By William Schroeder, LPC
There is a growing list of mental health concerns for COVID long haulers and I was reminded of this when I recently talked with a neighbor who had a bad case of COVID-19 and has struggled with long-term damage to his lungs. Before his diagnosis, he was one of the more active people I knew. In his 50’s, he was always cutting his lawn, playing golf, going to dinner, working on projects or his job. His diagnosis of COVID had a massive impact on his activity level. He now gets winded walking short distances or doing small tasks. He said to me the other day, “My doctor is worried about me, but I think I think I can live like this.” As a therapist, I understood his doctor’s concern. However, someone who had been so active will need time to process losing that ability. While today they might say, “I can live like this,” that might only be a snapshot of the passing present moment, and tomorrow they may feel grief and hopelessness. While we all have bad days, as therapists, we want to make sure that someone has the necessary support to process such a profound change in functioning and mobility.
Signs of concern:
Things COVID Long Haulers can do.
I would be remiss if I didn’t take a moment to mention the need to support those who have lost loved ones to COVID. I was reminded of this after talking to an old friend who was visiting Austin yesterday and learned her father had recently died due to complications resulting from COVID-19 exposure.
Photo by Fernando @cferdo on Unsplash
The post Mental Health Concerns for COVID Long Haulers appeared first on Just Mind.
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