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Dreaming of a future where humans and the planet not only coexist but also flourish, creating a harmonious, abundant, and sustainable existence. Tweets my own.

Aug 4, 2020, 10 tweets

So it's Day 118 of my #longcovid journey, my recovery continues and whilst a lot of my symptoms have gone, I will share some insights into this thread that tell me that the actual road to a full recovery will be longer than I thought #covid19 1/n

The beneficial impact of the MLD treatment yesterday seemed to wear off a bit after sleep. I can still do squats, but the lower body doesn't feel as "improved" as it did immediately after last night's treatment 2/n

Speaking of sleep, I slept a lot (given that at most, I've only managed to sleep 2 to 2.5 hours a night for nearly 4 months of #longcovid) - I think the MLD must have helped. I even got some REM sleep (which has been absent) - data from my Withings mattress sensor 3/n

My Withings sensor recently got a firmware update so that it can detect sleep apnea. Interesting, it says I had a #sleepapnea episode last night, although it's nothing to worry about #digitalhealth 4/n

I went to the park for some rehab at sunrise today, connecting with nature. I walked and did some cycling, and the cycling was challenging, not in a painful way, but it's clear that my legs are very deconditioned. Still, a milestone today in terms of what I achieved 5/n

Whilst apart from my lower body issues, I'm essentially free of all my other #longcovid symptoms, I now realise that being free of symptoms isn't the same thing as recovered and back to normal. Allow me to explain with an example from this morning 6/n

I had rented a public bike and they weigh 23kg - before I got sick, I was able to lift the bike above my head with arms extended and run up steps. Today, I could barely lift the bike off the ground with both arms, whilst walking slowly up the steps 7/n

So whilst I feel much more normal, because I can sit at my desk and work, or I can lift a shopping bag of groceries, I now realise that I must have lost a lot of muscle mass during all that time I was lying in bed due to extreme fatigue 8/n

So in order to consider myself "recovered" and "normal" I'm going to have to be serious about "rehabilitation" especially when it comes to strength training and building that muscle mass back to normal levels 9/n

How long will it take for rehabilitation to get my body back to normal? I'm not sure, but I'm committed to doing whatever I have to do in order to reach that goal, in a steady manner (whilst having fun along the way) 😀 /end

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