I have always loved the outdoors and for a while I was feeling I may never be able to full enjoy them like I had in the past. I have always loved Hiking, Camping, Fishing, Hunting, Horseback, and enjoying those activities with my wife and dogs.
This picture is a photo I took while at Convict Lake near Mammoth Mountain, California.
In February of 2022, I was infected with Covid which then turn into pneumonia. I thought I was getting better so I went back to work, still very run down and having severe breathing problems. After three days of work I had pneumonia again.
Just a day out fishing with my wife at Twin Lakes near Bridgeport, California.
I had daily headaches, no energy, could not climb a set of stairs without stopping to catch my breath, and my heart would just pump fast and hard even when sitting still sometimes. I had never experienced something like this. I was having a difficult time walking out into my backyard, so hiking was out of the question.
Playing with the dogs
A few months went by and my condition worsened and during a doctor visit in April of 2022, I was sent by ambulance from the doctor's office becuase they thought I was having a heart attack. I arrived at the hospital and they started prepping me for surgery, possibly a by pass heart surgery. After two days in the hospital they told me my heart was strong and when they measured artery blockage they said my levels were so little they were not measureable by their standards. So this seemed like good news but they said your heart issue is part of what we are calling Long Covid.
Driving cattle in Montana!
So I contiued over the next few months not getting any better. I did start to get pain in my joints, mostly my knees and wrists. I also have had two herniated disks in my back since 2012 that was flaring up worse then normal. Now besides my breathing problems not allowing me to get outdoors, my joints and back were making it worse.
I have had 14 different doctors which have all tried to attack the problems I was having. As 2023 approached doctors where beging to tell me that the breathing / heart problems may continue for many years. All doctors consitently told me Long Covid is a new disease we don't know much about. I was really starting to get down, I had a hard time even leaving my house to go to doctor appointments. Things were not good but I thought, I can not let myself get down because that will not make my condition better but instead can only make things worse.
I was able to keep the hope that one day I would be outdoors again.
My wife, two dogs (which we lost both to old age this year), and I.
In August of 2023, I had three back procedures that was able to provide my relief from the constant back pain. I have had a few days that were very painful since but those days are much fewer then before the procedures. One of the procedures was killing the nerve endings so that I would feel less pain which seems to have helped.
In September of 2023, I had surgery on my right knee to fix a torn meniscus. I had never noticed the knee pain until I got Covid, so I blame Covid for the knee but it's not an injury that would happen from Covid.
In October of 2023, I had carpal tunnel surgery of both wrists.
I continue to recover from the surgeries and still have breathing / heart problems. However, I have been seeing a Long Covid specialist at Stanford Hospital in Palo Alto, California. They have put me through a few trials to see what medications would help and none did. Some medications even seemed to make things worse for me.
Here it is almost two years since my initial Covid infection and the Stanford Doctors told me they believe there is a medication called "Low Dose Naltrexone" that has helped other people with Long Covid. I started it about two months ago and even though doctors say it will not cure anything, but should make life a little easier.
So the new medication does help me slightly with my breathing which in turn helps with my heart. Before this medication is i walked about 50 feet I would get out of breath and my heart would beat as if it was going to come out of my chest. It still happens but now I can walk slowly for about 10 minutes before I start to struggle.
So the other day my wife and I took our new puppy who is now about one and a half years old (but we still call him the puppy) for a walk. Yes, I was going to walk outdoors, a small thing but an exciting time for me. The puppy was excited to walk and we only went about a half mile stopping numerous time for me to catch my breath, but it is a victory for me. We reached a cattle grate and the puppy looked at me to pick him up and I carried him across which is this picture below.
A few months ago I would not have been able to walk with our puppy let alone pick him up. So maybe I will get back to hiking 8-10 mile trips but for now I am happy to be able to do short distances.
So even when life gets rough, keep a good attitude because things will turn around. When you are down there is only one way you can go and that is up. I have a long recovery still and may never get back to where I was but for now I am still #alive and #aliveandthriving. A final photo I took the other night of the moon popping up as the sun sets.
I hope anyone out there going through anything tuff can find a way to keep there hope up, it's worth it.