A woman with coronavirus opens up about the mental health side effects
By now, many of us are familiar with the physical symptoms of coronavirus, which include a fever and dry cough, and potentially a loss of taste and smell. There's also been plenty said on the importance of keeping on top your mental wellbeing during lockdown too, but less so on how testing positive for COVID-19 can impact on your mental health.
One Twitter user, Maggie Astor, a reporter from New York, shared her (and her husband's) experience of coronavirus and how it left her feeling increasingly anxious. Alongside their severe physical symptoms, which included "coughing so violently I almost threw up several times", Maggie said she suffered from panic attacks too. Panic attacks can have similar side effects to coronavirus, such as difficulty breathing.
"Frankly, much of the past two weeks is a blur of anxiety. Fun fact: Panic attacks make you feel like you can’t breathe. This is bad when you’ve been told to stay home 'unless you have trouble breathing',” she outlined in one tweet.
In another Maggie explained that at times she struggled to differentiate between anxiety and the physical effects of the virus. "After a coughing fit, my whole body would be shaking and I’d have to lie down. I kept getting chills and cold sweats despite not having a fever anymore. My chest felt tight and I didn’t know if it was from the virus or from anxiety."
After a coughing fit, my whole body would be shaking and I’d have to lie down. I kept getting chills and cold sweats despite not having a fever anymore. My chest felt tight and I didn’t know if it was from the virus or from anxiety. 11/x
— Maggie Astor (@MaggieAstor) April 6, 2020
Maggie also mentioned that she spoke to her therapist throughout her sickness and said that receiving emails that began "Sorry to bother you" were actually helpful, as they reminded her that "things still exist outside this apartment", which she was self-isolating in. It's pretty understandable that your mood would get low while being so unwell and caring for a loved one in a similar boat.
At one point, I told my therapist I’d gotten many check-in emails prefaced with some form of “sorry to bother you.”
I said, “But they’re not bothering me — they’re reminding me that things still exist outside this apartment,” and started crying so hard I couldn’t speak. 16/x— Maggie Astor (@MaggieAstor) April 6, 2020
Our very best wishes go out to Maggie and her husband, both of whom are still recovering but who have now hopefully come through the worst of it all.
The information in this story is accurate as of the publication date. While we are attempting to keep our content as up-to-date as possible, the situation surrounding the coronavirus pandemic continues to develop rapidly, so it's possible that some information and recommendations may have changed since publishing. For any concerns and latest advice, visit the World Health Organisation. If you're in the UK, the National Health Service can also provide useful information and support, while US users can contact the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
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