FOR most people, Covid-19 is a brief and mild disease, but some are left struggling with symptoms including lasting fatigue, persistent pain and breathlessness for months.

So far, the focus has been on saving lives during the pandemic, but there is now a growing recognition that people are facing long-term consequences of a Covid infection.

Monmouthshire minister John Keysell has shared his story of contracting coronavirus in March, and it’s impact on his life since.

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He is now one of many suffering with a wide range of symptoms being dubbed ‘Long Covid’.

An asthmatic who has been on steroid medications to try to get better, he said in May he got to one of his lowest points mentally in his life, and has attributed his recent improvement to wife Viv.

“She has got me through. It’s been an extremely lonely time and a confusing time,” he said.

“I’ve had more than 20 different symptoms, from blisters to a white and swollen tongue.

“The worst part has been waking up in the morning and not knowing what symptoms are going to be in store.

“I still suffer from breathlessness and fatigue. Another symptom for me has been brain fog; this morning I wrote out a cheque for ‘£60 and five pounds’, because I’m not thinking straight.

“I’m not a particularly emotional man, but I’ve found myself in tears very often.

“I just have to plan properly, and not put too much pressure on myself. Sometimes I can’t function, and I have to accept that now. That’s what coronavirus has done to me.”

Rev Keysell lives right on the border, and does some work in England too. He says he agrees with the circuit-breaker lockdown, but wants the same thing implemented in England at the same time.

“I hope we don’t get in a position where Wales is open in a few weeks’ time and England is shut,” he added.

One of the worst parts of lockdown, Rev Keysell says, is the loneliness that he and Viv have experienced.

“It is a horrible feeling, and it’s important for us that doesn’t turn into the norm, or a fear of being outside.

“We’re very conscious of that – we’re out and about as much as we can be, we try and eat healthily and live a healthy lifestyle.

“You have to try and be resilient. I’m very fortunate Viv is on at me all the time to pick myself up again. I’d be lost without her.”