A conversation with physiotherapist David Poulter and Pain Consultant Dr. Deepak Ravindran, consultant in Pain Medicine and lead for the Berkshire LongCovid Integrated Service (BLIS) in Reading, UK.

We discuss:

-The kinds of symptoms and problems people are experiencing when they present to the Long Covid clinic
-The finding that the vast majority - about 90% - of people with Long Covid are those who have had so-called "mild" disease, where they were not hospitalised.
-Theories of the mechanisms underlying development and persistence of LC
-Variability in how people respond to the virus
-The controversy around use of the term "biopsychosocial" as some patients feel that this term has been mis-used
-ME/CFS and other post-viral fatigue syndromes share many similarities with LC
-The hope that the recent public interest in LC may positively effect research and future outcomes for people with with ME
-In the year 2021, will anyone be diagnosed with ME/CFS, or will everyone presenting with these symptoms be diagnosed with Long Covid?
-It's important to validate people's lived experience of Long Covid. At the same time, is there a possibility that exposure to a lot of content about Long Covid may create a  "nocebo effect" for those who catch the virus?
-Activism and its impact on funding
-Pacing; what is it? This term means wildly different things to different people.
-Physical and cognitive rest and "flight mode"

Blogpost and video available at: getbetteronline.co.uk/whats-going-on-with-long-covid/