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Post-Viral Fatigue
Fatigue persisting for weeks or months after a viral illness is common and, for some people, disabling. The critical feature to identify is post-exertional malaise — a delayed crash after activity, often a day later. Where that is present, the usual advice to gradually build exercise is wrong and will make things worse. Pacing comes first, and only then, cautiously, does capacity get rebuilt.
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Does this sound like you?
Most people have several of these, not all of them.
- Fatigue disproportionate to activity, not relieved by rest
- A delayed crash a day or so after exertion
- Difficulty concentrating and remembering
- Dizziness or palpitations on standing
- Aching muscles and headaches
Why it happens
- Viral infections including COVID-19, influenza and glandular fever
- A prolonged or severe acute illness
- Sleep disruption during and after the infection
- Deconditioning from an extended period of rest
- Autonomic changes affecting heart rate and blood pressure on standing
What we would do about it
Roughly in this order — each step waits for the one before it.
- Identifying post-exertional malaise first, because it changes everything that follows
- Pacing and activity management within your current energy envelope
- Breathing pattern retraining, which is frequently disrupted after illness
- Position and hydration strategies where standing provokes symptoms
- Very gradual reintroduction of activity, only once stable
- Working with your GP, since other causes need excluding
See a doctor first if
- Your pain followed a significant injury
- It is getting worse rather than settling
- It comes with numbness, weakness or unexplained weight loss
This page is general information, not a diagnosis. Symptoms overlap between conditions, so the right treatment depends on an assessment.
Pushing through is the wrong advice here
If activity leaves you flattened the next day, a standard graded exercise program will set you back. Pacing first is the safer and more effective route. Ask a question first, or call us on 0403 907 587.
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Other chronic conditions we treat
Related reading: widespread pain with fatigue, persistent symptoms after illness or injury and dizziness and unsteadiness.
General information only, not advice about your own problem — nothing here replaces an assessment. Source: Chronic Fatigue Syndrome on Physiopedia.
