How Vaccination Affects the Risk of Long #COVID
Last year, Diana Berrent—the founder of Survivor Corps, a Long #COVID support group—asked the group’s members if they’d ever had thoughts of #suicide since developing Long #COVID. About 18% of people who responded said they had, a number much higher than the 4% of the general U.S. #adult population that has experienced recent #suicidalthoughts.
A few weeks ago, Berrent posed the same question to current members of her group. This time, of the nearly 200 people who responded, 45% said they’d contemplated #suicide.
While her poll was small and informal, the results point to a serious problem. “People are suffering in a way that I don’t think the general public understands,” Berrent says. “Not only are people mourning the life that they thought they were going to have, they are in excruciating pain with no answers.”
Long #COVID, a chronic condition that affects millions of #Americans who’ve had #COVID-19, often looks nothing like acute #COVID-19. Sufferers report more than 200 symptoms affecting nearly every part of the body, including the neurologic, cardiovascular, respiratory, and gastrointestinal systems. The condition ranges in severity, but many so-called “long-haulers” are unable to work, go to #school, or leave their homes with any sort of consistency.
The statistics around Long #COVID and #mentalhealth are striking. A report published in eClinical Medicine last year found that about 88% of Long #COVID #patients experienced some form of mood or emotional issue during the first seven months of their illnesses. Another study, published in BMC Psychiatry in April, found that people with post-#COVID conditions were about twice as likely to develop #mentalhealthissues including #depression, #anxiety, or #posttraumaticstressdisorder as people without them. #COVID-19 survivors were also almost 50% more likely to experience #suicidalideation than people who hadn’t had the #virus, according to a study published in February in the BMJ.
Exploring the body-brain connection of Long #COVID
Understanding the link between Long #COVID, #suicide, and #mentalhealthissues is more complicated than it might seem. While some people do develop #depression, #anxiety, or other #mentalhealthissues after their diagnoses, others are suffering from physical symptoms that have psychological side effects or that are mistaken for #mentalhealthproblems, experts say.
The #virus that causes #COVID-19 has well-documented effects on the brain, which can potentially result in psychiatric and neurologic symptoms, says Dr. Wes Ely, who treats Long #COVID #patients at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. “We’ve been collecting brains of some #patients who didn’t survive Long #COVID,” he says. “We’re seeing inflammation and ongoing cellular abnormalities in these brains.”
Those changes to the brain can have profound effects, possibly including #suicidalthinking and #behavior. “There is a high probability that symptoms of psychiatric, neurological and physical illnesses, as well as inflammatory damage to the brain in individuals with post-#COVID syndrome, increase #suicidalideation and #behavior in this #patient population,” reads a January 2021 article in QJM: An International Journal of Medicine. Research published as a preprint last year (meaning it had not been peer-reviewed) also found differences between “post-#COVID #depression” and typical #depression, including higher rates of #suicidalbehavior—suggesting “a different disease process at least in a subset of individuals.”
Long #COVID can also be incredibly painful, and research has linked chronic physical pain to an increased risk of #suicide. Nick Güthe has been trying to spread that message since his wife, Heidi Ferrer, died by #suicide in 2021 after living with Long #COVID symptoms for about a year. Among her most disruptive symptoms, Güthe says, were foot pain that prevented her from walking comfortably, tremors, and vibrating sensations in her chest that kept her from sleeping. More than 40% of Long #COVID #patients experience moderate-to-severe sleep disturbances, according to recent research, and insomnia has been linked to suicidal thinking and #behavior.
“My wife didn’t kill herself because she was depressed,” Güthe says. “She killed herself because she was in excruciating physical pain.”
Since speaking out about his wife’s death, Güthe has heard from numerous families with similar experiences. Recently, he says, he’s noticed a grim change. “I used to get contacted by people on #socialmedia who were suicidal,” he says. “Now I’m getting reports of suicides. I had three in the last week.”
During that time, there’s been little tangible progress for long-haulers. #Doctors still don’t understand much about the condition or how to treat it. “You’ve got people now who have been suffering with Long #COVID for almost two years,” Güthe says.
Part of the problem is that in the U.S., illnesses are typically considered either physical or mental, but not both, says Abigail Hardin, an assistant professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Rush University who works with seriously ill #patients, including those with Long #COVID. “In reality, all of these things are actually very bidirectional,” she says. “Everything is integrated.”
In part because the medical system often fails to accommodate that complexity, many chronic-disease #patients are misdiagnosed or assigned labels that don’t capture the full reality of their conditions.
Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome, a post-viral condition so similar to Long #COVID that many long-haulers meet its diagnostic criteria, is one example. Decades ago, #doctors widely and incorrectly believed that patients’ symptoms—including crushing fatigue, often exacerbated by physical #activity—were all in their heads. Even today, ME/CFS #patients—as well as those with similar conditions, like chronic Lyme disease and fibromyalgia—are often misdiagnosed with #mentalhealthissues because their providers don’t understand their conditions. #Suicide is also disproportionately common among people with ME/CFS, research shows.
Adriane Tillman, who has had ME/CFS for a decade and works with the advocacy group #MEAction, remembers trying to get #doctors to understand the extent of her physical symptoms, which at first kept her bedridden—only to be diagnosed with #depression.
While Tillman was grieving for the life she’d led before she got sick, she says reducing her debilitating condition to #depression was too simplistic. “I just thought, okay, I’m not explaining this enough,” she says. “I brought my husband [with me to the #doctor]. I brought my dad. I brought a Powerpoint presentation.” Still, the best she got was an increased dose of antidepressants.
Many Long #COVID #patients report similar experiences. Teia Pearson faced disbelief from #doctors and loved ones after developing Long #COVID following a March 2020 case of #COVID-19. “The doctor’s calling you crazy. Your family and friends are…treating you like you’re crazy. That really messes with your head,” she says.
Jaime Seltzer, director of scientific and medical outreach at #MEAction, says research on #mentalhealth needs to better account for the realities of chronic illness. For example, many #depression screening questionnaires ask if the individual struggles to get out of bed in the morning, but fail to distinguish between feeling unable to get up and being physically unable to get up. “Until we have a #depression scale and an #anxiety scale for people who are physically disabled…people with physical disabilities will continue to be misinterpreted as depressive or anxious even when they are not,” Seltzer says.
#James Donaldson notes:
Welcome to the “next chapter” of my life… being a voice and an advocate for #mentalhealthawarenessandsuicideprevention, especially pertaining to our younger generation of students and student-athletes.
Getting men to speak up and reach out for help and assistance is one of my passions. Us men need to not suffer in silence or drown our sorrows in alcohol, hang out at bars and strip joints, or get involved with drug use.
Having gone through a recent bout of #depression and #suicidalthoughts myself, I realize now, that I can make a huge difference in the lives of so many by sharing my story, and by sharing various resources I come across as I work in this space. #http://bit.ly/JamesMentalHealthArticle
Order your copy of James Donaldson’s latest book,
#CelebratingYourGiftofLife:
From The Verge of Suicide to a Life of Purpose and Joy
www.celebratingyourgiftoflife.com
A need for solutions
Berrent says there’s an immediate need for a #suicidehotline specifically for people with Long #COVID, since operators at other services may not know about or understand the condition. More research into Long #COVID treatments would also go a long way, she says, because it would give people hope as well as eventual relief from their often-devastating symptoms.
Marissa Wardach, whose ex-husband John died by #suicide in March after developing Long #COVID the prior summer, wishes there had been more options available to him. When he spoke with #doctors, she says, “they kind of just shrugged it off and said, ‘Sorry, we don’t really know much about it,’” she remembers. “That shattered any kind of hope he had.”
Wardach wonders how things might have gone if clinicians had referred John to specialty treatment centers or #patient support groups, rather than sending him on his way. But even when #patients are connected to the relatively few Long COVID treatment centers that exist, they often face months-long waits for an appointment. “Long #COVID #patients feel they’ve been abandoned, in many circumstances,” Ely says. “There are too many [parts of] the country where there’s not a Long #COVID clinic.”
Emerging evidence about what does seem to work for #patients also isn’t always shared widely among #doctors. Güthe, for example, learned from a #physician months after his wife’s death that a drug called trazodone may have helped her sleep despite her chest vibrations—something her own #doctors didn’t mention. “Every general practitioner in the #UnitedStates should be up to date on the basic guidelines for helping #patients with Long #COVID deal with the major symptoms,” he says.
Seltzer says all #doctors and #mentalhealthpractitioners also need a better understanding of what will—or will not—help people with Long #COVID and other similar chronic diseases. Approaches like #cognitivebehavioraltherapy, which focus on changing thought patterns, often aren’t helpful for #patients with very real physical symptoms, she says. “Clinicians need to be aware that this is a thing, and they need to not be dismissive about it,” Seltzer says. They need to “not attribute it to stress, and therefore place the responsibility on the #patient to calm themselves down, and not attribute it to an incorrect manner of thinking.”
These shortcomings point to structural issues in the U.S. medical system, Hardin says. Ideally, physical and psychological care wouldn’t be treated as distinct, and patients could get holistic evaluations from any provider. At the very least, she wishes each person diagnosed with a chronic condition had a #mentalhealthprofessional on their care team from the very beginning. But, she says, that’s less common than it should be.
“So much of what we’re seeing with #COVID and the fallout of it is not related to individual providers,” she says. “A lot of it is very structural. This is an opportunity for the country to grow and fix some of the systemic issues that have been under the surface of U.S. medicine.”
If you or someone you know may be contemplating suicide, call the #NationalSuicidePreventionLifeline at 1-800-273-8255 or text HOME to 741741 to reach the Crisis Text Line. In emergencies, call 911, or seek care from a local hospital or #mentalhealth provider.
James Donaldson is a Washington State University graduate (’79). After an outstanding basketball career with WSU, he went on to play professional basketball in the NBA with the Seattle Supersonics, San Diego/L.A. Clippers, Dallas Mavericks, New York Knicks, and Utah Jazz. He also played for several teams in the European Leagues in Spain, Italy, and Greece, and he toured with The Harlem Globetrotters to wrap up his career. James was an NBA All-Star in 1988 while playing center for the Dallas Mavericks. In 2006, James was inducted into the Pac-10 Sports Hall of Fame and also the Washington State University Athletic Hall of Fame. In 2010, James was elected as a board member for the NBA Retired Players Association.
James frequently conducts speaking engagements (motivational, inspirational, educational) for organizations, schools, and youth groups.
In 2010, James was the recipient of the NBA Legends of Basketball ABC Award, awarded for outstanding contributions in Athletics–Business–Community.
He believes in being a role model for success and professionalism to the scores of young people to whom he devotes so much of his time. He currently serves on several boards and committees and is a member of many organizations.
James believes in developing relationships that create a “Win-Win” environment for everyone involved, and in being the best he can be!
For more information about James Donaldson or to request he speak at your event, contact him at:
www.StandingAboveTheCrowd.com
JamesD@StandingAboveTheCrowd.com
1-800-745-3161 (voicemail & fax)
James Donaldson is the author of “Standing Above The Crowd” and “Celebrating Your Gift of Life” and founder of the Your Gift of Life Foundation which focuses on mental health awareness and suicide prevention, especially pertaining to our school aged children and men.
If you’re interested in having James come and speak to your group of young adults, business entrepreneurs, aspiring political and community leaders, and athletic teams, please contact him at jamesd@yourgiftoflife.org and or leave a personal message for him at 1-800-745-3161. Keep up with him and read about how he is reaching out and making a difference in the lives of so many around the world at www.yourgiftoflife.org
