COVID-19 Diaries: Long COVID, Alex

Long COVID-sufferer, Alex Michael, wears a nebuliser at home, which assists with his breathing and shortness of breath.

Alex first caught COVID-19 in March 2020, when he arrived home on a plane from the U.K. He was one of Australia’s first cases of COVID-19. He was only 26 years old.

Nearly two years later, Alex is still suffering from the lingering symptoms of the disease, which has seen him land in the Intensive Care Unit numerous times. In August this year, Alex collapsed at home and was given CPR in the back of an ambulance as he was rushed to hospital. He was put on a ventilator for 15 hours, but he survived.

Alex now suffers from lung damage, asthma attacks, fatigue and blood clots, all as a result of COVID-19.

Today, Alex is trying to learn to live with the effects of long-COVID, even though it has turned his world upside down. He says he wouldn’t be here today if it wasn’t for the doctors, nurses and healthcare workers that saved his life.

Part of an ongoing series ‘COVID-19 Diaries’.

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