A new clinical challenge: supporting patients coping with the long-term effects of COVID-19

Abstract

Mental Health Practitioners (MHPs) have a unique opportunity to provide resources and support to those suffering from Long COVID (LC), the post infectious illness that often follows an acute SARS-CoV-2 infection. In working with these individuals, MHPs can learn from the experiences of patients with another post-infectious disease known as myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). ME/CFS was once thought to be a psychologically mediated disorder caused by deconditioning and the fear of exertion following a precipitating event such as a viral infection. Research now shows that LC and ME/CFS are biomedical, multisystem, complex physiologic diseases. This article provides a framework to MHPs for the treatment of LC patients using knowledge derived from three decades of research on ME/CFS.

Patient and clinician experiences of fibromyalgia, ME/CFS and medically unexplained symptoms: A meta-aggregative systematic review

“…Similar themes have emerged more recently from the narratives of patients with Long-Covid syndrome (145); thus, it may be more fruitful to identify and support the skills that enable PwC to live well despite uncertainty, invalidation, and disbelief. For example, Goldberg et al (146) suggest that a key role for mental health professionals in supporting Long-Covid patients is essentially through validating their illness experience, facilitating coping and adaptation, while also managing any pre-existing or secondary mental health issues. Based on the findings of our review, we argue that such suggestions can be extended to any illness characterised by disbelief, delegitimation and uncertainty.…”

Multi‐disciplinary collaborative consensus guidance statement on the assessment and treatment of mental health symptoms in patients with post‐acute sequelae of SARS‐CoV‐2 infection (PASC)

“…We encourage clinicians who treat PASC to model their approach based on best practices for the treatment of patients with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). Specifically, PASC clinicians should take a supportive, open, nonjudgmental stance; they should consider the multifaceted biological aspects to the complex syndrome and recommend medical and mental health–related treatments when a patient truly requires both types of interventions 52 . This can be especially challenging because patients with PASC who are experiencing depression, anxiety, and/or suicidal thoughts may underreport their mental health symptoms due to concerns that their clinician will attribute all their other PASC symptoms to their mental health.…”

“…Specifically, PASC clinicians should take a supportive, open, nonjudgmental stance; they should consider the multifaceted biological aspects to the complex syndrome and recommend medical and mental health-related treatments when a patient truly requires both types of interventions. 52 This can be especially challenging because patients with PASC who are experiencing depression, anxiety, and/or suicidal thoughts may underreport their mental health symptoms due to concerns that their clinician will attribute all their other PASC symptoms to their mental health. This phenomenon may contribute to the trend that these patients are more likely to report receiving a significantly below-optimal level of care.…”