new insight into why more men are dying of covid than women
according to the world health organization, 56 per cent of worldwide covid-19 deaths have been in men
the body politic covid-19 support group believes in patients. what started as a small instagram group chat has evolved into a massive slack channel with more than 7,000 active members worldwide who have struggled with covid-19. there are channels for patients from every country, those who have had symptoms for more than 30 days, more than 90 days, caretakers of sick friends or family, and for every single symptom or organ system affected. members discuss and support each other through all aspects of covid-19, from mental health struggles to navigating through financial and employment concerns.
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healthing spoke with three women who are members of body politic and currently living with the long-term effects of covid-19.
by march 17, she developed such severe shortness of breath to the point where walking just a few steps around her one-bedroom boston apartment left her completely winded and gasping for air. she had a fever, dry cough, nonstop migraines, loss of taste and smell, and purple lesions on her feet, now known as covid toes . after a test, the worst was confirmed: she had the novel coronavirus.
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“i’m lucky enough to have that positive test on file because a lot of people have covid but don’t have that positive test. it really makes a difference when you get the test done .”
for the majority of long-haulers, covid-19 post-exertional malaise can make one bedridden even after a simple task like walking to the kitchen. nichols, who used to walk six miles a day pre-covid, would now get dizzy easily and forget how to do the simplest of things.
these days, the mornings are the hardest. nichols’s employer has allowed her to change her schedule so she starts work at 11 a.m.
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the first telltale sign that trozzo had the virus was when she made bacon and eggs for breakfast a week and a half later and found she couldn’t taste anything — a reported symptom of covid-19 .
when trozzo went to the hospital, the doctor gave her an antibiotic and recommended a covid test. the technician struggled with a stiff wooden swab and said the swab wasn’t going “where it needed to go.” wooden shafts are not recommended for pcr tests. another technician later told trozzo she might have been using a throat swab. the test was negative.
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while the other symptoms have since mostly subsided, trozzo continues to experience shortness of breath and is now getting random body pain. she has seen a neurologist, a rheumatologist who told her she doesn’t have an autoimmune disease, and a hematologist for blood clotting. she has also had another covid-19 test — this time with the correct swab. once again, the result was negative.
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dduong@postmedia.com
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@dianaduo
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