptoms do not ignore them as she did.
These are the five symptoms that Gunn experienced that she says should not be ignored and, for more serious symptoms, check If you have one of these symptoms, the CDC says go to the hospital now.
Gunn was adamant that patients with COVID should not minimize this particular scary symptom. “Extreme shortness of breath should not be ignored,” wrote Gunn. “For almost two weeks, I was so breathless that I couldn’t even climb the stairs without feeling like I was running … even getting up and going to the bathroom was exhausting.” And for the most up-to-date COVID news delivered straight to your inbox, sign up for our daily newsletter.
Gunn said he felt lung pain after exercise, “but he considered these symptoms normal post-COVID, as I was able to spend the day almost normally and do minimal exercise,” she explained. “From what I read, I just had to continue, and the symptoms would eventually get better.” However, Gunn’s lung pain turned out to be indicative of a deeper problem. To see what else can put you at risk for COVID complications, if you have this common condition, you are more likely to have severe COVID.
Gunn said she felt “extreme fatigue” and no amount of sleep would make her feel well rested. She said she would end up sleeping 15 to 16 hours a day and still needed to “spend the whole day in bed”. Although fatigue is one of the most common symptoms of COVID, if you are still feeling extremely exhausted for weeks after recovery, you should speak to a doctor. And for more long-term signs of COVID, check out the 5 scary symptoms of COVID patients, says a new study.
Another symptom that Gunn experienced was heart palpitations, or “feeling like a heart beating fast, throbbing or pounding,” according to the Mayo Clinic. The University of California at San Francisco (UCSF) points out that some patients with COVID have experienced them because the heart’s pumping function has been impaired. If you are having palpitations, UCSF suggests that you have an echocardiogram. And to see which mask you should avoid to stay safe, see The CDC warns against using these 6 face masks.
Although back pain is a very common symptom of COVID, if it persists for weeks after the virus has passed, it can be a sign that something is happening, Gunn warns. Richard Watkins, MD, an infectious disease physician, said Prevention body aches last up to two weeks for most people. If your back pain persists for longer, worsens or is accompanied by significant weight loss or numbness in your limbs, however, you need to speak to a specialist. For more information on this virus effect, see Ellen DeGeneres Says This One COVID Symptom Just Kept Getting Worse.
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