“The programme has helped me manage my muscle pain and other symptoms of long COVID. It has also been helpful to have someone willing to listen to you and encourage one to keep going.”
Haroon, 58, COVID Rehabilitation & Long COVID
Here are Haroon’s thoughts on KiActiv® Health
“The KiActiv® Health programme empowers/encourages one to stay active once the 12-week course has finished. The programme has helped me manage my muscle pain and other symptoms of long COVID. It has also been helpful to have someone willing to listen to you and encourage one to keep going. One of the things I have learnt from this, is that it is about pacing oneself and not pushing yourself too much so that you do not create more issues for yourself.”
Haroon’s Story
Haroon was referred KiActiv® after contracting COVID-19 in November 2020. He spent a total of 11-weeks in hospital, of which 37-days were spent on a ventilator losing 20kg. A primary goal of his was to regain some of the strength he had lost during his hospital stay.
As his programme progressed, he began to feel increasingly confident going for walks outside of the house. He was surprised to find he found walking okay and, despite still getting a little breathless, it was not as bad as previously. As such, he felt he was really moving in the right direction.
“I have started going for walks and now use the walking frame instead of the Zimmer frame. I feel as though I have made a lot of progress.”
A personal goal of his was to gain some strength back and he was able to achieve this through increasing his knowledge of the benefits of all types of movement, alongside the value of pacing. In fact, mid-way through his programme he noted how much better his balance was getting and that he’d noticed an increase in his leg strength too. This was evident in his 4th session with KiActiv®, Haroon commented we that he was able to move around without the requirement of sticks.
“I’m not using any sticks or anything inside the house. Outside of the house I still use the sticks just in case, but don’t use the 4-wheel buggy anymore.”
Throughout his time with KiActiv®, Haroon’s physical activity increased in 4 dimensions during the 12 weeks, increasing his non-sedentary time 6-fold. Also, he significantly increased his moderate activity from 1 minute per day at baseline to 48 minutes per day on average across the duration of the programme.
After KiActiv®, Haroon continues to attend a COVID recovery group to help his wellbeing and for pain management advice, but really felt that KiActiv® Health had helped him a lot by getting him back on track and giving him the confidence to personally manage his condition in the longer term, commenting how completing KiActiv® had helped him successfully manage his long COVID symptoms.
