While lots of people who test positive with Covid have no symptoms or a cold which is quickly over there are plenty of us who feel pretty rotten with it (and some who have it even worse). I am recovered from the actual illness now, but I have had lots of interesting chats with people about the longer term impacts of Covid particularly on taste and smell. I thought it would be helpful to share my experiences for anyone wondering if the post Covid symptoms they are experiencing are normal.

Since recovering from Covid I am more hungry, but less interested in food unless it's carbs

The Symptoms I Have Experienced After Recovering From Covid

Changes To Appetite

It has now been a month since I “recovered” from Covid and while it doesn’t count as “long COVID” until after 12 weeks there are still changes from before. My fitness is significantly affected and I am gaining weight quickly, not just because I am less active, but because I don’t have the same interest in food as I did pre-Covid. I am constantly hungry, but nothing really appeals to me so I end up eating lots of starchy carbs. I shared this on Instagram and had other people say they were experiencing the same: not really interested in food, and hungry all the time despite eating plenty.

Changes To The Ability To Taste And Smell After Recovering From Covid

The weirdest change for me though has been to my sense of taste. It’s widely reported that Covid can remove your sense of taste and smell when you get ill and for many people this lasts some time before it returns. Several people on my Instagram post shared that their ability to taste and smell hasn’t totally returned to normal 6 months or even a year later! For others it returned within a few weeks.

When I was unwell I didn’t think my sense of smell or taste had been affected, I could still smell normally and the food I ate tasted as expected. Except a bottle of orange squash and some carrots, but I put that down to those particular items rather than a change in me. I have subsequently discovered that foods with some types of artificial sweetener (but not all types) taste strange to me. There are some diet drinks I previously enjoyed that I can't currently drink because the taste of sweetener is so strong.

This seems strange, but I’m not alone in finding that the impact on taste and smell isn’t universal, but limited to particular foods. Someone said that she now finds the smell of baked bread and biscuits horrible and someone else struggles with tomato sauces, however eating them is fine. One of my friends reported that she also had problems with artificial sweetener now and another said that she could no longer eat Twiglets. The changes aren’t  always a bad thing though, it can be that the taste of some foods are enhanced. I’m diligently trying everything to see if that is the case.

Another change, which might be totally unrelated is that I currently don't seem to be able to tolerate alcohol and I felt hung over after half a bottle of beer. I'm going to be avoiding it for a while regardless of the cause.

Changes to Eye Sight

One of the other changes I had after I recovered from Covid, which was thankfully short lasting, was an impact on my eye sight. After a friend of Instagram asked if anyone else had been affected by it I thought it would be helpful to share here. I found that my eyes got tired really easily (even when I wasn’t particularly) and I needed to rest them regularly as it was difficult to focus. I had a couple of days where I had to avoid looking at my phone or a screen as trying to read the text was too hard. 

Tiredness and Low Mood

It’s quite hard for me to identify the impact of Covid on my energy levels and mood because they dip regularly for various reasons anyway. A month on I am still regularly going to bed early and feeling tired. I also have days where I feel particularly sad for no reason. Again when I shared this on Instagram it was something experienced by others after recovery. How much mine is caused by the virus and how much is just normal for me it’s hard to say.

*It goes without saying (if you know me at all) that I am not a medical professional and I haven't conducted any scientific research into this so if you have any concerns you should speak to your GP. Sometimes it is helpful to know you aren't alone though and you aren't imagining things.*