I have renewed gratitude for simple things like trips to the countryside and my dog.
It’s also got me thinking about people living with other long-term illnesses. For many reasons,I am so glad I have breast cancer not long COVID.
Firstly,my cancer was never terminal and there is a clear path to a cure. Doctors know a huge amount about breast cancer,and it’s actually really common – some experts estimate the number is much higher than the often quoted one in 10 figure. The fact I will be cured is absolutely central to my ability to have a good attitude to what’s happening to me. I can (and do) say to myself:“It’s not forever,it will end.” For long COVID sufferers,there’s no such comfort.
Margaret Gordon,an audio and video producer for The Age and Sydney Morning Herald.Credit:Margaret Gordon
Secondly,people understand what cancer is. They know that treatment is rough,and usually have someone close to them who’s going through it or who’s been through it. With long COVID,there’s still a huge knowledge gap – most people generally don’t understand what it is or how it feels,which correlates to less sympathy and practical help. Among some,there is an attitude that people suffering long COVID are at best a bit dramatic,and at worst imagining it. That it’s “all in the mind”.
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While I have been cocooned by love and support,my friends with long COVID never got anything like that,even though their day-to-day lives were just as impacted as mine.
Also,my workplace has been incredibly accommodating. I am able to take time off to rest and heal as I need to. My work has been absorbed by understanding teammates,and I have flexibility to work from home or take time off when I need it. The people I know with long COVID (mostly women over 40) have had to work through or look after children as if nothing is happening to them. Some workplaces are supportive towards long COVID sufferers,but it’s certainly not a given.
But more than that,despite COVID-19 still raging in Australia,it barely makes the news any more. Everyone has “pandemic fatigue”. But where does it leave long COVID sufferers? Not only are they still vulnerable,but they face an indifferent community of people who don’t want to hear it.
Of course,it’s important to be kind to people with cancer. But the kindness I’ve had showered on me should be extended to people suffering with the lesser-understood,but just as painful conditions. Particularly,those with no end date in sight.
Margaret Gordon is a podcast and video producer forThe Age andThe Sydney Morning Herald.
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