One Covid-19 Long Haulers Support Group in Canada on Facebook currently has 10 500 members. Similar to the plight of many suffering around the world, Canada too has its share of people who have been diagnosed with Covid-19, suffered with it upon initial diagnosis, but then have faced debilitating conditions as time passes, even after they later test negative for the virus. The medical and scientific communities are only beginning to see and understand how long-lasting, varied, and insidious the symptoms of this virus are. Sufferers are having to seek out others who have similar symptoms, and are using social media, and platforms such as Reddit, to connect with others. These groups are begun by “Long Haulers,” those who suffer a wide variety of symptoms long after initial diagnosis. They share information and support, and draw attention to the latest information about their condition. Above all, these groups let others know they are not alone. Polio survivors and their medical teams are reminding people that we only found out about the effects of polio on a body as it aged, when the children who survived polio in the 1940s and 50s began to age. New discoveries about the long-lasting effects came to light only when the survivors experienced them. Long haulers with lasting long-term Covid-19 symptoms are finding out what the virus has in store for them in the same way as polio survivors have. For further information, see www.longcovid.org
