Long COVID can take a toll on your mental health. For Samantha Leszkowicz, chronic lingering symptoms have impacted her everyday life, even causing her to quit her job as a nurse. Thanks to an online support group, she no longer feels isolated and is hopeful for the future.*

From helping others to needing help

Leszkowicz is a 26-year-old nurse dealing with the chronic struggles of Long COVID. She was first diagnosed with COVID-19 in the spring of 2020 and has been struggling with her health ever since.

“Before all this, I was living my best life, honestly,” she says. “And then when I got sick, it was like a cement truck came at me head-on. I’ve been falling frequently, I’ve been getting muscle tremors, I’m just dead tired, I’ll end up with fevers, night sweats, chills, all the same symptoms I had before.”

Unfortunately, her symptoms have gotten so bad, she was forced to quit her job as a nurse. “I was always one to help others and be there for others, and now I can’t really do that anymore,” she adds.

Finding support

Leszkowicz says that these ongoing challenges have significantly impacted her mental health. To find help, she decided to join Cleveland Clinic’s online support group for people with Long COVID.

“The purpose of the group is really just to provide a space for support so that people don’t feel alone,” says group facilitator and Clevland Clinic psychologist Kia-Rai Prewitt, Ph.D. “One of the things we have heard quite a bit from people with long-haul COVID is that they often feel isolated.”

While Prewitt also recommends individualized therapy, she says the support group can offer extra support for those living with Long COVID.

Leszkowicz concurs, sharing that the group has helped her realize that she isn’t alone, and she can finally feel some optimism. Her most fervent wish is that her life, and the lives of others in the group, can eventually return to normal. 

“Hopefully this is just a little bump in the road,” she says. “Hopefully we can figure this out.”

*Cleveland Clinic. (2022, October 10). COVID Long Hauler Shares Struggles with Mental Health PKG [Video]. YouTube. Retrieved October 18, 2022, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uW9mNNbwYuE