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Hello Self

A story about recovery

Everything that helps me get better from Long Covid, ME/CFS and chronic anxiety, in written and audio posts

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My journey with Long Covid

My journey with Long Covid

This post is about my recovery journey with Long Covid and ME/CFS. I share where I am now after 20 months and what helped me.
My recovery process

My recovery process

There is no “one size fits all plan to heal” from Long Covid and ME/CFS. What I am sharing in this post are the 4 steps that helped me to start getting better.
FAQ - Questions I asked myself along the way

FAQ - Questions I asked myself along the way

In this post, I share answers to some of the questions I kept coming back to during my recovery, and that I've also seen many others ask in support groups.

My journey

15
Oct
A dirt road climbs a hillside under a stormy sky. Fallen branches, rocks, and plants line the path, symbolizing a difficult journey.

This recovery journey sucks

My blog is about hope and positivity in recovery. But sometimes, let's be honest, this journey sucks. And it's okay to talk about it too.
4 min read
08
Nov
A person climbing the Everest on a beautiful day, close to the summit, following the foot steps of previous climbers.

Mood journal – Check-ins from inside the journey

Just me, checking in with myself on the journey, writing freely and sharing stuff.
4 min read
27
Dec
An illustration of a sick smiley face with tired eyes, a thermometer in the mouth.

My symptoms

A list of the 60+ symptoms I experienced during this journey.
3 min read

Learn & understand

20
Sep
A representation of a cycle between rest (a woman practicing yoga) and activity (a woman walking)

My pacing practice

Pacing is often the first thing recommended to patients. In this post, I share my own way of practicing pacing, what worked, and what didn't.
6 min read
22
Sep
A person isolated from the world, in a storm with difficult thoughts, looking distressed.

Breaking free of anxiety

Chronic anxiety has been part of my life for over 15 years. Here is all the knowledge that helped me break free from it.
5 min read
01
Oct
A female character with her four key emotions represented above her head in the form of small colored figures

What to do with emotions

Feeling our emotions isn’t always easy, or something we actually want to do. Here’s what I’ve learned and how I live more at peace with them.
5 min read
08
Oct
The polyvagal scale: the state of safety, green with small plants; the state of fight-or-flight, red with fire; the state of immobilization, blue with ice.

Understand your nervous system: The Polyvagal Theory

Learning more about my nervous system was a turning point in my recovery. It gave me insights that helped me become an active participant in my own healing.
6 min read
14
Oct
An image showing two arrows: The first one says "Expectations" and is a straight upward line. The second one says "Reality" and is a messy curvy upward line.

Dealing with dips and setbacks

We all heard that recovery is not a linear process. But ups and downs can be extremely difficult to handle. Here is what helps me dealing with setbacks.
5 min read
22
Oct
Four Lego building blocks in different colors, ranging from a small block with 1 stud to a large block with 6 studs.

Tools for each stage of severity

Gentle strategies and practical tips that helped my recovery through the very severe, severe, and moderate/mild stages.
7 min read
30
Oct
A person feeling lost while looking at a daily and a monthly calendar with a lot of information on it

What does a recovery day look like?

What should I be doing each day to recover? Is there a schedule I should follow? What does it look like? Here's my insight on that topic.
8 min read
04
Nov
A person lying awake in bed, looking worried, with a few objects around her (her phone and headphones, some books and a small lantern)

Dealing with insomnia

A lot of Long Covid and ME/CFS sufferers, myself included, deal with insomnia. In this post, you'll find some of the things that helped me improve my sleep over time.
6 min read
16
Nov
A image of a cartoon brain looking sad and worried, with alarm bells and danger sign posts all around it

What the brain perceives as threats

Our innate threat detection system can sometimes perceive unexpected things as dangerous... and get you chronically stuck in unhelpful survival modes.
8 min read
30
Nov
A man with a backpack on a forest path, walking and looking toward the horizon.

Getting better: the signs of recovery

Recovery can feel long and chaotic. We sometimes wonder if we are going in the right direction... So here are all the signs of improvement I noticed in myself and that helped me trust the healing process!
6 min read
23
Dec
An illustration of a cute baby. At first he's on the floor, then crawling with a determined look, then walking around.

Getting better: What activity expansion looks like

A day-to-day look at what activity expansion actually looks like in ME/CFS and Long Covid recovery, with practical strategies and real-life examples from my own journey.
6 min read
04
Feb
A woman in a wheelchair, looking tired but peaceful ; a man kneeling beside her, looking at her protectively.

About caregivers

When illness turns life upside down, relationships are tested. This post shares tips for patients and their caregivers facing ME/CFS or Long Covid together.
9 min read

Library

15
Sep
A person telling their story into a microphone, with a notebook in front of her

Discover more recovery stories

A post full of hope with numerous links to stories of recovery from Long Covid and ME/CFS.
1 min read
27
Oct
A stack of books, an open book in the foreground, a computer playing a video of an interview, and a speaker playing music

More external resources to learn and practice safety

In this post I'll link all the external free resources and books that I found helpful!
3 min read
12
Jan
A clipboard with steps and checkmarks, and a pen next to it

My dip cheat sheet

For dip days when you have a lot of symptoms and want to "fix it" at all costs... here's my cheat sheet.
3 min read
10
Mar
A woman lying peacefully on a sofa, listening to something in her headphones, with a cat on her lap.

Guided practices

A small collection of short, soft and accessible guided regulation practices, inspired by what helped me in my own journey.
2 min read