The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that around 6 in every 100 people with COVID-19 develop long COVID. Research also shows that of those who develop long COVID, up to 46.5% report not being fully recovered within 12 months. The most common symptoms incude fatigue/ malaise, headache, shortness of breath and muscle/ joint pain.
In the current study, researchers interviewed 14 UK participants aged between 27 and 63 years old with either self-reported or diagnosed long COVID symptoms lasting more than four weeks. In particular, they sought to understand more about the experience of long COVID with an emphasis on patients' beliefs on the role of psychology.
Thematic analysis of the interviews revealed 'living with uncertainty' as a key theme, encompassing fear of the COVID-19 pandemic, the unknown cause, and the future, as well as a lack of treatment options and ambiguous identity.
Another theme that emerged was 'why should I trust you if you don't believe me?', characterized by broken trust with medical professionals, isolation from one's social network and broken trust with one's own body.
"People told us that they didn't feel listened to, some said they'd lost trust in doctors, their social circles and even their own bodies because of the whole experience," said co-author of the study, Dr. Saara Petker, clinical psychologist and former PhD student at the University of Surrey, in a press release.
The last theme identified in the research was 'once I know the cause people will believe me', marked by a need to prove the illness, seeking to self-educate through research with a medical focus on etiology, and an initial rejection of psychology's role in the condition.
"Medical advice is crucial -- but psychological support must be offered with care. If it's seen as replacing medical help, it can feel dismissive," Petker added.
Sources: Science Daily, Journal of Health Psychology
