According to the World Health Organization, more than 190 million people have caught COVID-19 since late 2019. Many more individuals are believed to have had the illness but never had a verified test result. While many recover from COVID in a matter of weeks, for some, it can be a problem that lasts for months, even years.
Most Common Symptoms
People describe various symptoms: breathing difficulties or shortness of breath, a cough, chest or stomach pains, headache, and so on. Persistent shortness of breath, palpitations, and dizziness are frequent COVID-19 symptoms found predominantly in otherwise healthy young to middle-aged people. Losing your taste and smell can be one of the most common symptoms. If you’ve had any of these symptoms during the pandemic and didn’t have a proper COVID test, you might have had the virus.
When Did You Get Infected?
This question may not have a simple answer. Many individuals believe they contracted COVID between December 2019 and February 2020. Still, evidence suggests otherwise – they have no antibodies, and officials insist the virus wasn’t present at that time of the year.
Can You Have Long-Term COVID?
While we know that obesity, diabetes, smoking, and chronic diseases can lead to severe outcomes for people infected with COVID-19, these risk factors have not been well linked with long COVID. Even those with no symptoms during infection can have long COVID—making the long-term illness a big mystery.
Stay Safe
Follow public health advice to help stop the epidemic. No matter where you live – get vaccinated or boosted. Wear a mask whenever possible. Don’t travel, keep social distancing, avoid huge gatherings, and practice basic hand hygiene. Be safe and keep others safe.
