'Getting out of bed isn't an option, and speaking is a chore'

Rebecca Griffin, with her twin boys Alex and Seb, 11, at their home in Co Kildare. Rebecca who contracted the Corona virus in mid March has had since then, chronic fatigue, breathing problems and heart palpitations. Photograph: Moya Nolan

Rebecca Griffin from Castlewarden in Kildare has 'long Covid'. She first started experiencing symptoms of Covid-19 the day before St Patrick's Day.

"I had a dry cough, a tightness in my chest. I worked that Wednesday after St Patrick's Day, as I was working from home, but by that afternoon I was so exhausted. The cough got worse, I just didn't feel well."

She rang her GP who referred her for a test and told her to self-isolate. 

Ten days later, she received a text saying her test had been cancelled. "That was because I never had a temperature throughout the whole thing," she says.

For three weeks, Ms Griffin had mild to moderate symptoms. 

"Some days I was in bed and I couldn't move. I had heart palpitations, I had a cough. Other days I was up and about, and kind of okay," she explains.

Around mid April, she felt better. However, by May, she was still having difficulty breathing and her heart kept racing. She ended up in hospital and was diagnosed with pleurisy.

By the first week in July, she was so fatigued she had to ring her boss to ask for time off. 

"I couldn't lift my head off the pillow. I could hardly speak to my husband with fatigue. 

I have been off work ever since with really severe, inhibiting fatigue. Getting out of bed isn't an option, and speaking is a chore.

Ms Griffin still has heart palpitations and breathing trouble. She has been referred for a cardiology check-up in November.

"The fatigue is just indescribable, it's like being in a boxing ring."

Ms Griffin works for a pharmaceutical company and would have been driving a lot for work. Now, she can't often get behind the wheel, and even going for a walk is difficult.

She says her husband and her twin sons, who are 11, have been a great help to her: "There are people out there who have very young children who are really struggling."

While she was never tested for Covid-19, she is certain she had the virus as she had all of the symptoms.

She says it has been a struggle for people to understand and believe people with 'long Covid', but there is more awareness now.

Ms Griffin is part of a support group on Facebook, which was set up for those still suffering from Covid. She says the group has been great, and she also finds reflexology and acupuncture help her energy levels.

"It's about gauging your expectations. I have to look at the smaller picture, if I can get the kids to school, but have to rest for the rest of the day, that's okay and it's still an achievement."