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Life after Covid - nine months later

It's been nine months since I contracted Covid-19. About eight months since I 'recovered'.

I had a pretty bad case and there were several times I thought I would probably die. My oxygen levels got into very low nineties, but that was not the problem. My biggest concern was my heart rate, which stayed above 120 through most of my sickness. My blood pressure was something like 190 over 140 when I went to the emergency room. I felt it was only a matter of time before my heart would fail, after a non-stop marathon that went on day after day.

But I don't want to delve into my Covid case, or the absurd circumstances leading to my contracting the desease - that's a story for another time. This post is about the after-effects of Covid.

Physical

After a month of Covid I recovered quickly and without any major issues. My partner was not so lucky, and showed severe thyroid problems. Luckily declined the medication (which would have shut down her thyroid completely and left her dependent on medications for the rest of her life), and after a few months of careful diet her thyroid numbers recovered to a not-great-but-tolerable state.

I can't smell shit and farts. Makes picking up after my dog a better experience.

I can taste everything, but my sense of taste shifted somewhat. Olives taste awful - like they are completely spoiled. In fact many foods have taken on that particular awful taste. Foods I used to like - like bananas and ginger. Coke and Pepsi taste like pure poison - awful chemical taste. No loss there.

Mental

I am much stupider than I was when I started.

This is a bit hard to quantify. Before Covid I had some ADHD issues, which got a lot worse. A lot. I am much more distractable, and often forget why I went to another room. Several times a day I catch myself being unable to remember a name or some specific detail of some interaction. It's difficult for me to think through all the steps of a problem, and after getting into a small bureaucratic disaster, I am avoiding making any important decisions.

Some of it is likely not Covid, but the stress of the initial situation, further escalated by subsequent death of a close friend and other emergencies. There is some serious PTSD when I am around people, especially when it comes to eating.

I use my brain often, and I ride it hard, writing code. I definitely feel it. My motivation is not quite there, and I often just give up and take a walk. Luckily, I am not doing anything important or time-critical, but there are a few researchy projects that are important to me that are now on permanent hold. I miss the feeling of deep immersion and completely grasping a complete system in my head, channeling code, flow...

I don't enjoy music nearly as much as before. I was a violinist in my earlier life, have perfect pitch and music was always a big part of my life. I don't know if I managed to listen to an entire album in the last 8 months. I get restless and annoyed.

Takeway

It annoys me to see people act irresponsibly. Wearing a mask and getting vaxed is a kindness to others who may not do so well.

I feel lucky to be on this planet - it was a close call. I am happy with whatever I have left of my brain. When things quiet down with family emergencies, I think I'll be able to go back to hacking some code. I am definitely not as smart as before, but I was _really_ smart, so I am still pretty smart, whatever smart means. It's humbling to have my Algernon experience.