Hannah
Hannah is a 20-year-old student living with her mum and dad. Ethnicity: White British.
Hannah developed Covid symptoms in July 2021 but thought they might have been related to her underlying endometriosis. Having Long Covid hasn’t helped Hannah’s anxiety and feeling nauseous so often has been difficult for her. Hannah was interviewed in June 2022.
More about me...
Hannah first developed Covid symptoms in July 2021 when she came back from a nightclub. At first, Hannah thought the symptoms were from her endometriosis, but when she had a high temperature for eight days, she realised it was Covid. After self-isolating, Hannah went to the gym but found that she could only lift 60kg, instead of the 95kg she was able to before she isolated. Hannah was experiencing fatigue and became breathless moving from her room to the kitchen, despite having a high level of fitness from swimming before she had Covid.
Even before having Covid, Hannah had anxiety, but she felt that it worsened since she developed Covid symptoms. Hannah’s anxiety is mainly focused around health but not exclusively Covid, as she found the thought of throwing up makes her very anxious. One of Hannah’s Long Covid symptoms is feeling nauseous “all the time,” and she takes medication for this. However, Hannah might go onto antidepressants if she doesn’t feel less nauseous by December – when she has a job opportunity abroad. Hannah is nervous about starting a 9 to 5 job, as she can’t rest during the day and catch-up later like she could when she was at university.
Hannah doesn’t remember the first time someone said she may have Long Covid, but she thinks it might have been her mum – who is a psychotherapist. Despite having Long Covid, Hannah didn’t want to apply for the support her university offered, including more time on exams, because she wanted “to be treated fairly and no different to anyone else.” She feels the same about telling other people about having Long Covid, and she doesn’t want to be seen as a “drama queen.”
Through a Long Covid clinic, Hannah had been referred to four Long Covid workshops but found them unhelpful, as they assumed that she didn’t have any medical knowledge about her body – despite her degree in neuroscience. Hannah also felt that the workshops were targeted at older patients and found it hard to relate. She felt that the workshops were more like a lecture than a conversation, which made her angry.
Despite her anger at the Long Covid workshops, Hannah felt that her GP was “amazing… lovely” because she “listened to the fact [she was] knowledgeable.” Hannah feels that more knowledge is needed to distinguish Long Covid from other conditions with similar symptoms. Hannah has received doses of a Covid vaccine since having Long Covid and doesn’t feel that she’s experienced relapses or had a strong adverse reaction.
Hannah, a young woman in her 20s, wanted her old life back but she worried that she could not manage her anxiety symptoms if she moved away from her parents.
Hannah, a young woman in her 20s, wanted her old life back but she worried that she could not manage her anxiety symptoms if she moved away from her parents.
Yeah, when I think about moving out and being away from my parents, I literally get so anxious because the only person that can stop me from having a panic attack is my mum, and when I have panic attacks like they are like genuinely one of the worst things I've ever experienced, and they last for like hours, so I'm nervous about that, but obviously that won't be for a few years, I need to like be work and have a job for like a few years before I move out. I am a bit nervous that when I...obviously the job I'm going into is going to be nine-to-five, I'm nervous that I'm going to...because I do get tired easily, and obviously I was doing a lot of work for my degree, but it was on my terms; like if wanted to lay in a bit later and do work later, that was okay, so I'm nervous that that schedule’s going to make me really exhausted and I'm not going to be able to cope with it and I'm not going to be able to perform as well as I want to.
I also do have a trait to just like even like just push through and be like, ‘You're doing it anyway,’ and so am I'm worried that I'm going to make myself worse, which I don't want to do at all. I'm not worried for the anxiety to go, I'm really excited if that goes, but that would be amazing if it did go. And I want normality, I want my old life back where I can like...not even...no, I'm not bothered about the alcohol, but just like be able to have fun and not sit there worrying I'm going to throw up, if I stay out then I'm going to get like a sick bug, or I'm going to get poorly, that I want that part of my life back, like I miss that part of me a lot; it was fun, yeah that.
Hannah felt she already knew what she was told in the Long Covid workshops but needed to keep attending so she could say “These didn’t help at all; what’s next?” Some advice wasn’t helpful because of her age.
Hannah felt she already knew what she was told in the Long Covid workshops but needed to keep attending so she could say “These didn’t help at all; what’s next?” Some advice wasn’t helpful because of her age.
I'd rather there was some sort of solution rather than me to attend these workshops, which considering my extensive knowledge, due to like the fact that I have a neuroscience degree, being told about the stress response in the body and...so like adrenalin cortisol and stuff and it’s just like I'm so aware of all of this stuff, I'm so aware of the parasympathetic nervous system and sympathetic nervous system that it’s just like I almost feel like I know more than the person that’s explaining it to me, and then they're just telling me, “Breathe and do mindfulness.”
But I just feel like I need to go to them so I can go back and say, ‘These didn't help at all; what’s next?’ And the other thing about the workshops is everyone in them is a lot older than me, and it’s like they're meant to also be a place where people can relate to each other, and I can't; I don't have children, and the workshop run…a lady who was like, “Oh well,” like, “I'm sure you struggle with cooking dinner for your kids,” and I was like, “Well no, of course I don't, because I'm 21 and I don't have children,” so I just feel like it would be...it would be beneficial if there was one for people a similar age, so instead of me just listening to people and thinking, ‘I have no idea, I can't relate to that, and also everything you're telling me I already know,’ yeah.