Recovery from Long COVID

4 ways ATUNE Long COVID Clinic helps you get there

You had COVID-19 months ago but you’re still not back to your former self?

When ATUNE Health Centres developed a clinic to help people like you recover, we kept these four principles in mind.

1. Limited Time for action

From our experience so far with chronic fatigue, the longer you leave it, the harder it is to recover. Apparently, your immune system and metabolism get used to being out of whack and don’t change easily. Long COVID (LC) has many features in common with chronic fatigue so we start your clinic experience with therapies that show the fastest improvements in symptoms (see more at point 4)

Your part is to get started now, especially if you DON’T feel like it! Apathy and fatigue are some of the most common symptoms of long COVID, and they prevent people from starting their recovery journey. The initial treatments are deliberately designed to require the least effort on your part but still get you onto the path to recovery.

2. Individualisation

Everyone’s symptoms are different and a one-size-fits-all approach will not suit everyone. What you need is an individualised treatment plan that takes note of your particular problems, develops the most effective plan, and tracks your progress, adjusting the plan if progress is slow.

At ATUNE we are using the Symptom Burden Questionnaire as the basis for our treatment plan. By frequent use of this detailed validated questionnaire, we can measure your symptoms, and improvements, and map out the best approach to your treatment.

3. Integrated Rehabilitation – No Silver Bullet

Long COVID affects so many different body systems, most people will require a number of different treatment modalities to recover. No single modality can cure alone.

Here at ATUNE our long COVID team has:

  • physiotherapists for musculoskeletal and pulmonary rehab
  • exercise physiologists for reconditioning and
  • psychologists for anxiety and depressive symptoms. These are similar to most LC clinics.

ATUNE is known for thinking outside the box and while we appreciate other LC clinics’ solutions we think we have something unique to add:

  • A dietician for gut and diet issues is often seen in LC.
  • The Perrin Technique – an osteopathy technique used for chronic fatigue1 that reduced LC symptoms by 50%, fatigue by 60%, over 3 months (9-10 treatments) in a preliminary study.2

But these therapies, even when integrated, still take months to see improvements.

4. Centre-wide Integration

What if we were to add the ATUNE therapies that aren’t common in LC clinics? Therapies that show quick changes in symptoms because they have system-wide effects.

We designed the clinic so you start with three less-known therapies that conserve your energy while creating the foundation for your rehabilitation, all within a few weeks.

  • Naturopathy – “Naturopathic approaches for Long Haul Covid aim to rejuvenate immune function, decrease overall inflammation, support a robust and diverse microbiome, reverse autonomic nervous system dysfunction from ongoing stress, and reduce environmental exposures that may affect endocrine dysfunction.”3
  • Breathing Therapy is also called autonomic conditioning because of its lasting positive effect on the autonomic nervous system.4
  • Thermotherapy (careful application of heat and cold to the whole body) seems to “shock” the immune system back into normal functioning.5

With all these systems on the road to normal, you are ready for the long-term rehabilitation therapies from the third point above.

Applying all four of these principles in a carefully planned, integrated approach improves your likelihood of a quick recovery from your long COVID.

References:
    1. Long Covid https://www.kenningtonosteopaths.co.uk/long-covid/
    2. Reducing fatigue-related symptoms in Long COVID-19: a preliminary report of a lymphatic drainage intervention https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9010124/
    3. What is Long-Haul COVID? How Naturopathic Medicine Can Help Relieve the Suffering https://nhcmed.com/further-reading/topic-immune-resilience/what-is-long-haul-covid-how-naturopathic-medicine-can-help-relieve-the-suffering.html
    4. Autonomic conditioning therapy reduces fatigue and improves global impression of change in individuals with post-acute COVID-19 syndrome https://assets.researchsquare.com/files/rs-440909/v1/2d114b41-2789-41d2-8ce5-68097594b3a9.pdf?c=1631881293
    5. Thermotherapy – Key Points – an overview https://docs.google.com/document/d/1JuDZH6DlCFPVPobUWUutna1ZAfBv2A33uW_gEkzkaK8/edit?usp=share_link

Bruce ThompsonAUTHOR
BRUCE THOMPSON

BAppSc-Physiotherapy, Sydney University 1978

Bruce Thompson is a qualified Physiotherapist who has been using and teaching hydrotherapy for over 30 years.

See also:
traditionalhydrotherapy.com
hydro4covid.com