Are You Experiencing Long-Haul Covid Symptoms?
What the heck is “Long-haul COVID” and what can you do about it?
Most people don’t know anything about the long-term effects of COVID unless it has touched them in some way. Most people are so afraid of the virus that when they get it, they are relieved to report that “it wasn’t that bad.” I can’t tell you the number of people I have talked to who tested positive with very mild symptoms that lasted less than 24 hours.
Although I recognize this is a global pandemic, the mortality rates are relatively low, especially when compared to the estimated 10-30% of COVID patients ending up with long-haul.
The most common symptom of short and long-term COVID is loss of sense of smell. But the long term effects of COVID go way beyond that.
Long-haul COVID is technically (I use the term loosely) defined as symptoms lasting for longer than 4 weeks. Most of my long-haul symptoms lasted for around 8 months, and I am still, 19 months later, recovering my mental and cognitive stability.
Symptoms of long-haul COVID according to the CDC:
- Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
- Tiredness or fatigue
- Symptoms that get worse after physical or mental activities (also known as post-exertional malaise)
- Difficulty thinking or concentrating (sometimes referred to as “brain fog”)
- Cough
- Chest or stomach pain
- Headache
- Fast-beating or pounding heart (also known as heart palpitations)
- Joint or muscle pain
- Pins-and-needles feeling
- Diarrhea
- Sleep problems
- Fever
- Dizziness on standing (lightheadedness)
- Rash
- Mood changes
- Change in smell or taste
- Changes in menstrual period cycles
I experienced all of the symptoms listed above except for rash and changes in menstrual cycle (because I don’t have one).
Beyond the symptoms identified, what exactly is going on within the bodies of long-haulers? New studies are emerging daily to explain the biology and pathology of those who continue to suffer the effects of COVID.
Two recent studies show evidence that long-haulers show elevated clotting markers in their bloodstream. That would explain the persistent fatigue, air hunger/breathlessness, and poor exercise tolerance that long-haulers experience.
In a “normal” infection, your body mounts an immune response and creates inflammation. Then after 2-3 weeks, once the infection is killed, your body stops creating inflammatory molecules, detoxifies and repairs tissues. But in the case of long-COVID, the immune response does not shut off and your body continues to make inflammatory molecules. Why this happens is still undetermined; but how this happens is outlined in these two studies.
Knowing the “how” is important so that you can find reliable treatments and solutions. The research suggests that hypercoagulation (sticky blood) is a main culprit for symptoms of long-COVID.
Hypercoagulation can be caused by many factors, including Covid. Simply stated, your blood is too sticky and forms clots too easily and doesn’t dissolve them. Sticky blood is measured by D-dimer, Prothrombin time, vWF, and fibrinogen. All of these markers are usually elevated during any infection, but should return to normal ranges after 3-4 weeks. But according to new studies, all of these hypercoagulation markers stay elevated in the bloodstream of Covid long-haulers.
At the time of this writing, blood thinning medications are not the current standard of care for long-COVID. Perhaps that will change. I know from experience that blood thinners are life saving but wrought with unwanted side effects.
This is why I turn to Boluoke. Maybe you have read my blog or seen my video about my experience with a sheath clot in my arm. Boluoke is a natural solution for blood clots and sticky blood (hypercoagulation). It has been used for thousands of years in Traditional Chinese Medicine. It has been researched heavily in Asia where it is used in hospital settings.
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) practitioners have been making tea from earthworms for centuries. Prior to 1980, researchers didn’t exactly know why earthworm tea helped with blood and circulation issues. In 1980, Dr. Hisashi Mihara discovered the exact proteolytic enzymes in earthworm powder. They discovered that the enzyme lumbrokinase was actually a few proteolytic sub-enzymes that are now collectively called lumbrokinase.
Boluoke is a patented form of lumbrokinase enzyme extract. Because it is patented, you will not find this form of lumbrokinase enzyme in any other supplement. You will find other companies offering lumbrokinase enzyme supplements, but they are not purified, not medical grade, and not the strength used in medical studies.
Ordinary lumbrokinase enzyme supplements are just earthworm protein extract containing very little pure lumbrokinase enzymatic strength. Unfortunately, some companies are making products with 230mg to 250mg of unconcentrated lumbrokinase per capsule and then quote research that was conducted using Boluoke concentrated lumbrokinase enzymes. Boluoke is different because the enzyme strength is concentrated, measured, and standardized. Each capsule contains 20mg of active lumbrokinase enzyme extract. Standard lumbrokinase supplements don’t measure a standard enzyme strength in their capsules.
There currently are no studies underway to investigate Boluoke for use in long-COVID. However, there is a 25 year history of research showing safety and results with hypercoagulation which is a main issue for long-haulers. Boluoke has no toxicity and no known side effects. It is currently used by many integrative doctors who are treating chronic Lyme disease and other long-term infections. It could be used at the onset of COVID or any infection as a possible prevention for long-haul COVID. And it could be beneficial for elevated clotting factors that lead to long-COVID symptoms.
