Overview

• A University of Surrey study finds Long COVID patients frequently feel dismissed and disbelieved by healthcare providers.
• Patients report feeling pressured to prove their illness is physical, often rejecting psychological support out of fear it implies their symptoms are imaginary.
• The study emphasizes the importance of offering psychological therapies alongside medical care to avoid perceptions of dismissal.
• Participants describe living with constant uncertainty, struggling to access effective treatment, and losing trust in doctors, social circles, and even their own bodies.
• Long COVID, which affects an estimated 1.9 million people in the UK, is recognized as a condition with over 200 possible symptoms, including fatigue and brain fog.