When Deborah Shaffer tried to return to work two weeks after her Covid-19 infection, she forgot which floor of the veterans hospital she worked on. It was one of many strange expressions of the brain fog that has plagued the social worker in Wichita, Kan., Since she contracted the virus last November.
Mrs. Shaffer is a Covid long-distance transporter, someone who suffers from chronic symptoms weeks or months after their initial infection. After her failed early attempts to get back to the hospital, she hasn’t worked a full day since falling ill and has no idea if or when she will personally go back.
“I am a trained therapist and clinical social worker, but cannot complete even the most basic tasks that lie ahead,” says Ms. Shaffer, 52. She recently started working from home, although she has not yet clocked an eight-hour day.
Getting back to work isn’t easy for Covid long-haul travelers. Scientists are just beginning to understand the mysteries of chronic Covid, also known as long Covid or post-acute Covid. It can lead to a variety of symptoms after the initial infection, including severe fatigue, cognitive problems, digestive problems, irregular heartbeat, headache, dizziness, and fluctuating blood pressure.
It is unclear how many people suffer from long-lasting symptoms. But studies suggest it’s a significant portion of the more than 107 million people with confirmed cases around the world. About 26% of the 1,733 Chinese Covid patients discharged from a hospital in Wuhan between January and May 2020 still experienced fatigue six months after an acute infection, according to a study published in The Lancet in January.