Loved this! It brought to mind my first experience booking special assistance and wheelchair accompaniment for traveling. Even though walking through airports had left me bedbound for weeks, I kept telling myself I wasn't "disabled enough." It takes a lot of unlearning and retraining ourselves to accept the tools at our disposal and you captured this well 😊.
The airport situation is a big one! That’s way more walking than most of us are doing in a day. There’s the added stress of trying to make it to the boarding area on time, too. I’ve been hearing from more and more long haulers who arrange for the special assistance and it’s totally worth it. My question is, do you get to board early too?
Yes honestly since I started getting it I've never looked back. You are accompanied to the gate and able to board early and almost every time you skip any lines as well. It lessens physical barriers, but also a lot of the stress that comes with traveling.
I’ve been using them for over 2yrs and won’t go back. Twice after we boarded the plane, we had to de-plane, and walk to the farthest gate to reboard. That alone would have ruined my trip. Also, when I travel to Virgina to see my parents we always stop in Charlotte. Gate to gate is over a 15 min walk at a fast clip and after a 5hr flight already...Not gonna happen.
LOVED this article! After 3 years of LC I just received my placard last week. I haven’t used it yet because I am currently too ill to drive myself, but I have all of those same anxieties. I keep wanting to put stipulations on when I do/don’t use it but many times I don’t know I need it until after I perform the task at hand. Hearing your experience definitely helps me say Fuck it! After 3 years of hell, I’ve earned this!! ❤️
I am sorry you’re in a dip, Valerie. I was there last week 😔. But I am glad you finally got your placard and I really hope you can bypass all the mental gymnastics that I went through and just know that you are worthy of this assistance. Ultimately, it’s no one else’s business but ours, but the guilt and the analysis means we care about other people, too. So we shouldn’t beat ourselves up too much.
I hope you’ll check back in after a few weeks or so? I’d love to know what your early experience with the placard is like. In the meantime, sending you restful energy 💛
I struggle with anxiety and I finally got up the courage to both get a therapist (felt I didn’t deserve one) and tell my doctor so I didn’t have to suffer while traveling on my honeymoon. WHY is it so hard to ask for help sometimes?? Also our Lemony Snicket tendencies are the SAME - I call it that from the catastrophizing aunt. Our lizard brains are always on high alert. Everything would fall apart if we weren’t, right? Right??? 🤍
Thank you for sharing that about finally asking for help with your anxiety. For some reason, I've always had an easier time asking for help with my mental health than with physical. Getting a therapist can be a real game changer. I hope it's been helpful for you! I keep anti-anxiety meds stashed for the few times a year I absolutely need them and that has definitely also been a game changer. Sometimes life just overwhelms the senses.
My biggest stuck on getting the placard was the “can’t walk 200 ft” criteria. I kept thinking, most days I can. Then I got over myself because I realized this was an opportunity to save energy to use for something I actually care about. If I don’t use it for my sons’ band performance during the high school football game, I have to walk a mile each way to park. I can only last the first half to the halftime show anyway (and still need to recover the following two days).
Thank you for the part in hang dogging. Im guilty of doing that at the airport when I get wheelchair assistance. Every time I have gotten comments (mostly at check in) that so don’t look disabled. I used to feel obligated to educate about long covid and waste spoons on them. I learned to ask what disabled looks like and then just stare as they scramble.
These are two really important examples, Molly. The one about your son’s performance in particular struck me. If this placard helps you be present for such events, it’s 100% worth it. The years showing up for your kids’ performances, recitals, games, etc., go by far too quickly.
I really enjoy your posts and your sense of humor. Thank you!
BTW, my view on Long COVID fatigue is, and has been for months, that it is caused by mitochondrial dysfunction. This aspect of LC is treatable but requires understanding and sticking with the plan (supporting mitochondria and consistently reducing inflammation).
Thanks so much, Mardi! Glad you’re enjoying them ☺️
I am definitely working on my mitochondria. In addition to diet and supplements, I just got a red/near infrared light box. Lots of studies showing this is great for mitochondrial health. We’ll see!
Hi Amy, I think that you listed the pro mitochondrial supplements that you were taking at one point. My recollection is that you seemed to be missing a comprehensive B-Complex. The point here is that mitochondria require all of the B-vitamins during the production of ATP.
My strategy has been to use all of the tools, not try to pick and choose among the supplements. And then sustain the effort. Sustaining effort to support biogenesis is needed along with simply providing substrate for them to make ATP. Keeping inflammation as low as possible is also part of my strategy. Inflammation damages mitochondria, so I keep it low.
You likely know that making ATP from glucose is inherently inflammatory. Thus, during the healing phase, I used a ketone fuel, MCT oil. I found that using this as part of the protocol over several months (for myself and others who follow this protocol) seems to reduce fatigue and supports biogenesis. I was able to back off using it after about 6 months. I was taking just a teaspoon of MCT oil, 3x per day with a little extra if I was feeling tired. It worked wonders.
My view is that to beat this LC, a comprehensive and sustained effort is needed. Cut inflammatory foods and other factors out, support the mitochondria until they are back to pre-COVID energy levels, take care regarding stress since it can set you back and be cautious about other forms of exertion. Take on exertion stepwise.
Two years ago I was barely able to walk out to my car, never mind gardening or playing with my dogs. Now I play with them, take walks without effort, mow the lawn with a hand (not riding) mower and work in the garden at will. My mind is clear. I seem to be able to write and do my work as an editor of scientific research papers. That said, there are frustrating glitches in my speech from time to time and occasional blind spots in my memory.
Keep up the good work with your posts. You obviously put a great deal of effort into them.
Thanks Mardi! No, it wasn’t me you were thinking of with the B-complex. I’ve been taking one daily since before the pandemic. I’ve also been using Energenesis mitochondrial support powder, which has like 15 of the key supplements in it. I only recently introduced MCT oil but I need to do more reading on this. I’ll go back to your posts. My diet is already pristine from an anti-inflammatory perspective.
Stress is a hard one. I manage it as much as I can but it cannot be entirely avoided (for anyone, I would think). I’m pacing and getting my body calm throughout the day.
There is some concern about MCT oil, especially if it comes in the form of coconut oil. We use organic LIQUID (not solid) coconut oil in our house. It is pure medium chair fatty acids. The criticisms are based on the concern that it could be similar to long chain fatty acids, as a risk factor for cardiovascular disease. I can agree with this perspective IF used in excess. Bacon, butter, short ribs, etc have much more fat. This is a small amount, used theraputically over a relatively short period of time.
In the early days of treating my mitochondria, it was clearly the difference between being collapsed on the sofa and being able to function. My fatigue at that point was sometimes nearly narcoleptic but a spoonful of MCT oil would rescue me in a matter of a few minutes. I still carry it in my car, just in case one of these episodes should pop up.
I suspect that you will, once you find the right path, heal up more quickly than I did. I suspect that you are younger and if so, your mitochondria may be more plentiful and vital than mine had become.
I just happened to buy liquid coconut oil that says it’s 90% MCT. I’ve been putting a little in my Energenesis smoothies but I must not be putting enough.
I’m 48 now; I was 44 when I got COVID. So I’ve had LC for 3.5 years. I am still very hopeful about recovery but a little concerned that maybe some more serious damage has already been done. It just cannot be good to be inflamed for this long. A year ago, my endo discovered I was pre-diabetic. A few months later, high total cholesterol and LDL. My TSH levels are all over the map after 20+ years at stable levels. I hope you are right that I can recover quickly but I’m just not sure.
Do you use the Energenesis smoothies every day or as directed? I'm curious also if you try consuming the MCT oil at a different time, ie, not with the smoothie.
Loved this! It brought to mind my first experience booking special assistance and wheelchair accompaniment for traveling. Even though walking through airports had left me bedbound for weeks, I kept telling myself I wasn't "disabled enough." It takes a lot of unlearning and retraining ourselves to accept the tools at our disposal and you captured this well 😊.
The airport situation is a big one! That’s way more walking than most of us are doing in a day. There’s the added stress of trying to make it to the boarding area on time, too. I’ve been hearing from more and more long haulers who arrange for the special assistance and it’s totally worth it. My question is, do you get to board early too?
Yes honestly since I started getting it I've never looked back. You are accompanied to the gate and able to board early and almost every time you skip any lines as well. It lessens physical barriers, but also a lot of the stress that comes with traveling.
excellent, Naïma! Thank you for sharing that.
I’ve been using them for over 2yrs and won’t go back. Twice after we boarded the plane, we had to de-plane, and walk to the farthest gate to reboard. That alone would have ruined my trip. Also, when I travel to Virgina to see my parents we always stop in Charlotte. Gate to gate is over a 15 min walk at a fast clip and after a 5hr flight already...Not gonna happen.
LOVED this article! After 3 years of LC I just received my placard last week. I haven’t used it yet because I am currently too ill to drive myself, but I have all of those same anxieties. I keep wanting to put stipulations on when I do/don’t use it but many times I don’t know I need it until after I perform the task at hand. Hearing your experience definitely helps me say Fuck it! After 3 years of hell, I’ve earned this!! ❤️
I am sorry you’re in a dip, Valerie. I was there last week 😔. But I am glad you finally got your placard and I really hope you can bypass all the mental gymnastics that I went through and just know that you are worthy of this assistance. Ultimately, it’s no one else’s business but ours, but the guilt and the analysis means we care about other people, too. So we shouldn’t beat ourselves up too much.
I hope you’ll check back in after a few weeks or so? I’d love to know what your early experience with the placard is like. In the meantime, sending you restful energy 💛
Lesson #1. Cats are buttheads lol.
I struggle with anxiety and I finally got up the courage to both get a therapist (felt I didn’t deserve one) and tell my doctor so I didn’t have to suffer while traveling on my honeymoon. WHY is it so hard to ask for help sometimes?? Also our Lemony Snicket tendencies are the SAME - I call it that from the catastrophizing aunt. Our lizard brains are always on high alert. Everything would fall apart if we weren’t, right? Right??? 🤍
Cats ARE buttheads, it's true!
Thank you for sharing that about finally asking for help with your anxiety. For some reason, I've always had an easier time asking for help with my mental health than with physical. Getting a therapist can be a real game changer. I hope it's been helpful for you! I keep anti-anxiety meds stashed for the few times a year I absolutely need them and that has definitely also been a game changer. Sometimes life just overwhelms the senses.
My biggest stuck on getting the placard was the “can’t walk 200 ft” criteria. I kept thinking, most days I can. Then I got over myself because I realized this was an opportunity to save energy to use for something I actually care about. If I don’t use it for my sons’ band performance during the high school football game, I have to walk a mile each way to park. I can only last the first half to the halftime show anyway (and still need to recover the following two days).
Thank you for the part in hang dogging. Im guilty of doing that at the airport when I get wheelchair assistance. Every time I have gotten comments (mostly at check in) that so don’t look disabled. I used to feel obligated to educate about long covid and waste spoons on them. I learned to ask what disabled looks like and then just stare as they scramble.
These are two really important examples, Molly. The one about your son’s performance in particular struck me. If this placard helps you be present for such events, it’s 100% worth it. The years showing up for your kids’ performances, recitals, games, etc., go by far too quickly.
Another great article, Amy. I’ve been sharing! So far everyone who I’ve shared with has been extremely complimentary. Keep ‘em coming Sissy.
Aww, thanks seester 🫶🏻. Hopefully they are subscribing after they’re admiring 😬. It means a lot to me that you’re sharing them 💛
Hi Amy,
I really enjoy your posts and your sense of humor. Thank you!
BTW, my view on Long COVID fatigue is, and has been for months, that it is caused by mitochondrial dysfunction. This aspect of LC is treatable but requires understanding and sticking with the plan (supporting mitochondria and consistently reducing inflammation).
Thanks so much, Mardi! Glad you’re enjoying them ☺️
I am definitely working on my mitochondria. In addition to diet and supplements, I just got a red/near infrared light box. Lots of studies showing this is great for mitochondrial health. We’ll see!
Your sense of humor makes me smile.
Hi Amy, I think that you listed the pro mitochondrial supplements that you were taking at one point. My recollection is that you seemed to be missing a comprehensive B-Complex. The point here is that mitochondria require all of the B-vitamins during the production of ATP.
My strategy has been to use all of the tools, not try to pick and choose among the supplements. And then sustain the effort. Sustaining effort to support biogenesis is needed along with simply providing substrate for them to make ATP. Keeping inflammation as low as possible is also part of my strategy. Inflammation damages mitochondria, so I keep it low.
You likely know that making ATP from glucose is inherently inflammatory. Thus, during the healing phase, I used a ketone fuel, MCT oil. I found that using this as part of the protocol over several months (for myself and others who follow this protocol) seems to reduce fatigue and supports biogenesis. I was able to back off using it after about 6 months. I was taking just a teaspoon of MCT oil, 3x per day with a little extra if I was feeling tired. It worked wonders.
My view is that to beat this LC, a comprehensive and sustained effort is needed. Cut inflammatory foods and other factors out, support the mitochondria until they are back to pre-COVID energy levels, take care regarding stress since it can set you back and be cautious about other forms of exertion. Take on exertion stepwise.
Two years ago I was barely able to walk out to my car, never mind gardening or playing with my dogs. Now I play with them, take walks without effort, mow the lawn with a hand (not riding) mower and work in the garden at will. My mind is clear. I seem to be able to write and do my work as an editor of scientific research papers. That said, there are frustrating glitches in my speech from time to time and occasional blind spots in my memory.
Keep up the good work with your posts. You obviously put a great deal of effort into them.
Cheers!
Thanks Mardi! No, it wasn’t me you were thinking of with the B-complex. I’ve been taking one daily since before the pandemic. I’ve also been using Energenesis mitochondrial support powder, which has like 15 of the key supplements in it. I only recently introduced MCT oil but I need to do more reading on this. I’ll go back to your posts. My diet is already pristine from an anti-inflammatory perspective.
Stress is a hard one. I manage it as much as I can but it cannot be entirely avoided (for anyone, I would think). I’m pacing and getting my body calm throughout the day.
There is some concern about MCT oil, especially if it comes in the form of coconut oil. We use organic LIQUID (not solid) coconut oil in our house. It is pure medium chair fatty acids. The criticisms are based on the concern that it could be similar to long chain fatty acids, as a risk factor for cardiovascular disease. I can agree with this perspective IF used in excess. Bacon, butter, short ribs, etc have much more fat. This is a small amount, used theraputically over a relatively short period of time.
In the early days of treating my mitochondria, it was clearly the difference between being collapsed on the sofa and being able to function. My fatigue at that point was sometimes nearly narcoleptic but a spoonful of MCT oil would rescue me in a matter of a few minutes. I still carry it in my car, just in case one of these episodes should pop up.
I suspect that you will, once you find the right path, heal up more quickly than I did. I suspect that you are younger and if so, your mitochondria may be more plentiful and vital than mine had become.
I just happened to buy liquid coconut oil that says it’s 90% MCT. I’ve been putting a little in my Energenesis smoothies but I must not be putting enough.
I’m 48 now; I was 44 when I got COVID. So I’ve had LC for 3.5 years. I am still very hopeful about recovery but a little concerned that maybe some more serious damage has already been done. It just cannot be good to be inflamed for this long. A year ago, my endo discovered I was pre-diabetic. A few months later, high total cholesterol and LDL. My TSH levels are all over the map after 20+ years at stable levels. I hope you are right that I can recover quickly but I’m just not sure.
Do you use the Energenesis smoothies every day or as directed? I'm curious also if you try consuming the MCT oil at a different time, ie, not with the smoothie.