Some recovering COVID patients experiencing sleep issues

Many people who have recovered from COVID are still dealing with long-term complications from the virus. Their symptoms are wide-ranging, but one of the more common issues reported involves difficulties with sleep.

Cynthia Pena, a sleep specialist doctor with Cleveland Clinic, says circadian rhythm disorders happens when a person’s internal clock is out of sync with their environment.

As a result, they may suffer from insomnia, daytime sleepiness, difficulty waking up, depression and stress in relationships.
Pena says they don’t know why some COVID long haulers are experiencing sleep-related issues. That is something researchers are still trying to understand.

They also aren’t sure how long those symptoms could persist for. However, the good news is that they are treatable.

"This is just from my personal experience that those patients that we’re seeing a year ago in our clinic, some of them that are already after 10, 12 months of treatment, I can see some of them are improving their sleep issues. But there is no exact data, or the literature has not revealed for how long symptoms are going to last," said Dr. Cinthya Pena with Cleveland Clinic.

Dr. Pena says if you have recovered from COVID-19 and are dealing with ongoing sleep issues, be sure to consult with your physician. Sleep plays an important role in a person’s health.