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Post-Covid Rehabilitation

Post-Covid Rehabilitation

Many people around the world have been affected by COVID-19, which causes the following symptoms:

 Feeling hot on the chest or back when you touch it.

 Continuous coughing - this means coughing for more than an hour, or 3 cough episodes within 24 hours.

 Absence of taste or smell.

Patients who require intensive care support to assist with their breathing sometimes experience muscle weakness, fatigue, and shortness of breath as a result of their hospitalization. Being ill can take a long time to make you feel like yourself again, especially after a long illness. It can take a different amount of time for different people.

As you recover from COVID-19, breathing techniques, general mobility and strengthening exercises will help to improve your day-to-day function. Dr. Shraddha Patil at Healthy Joints recommends that you complete these exercises daily.

Fatigue

Patients recovering from COVID-19 often experience a feeling of tiredness and exhaustion both physically and mentally caused by gentle exertion, this will improve in time. During your illness you will probably have lost some weight and muscle strength, and your joints may be stiff. It is estimated that you will have lost 2% of your muscle mass each day during your illness.

The only way to recover and to get stronger is to walk and exercise “little and often”. It is important to pace your activities so you don’t do everything in one go. Decide on the number of activities you need to do that day or even across the week, then make a plan to spread out the activities so you have adequate rest periods.

Sleep

Whilst in hospital, your usual sleep routine may have been disrupted by the busy environment, side effects of medications and care delivered to you night and day. Problems with sleeping after you have left hospital are common and do get better with time.

Try some relaxation techniques like mindfulness, meditation or even relaxing activities like listening to gentle music or reading a book before bed. It is best to avoid blue light from TV, phone and computer screens before bed as this can keep the brain alert.

Mood

Patients following a long stay in hospital may develop anxiety, low mood, depression, post-traumatic stress these are normal reactions to being critically ill. It is important to accept that it will take time to recover physically and psychologically. It is important to speak with those you are close to.

Appearance

Your appearance may have changed, such as hair loss or a change in your skin's condition. Your appearance can also be affected if you have lost weight and muscle mass. It is likely that these problems will improve over time as your diet, exercise, sleep, and self-care improve. The scars you may have from previous treatments will fade over time and become less obvious.

post-covid-rehabilitation by Dr. Shraddha Patil in, at Heakthy Joints Clinic

Family relationships

There may be times when you feel overprotected by family and friends due to their different reactions to you. Their recovery will also require some time since they have been through an anxious and stressful time. To cope with your period of illness, talking about these feelings with your family can be helpful.

Sexual health

It's common for people to worry about when it's safe to resume sexual activity after a period of inactivity. You should do this gradually according to how you're feeling at the time.

Dr. Shraddha Patil, our expert physiotherapist, evaluates all aspects of physical fitness, cardiovascular endurance, and muscle performance. In addition to it, the current performance on fitness tests is also determined. Adapted exercise programs are developed according to test results to improve physical fitness and allow early return to work. There are several components to the comprehensive training program:

1. Exercises to improve breathing and mobility.

2. Cardiovascular endurance training with treadmill walking / stepping.

3. Exercises that target specific muscles.

4. Managing fatigue and breathlessness with energy conservation strategies.

5. Individualized exercise chart based on individual needs.