HAMPTON ROADS, Va. – COVID-19 long haulers are people who experience lasting symptoms after they contract the virus.
It’s impacting thousands of people in the United States.
A few of the symptoms include difficulty thinking clearly, brain fog, shortness of breath and fatigue.
Lydia Hamaric said she would experience a cold feeling all the time, had brain fog and was extremely tired all the time.
Hamaric turned to the internet for help and joined COVID-19 Long Haulers Support, a Facebook page.
Delainne Bond is a founder of the page, and she, too, believes she is a long hauler.
“I heard somebody talk about long haulers, so I just put a group out there and I didn't really think it was going to do anything, and then all of a sudden it just exploded,” said Bond.
She said at the start of 2021, they had about 2,500 members, and in the last three weeks, that number had grown to more than 7,000.
“It's growing exponentially, and there are so many people that are having symptoms,” said Bond.
There are several support groups like this online.
She said they were getting 100 to 200 posts per day and then had to limit was people were posting.
She said she tried to control information on page and only provide facts, let people share stories and show support.
She said she is honored and thrilled to help so many people by creating the page.
Scientists are working on studies, but there are so many unknowns about COVID-19 long haulers.
“While you need to keep living your life and you need to go to work and you need to have some level of social interaction, don't let your guard down,” said Bond.
