Host of symptoms, variable recovery times complicate return to work for those with long COVID
CBC
Jessica Sewell has been on and off work since she developed long COVID last June, fighting the disease's symptoms, which she describes as "volatile."
"I can be OK today and able to do my job, but I get a cold and I have a two-week flare-up," said Sewell, 28, an administrative assistant in Burnaby, B.C.
Sewell contracted COVID-19 last May, and was very sick, but said she felt well enough to return to work after her 14-day isolation. Three weeks later, she began to experience brain fog, dizzy spells, extreme fatigue and tremors. Her heart rate would shoot up to 200 beats per minute, even while standing still.
Sewell was assessed at a long COVID clinic in July. In the weeks leading up to her diagnosis, she tried to keep working because taking time off felt like "defeat," she said.
But, "the more you push, the more [long COVID] pushes back, and it always wins," she said.
More than 200 symptoms are associated with long COVID, affecting the brain, heart, lungs and blood vessels, according to a 2021 study published in the Lancet. The World Health Organization says symptoms can appear up to 12 weeks after even a mild infection, and can persist for months, but also "fluctuate or relapse over time."
Doctors are grappling with how to treat patients, but there is no known cure.
Some experts fear the recent surge of infections in the Omicron wave could translate into a swell of long COVID cases in the coming months. That could have a "knock-on effect" for Canadian workplaces, in terms of illness, absences, and helping workers get back on their feet, said Peter Smith, senior scientist at the Institute for Work & Health, which studies the health and safety of working Canadians.
He pointed to pre-Omicron research that showed roughly 10 per cent of COVID-19 recoveries developed into long COVID, suggesting 170,000 Canadians were already living with the disease last fall. It's not known whether Omicron is linked to long COVID at the same rate, but Health Canada has recorded more than 1.2 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 since the first Omicron cases on Nov. 28. (Testing issues mean many more cases may be unrecorded).
Smith said the disease might be difficult for some bosses to grasp, given the variety of symptoms, the way it flares up unexpectedly and the unclear timeline for recovery.
But he said, "it's a missed opportunity [for employers] not to enable these people to come back to the workplace."
Before getting sick, Sewell says she was a hard worker with plans to further her education and seek promotion. But while her employer has been understanding, she says fears this time off is harming her career prospects, and feels in limbo, not knowing if she can work from day to day.
"It makes it hard to be that dependable employee that I'm used to being," she told The Current's Matt Galloway.
Another woman who spoke to The Current was working at a Toronto bank when she caught COVID-19 in March 2020. CBC has agreed not to name her because she fears she could face repercussions for speaking out about her employer.