I'm learning that with long COVID, my body needs additional supplies of vitamins, enzymes, and other bits that it's running short on
I don't like being on so many medications and supplements, but I tried rotating a few off and found the hard way that my body needs something from them
So in case it helps others or someone else found something I haven't yet, these are supplements that I now know I have to take regularly:
Multivitamin — generally useful
Vitamin D — frequently low in long COVID
Magnesium — helps prevent cramps (frequent cramps are a signal of low magnesium)
Molybdenum — essential for breaking down toxins (especially important for vegan, vegetarian, or gluten free diets!)
Biotin — supports skin, nails, and hair growth
Unclear value/result:
Omega-3
Cod liver oil
Haven't yet tried:
Glutathione — haven't tried yet but recommended for fatigue & CFS
Thyroid complex — many long COVID symptoms match hypothyroidism
COQ-10
Non-supplement things:
Hydration, electrolytes, and ample sleep are a crucial foundation
Pacing and resting are essential for chronic fatigue and PEM
[#]LongCovid #ChronicFatigueSyndrome #fatigue #CFS #PEM #PostExertionalMalaise
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Theoretically, human bodies can manufacture most chemicals or nutrients that it needs, from general carbohydrates, fats, and proteins — but the reality is that most bodies are deficient in doing one part or another
Conditions like ADHD often indicate that a body is under-producing some enzyme to create enough of an essential chemical such as dopamine. Injured or sick bodies need additional nutrients and energy to repair.
Long COVID patients especially need additional supplements because for unclear reasons the body isn't fully functioning. Since COVID, I need lactase pills to break down lactose, and I seem to run out of other things more than usual.
Since COVID, my body suddenly reacts to gluten like an allergy. My body is generally more reactive (autoimmune responses? Mast cell activation syndrome? cytokine storm? 🤷🏼♀️). Low FODMAP diet helped me identify foods that trigger reactions, and I learned to recognize when general stressors put my body into a more reactive mode, so I can reduce stressors and get out of that mode. Rest helps but sometimes Benadryl or hydroxyzine help dial back that reaction. I thought I could go without hydroxyzine now that it's more stable — NOPE! Bonus: hydroxyzine is one of the drugs that reduce likelihood of COVID infections (same as cetirazine/loratidine IIRC)
Digestion, gut motility, and general GI issues (IBS, SIBO, GERD, acid reflux, heartburn) are frequent in long COVID (and some drugs like hydroxyzine are anticholinergic, which in particular slows bowel movement). Fiber intake (both soluble and insoluble!) is crucial but often insufficient: there are both OTC and prescribed options to help with that (e.g., osmotic laxatives like Miralax to put water in intestines, and stimulant laxatives like senna to increase bowel movement). GI health is core to Long COVID treatment.
Blood sugar issues and diabetes are frequent in people who had COVID. Get ANNUAL blood labs, including A1C (3 month average of blood sugar). My A1C was prediabetic after COVID but went UP to type 2 diabetic despite dietary and exercise changes! Metformin can help manager blood sugar (bonus: may reduce risk of COVID infections)
Wearing a mask should go without saying. Reduce your time spent in large groups of people, or with people indoors, or where air isn't sufficiently filtered or circulated. But most of all, wear masks and encourage others to wear masks to reduce COVID risks, especially on air flights or public transit!
I'll add to this list if I think of anything later
[#]LongCovid #LongCovidTreatment #CovidRecovery
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@saraislet My sister has LC and swears by CoQ10
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@ChrisJohnRiley 🙏🏼
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@saraislet COQ10 has helped me a lot. And I use the Visible App with a pulse tracker for realtime pacing and rest reminders. And cannabis.
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@bhawthorne I use a Fitbit currently — how did you get started with Visible, and how has that been for you?
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@saraislet I think I found them on one of the old LC/ME-CFS forums when they were in development. The staff are mostly patients. Once they released the support for a polar armband tracker, i got a discount for signing up during the beta period. It is just the right amount of guidance without being annoying.
Morning check in is putting on the armband while still I bed, answering a question about sleep quality, then lying still for a minute while it measures heat rate variability. Using your history and these measurements, it gives a 1-5 stability estimate for the day. It is remarkably accurate after using for a while.
During the day, if my heart rate is elevated too much, I get warnings to take it easy. I can also set an activity budget which tracks exertion over the day. I also record symptom severity sometimes during the day or for the evening checkin. Less than I used to.
It really helps me to know both when to slow down and went to reduce my plans for the day. The result is that I can get more done and stay closer to baseline. I rarely crash any more, and when I do it is rarely more than a day. And when I have to ignore the notifications (like digging a grave for my dog last week), I can at least be prepared for the inevitable crash and can plan for a quieter day the next day or too.
@
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@bhawthorne thank you, that's really helpful, I think I'll try it
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@saraislet Interesting! I'm on zink, magnesium, vitD and selenium suplements. When I drop the magnesium and selenium I get cramps all over my body. I'll try some of these others as well 🙂
Have found anything conclusive on whether to get the booster shots? I read that it can help some people and yet other places say it's not a good idea.
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@gilgwath I haven't heard anything about whether supplement booster shots are worthwhile — but the COVID vaccine boosters are definitely good, especially the recent ones that use delta and omega strains
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@saraislet I love examine.com to vet the current research on supplements, which is why I got a "life-time" subscription
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@saraislet on not feeling comfortable with so many supplements, I'm approaching year 5 of LC and my supplement list was long and similar to yours from year 2 (year 1 no one knew what LC was). But over the past year I've been able to slowly reduce to levels much closer to a regular person. All this to say, it might get better, and you might not need all of these in the long run :) hope tomorrow is better than today for you!
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