How COVID-19 Affects Your Body
Fever. Sore throat symptoms. Fatigue. If there’s anything we’ve learned about COVID-19 during the pandemic, it’s that its symptoms can affect people is a wide range of ways. While we can draw some links between certain vulnerable populations and some of the more serious effects, doctors, scientists and researchers are still working hard to discover how COVID-19 affects your body.
How do you contract COVID-19?
Coronavirus is airborne, so it’s typically passed when you’re in close proximity to an infected person who coughs, sneeze or talks near you – sending droplets into the air. In rare cases, it can be passed via surfaces like a doorknob, but those occurrences are far less common.
What does an active infection feel like?
At this time, there’s no single factor that can determine what happens to your body after you contract Coronavirus. A combination of variables can determine why some infected persons have diarrhea and headache, while others have severe conditions like kidney failure. For example, if your body is unable to fight off an active COVID-19 infection within the first week or so, the virus makes its way deeper into your lungs, which can lead to pneumonia.
Severe COVID-19 infections
For those who contract severe cases of COVID-19, serious heart problems can arise, from skipping to being unable to pump enough blood for your body. It can even cause blood clots that can cause a stroke.
Lingering symptoms following COVID-19
While not common, some people experience infections with long term COVID effects. These symptoms can persist for months at a time, leading to extensive health problems like permanent heart damage. When the virus does major damage to the lungs, heart and/or brain, the chance of experiencing extended adverse effects is greater.
So much still isn’t known about the lasting effects of COVID-19, but researchers recommend that doctors closely monitor their patients following their recoveries and lasting side effects. Most people who contract COVID-19 will recover quickly, but the long-lasting issues reaffirm the importance of safety precautions like avoiding crowds and wearing masks.