We’re gradually going out more as lockdown eases
A GREATER Manchester MP says he still suffers ‘brain fog’, sweats, exhaustion and vertigo, months after having coronavirus.
Andrew Gwynne, MP for Denton and Reddish, said a simple task like cutting the lawn can leave him ‘drenched in sweat’, with headaches, shakes and dizziness.
The 46-year-old is one of an increasing number of people identifying as coronavirus ‘long-haulers’.
They are patients with often mild Covid-19 symptoms, who go on to suffer post-viral fatigue for a prolonged period of time.
Mr Gwynne said his initial virus symptoms in March lasted for about 12 days. The Labour MP, who says he is ‘physically fit’ and not in the at risk category, was in isolation for two weeks.
But, ‘whilst the coronavirus symptoms went within the two weeks of self-isolation, the illness didn’t’. He described symptoms of ‘exhaustion’ and ‘sheer fatigue’.
He said: “Breaking into sweats, as though I’d done the London Marathon just doing basic tasks around the house. The brain fog is completely debilitating. Sometimes I find it really hard to just string a coherent sentence together. Dizziness, vertigo – which I’ve never, ever experienced before – and it’s just horrible.
“And banging headaches that even taking paracetamol and the usual headache treatments just wouldn’t lift. And I’m now 17 weeks in.”
He said that some days are better than others, but ‘all days you’re aware of your limitations because of this post-viral fatigue’. It’s very difficult living a normal life, he said. He said he struggled to concentrate during a recent meeting
PEOPLE are venturing out more as lockdown restrictions loosen, but movement is still down on pre-pandemic levels.
As lockdown has eased, with shops reopening and more freedom to meet up with other households, Google location data has shown more visits to places in Greater Manchester that were previously deserted.
The changes to rules allowing pubs, restaurants and hair salons to reopen on July 4 appears to have boosted that trend further.
Visits to retail and recreation venues were at 51 per cent below levels seen in as part of his role on the Home Affairs Select Committee.
It wiped him out and he had to spend the rest of the day in bed, which is a ‘common occurrence’.
He said: “And very quickly you find out because – certainly for myself – the brain fog is either there or it isn’t. The energy levels are either there or they’re not and if you push yourself, you just know that, even on a good day, a good day can turn into a bad day just by over-exerting yourself with pretty minor things, like deciding that you’ll unstack the dishwasher, or that you’ll run the hoover round the front room. Something as simple as that can set you back considerably.”
Nobody knows how long these symptoms might last, he said.
Mr Gwynne added: “I’ve got a very good GP and she immediately recognised it as this emerging post-viral fatigue that is being very widely reported now with people who have had coronavirus symptoms.”
He said he worries for Covid-19 long-haulers who have to go back into offices and factories, as they may be physically unable to do so.
He called on bosses to recognise the condition, as people may be penalised if they are unable to go back to work.
MP Andrew Gwynne said he is continuing to suffer after a mild case of coronavirus
January and February on July 4. That was up from 58pc below normal on June 27. By July 11, that had risen further to 47pc below January and February levels.
Visits to retail and recreation sites dropped to their lowest levels in April at the height of the lockdown – on Saturday, April 18, they were 81pc below normal in Greater Manchester.
This had then slowly started to pick up in May and June – rising to 73pc below normal on May 16, and 65pc below normal on June 13.
Places that have been open throughout lockdown have also seen rising visits – trips to food stores and pharmacies have risen from 39pc below January and February levels on April 18, to 17pc below on June 27, and to 15pc below on July 11.
Visits to parks have been popular but unsurprisingly, are much more weather-dependent.
While in Greater Manchester trips to parks were down below the January and February baseline in April (at 52pc below on April 18), they can now reach above pre-pandemic levels on good days.
While cooler, wetter weather on July 4 meant visits were 20pc below those seen earlier in the year, better weather on July 11 meant they were 22pc above levels earlier in the year.
While people in Greater Manchester are venturing out more than previously, they’re still staying home more compared to the start of 2020. Amount of time spent at home was 6pc higher than in January and February on July 11, although that compares to 19pc higher than usual back on April 18. The analysis is based on anonymised data from people who have opted-in to Location History for their Google account, so it only represents a sample of people.
The figures compare the most recent data, from two to three days ago, to the average for the corresponding day of the week during the fiveweek period January 3 to February 6, 2020.
Across the UK, visits to retail and recreation locations have been increasing in recent weeks. government rules only deals with ‘complex’ cases such as care homes, homeless people or schools, has so far traced 98-100pc of cases referred to it. In Rochdale, Oldham and Manchester, the national system - which deals with routine cases - is reportedly contacting less than half. Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham said: “This is a major breakthrough in Greater Manchester’s fight against this virus and I am pleased that the health secretary has moved quickly to correct the mistake of not providing this data to local officers.
“He should ensure our councils are supported to employ more contact tracers on the ground. It is clear that the national contact training system is not working properly in the north west and some of the £10bn allocated to it should be redirected to councils.”
More visits to retail and recreation venues between June 27 and July 11