Dr. Martina Melzer, published: 08/12/25
It all started for Lena shortly before Christmas 2022. She contracted COVID-19 for the third time and thought it would pass, just like the last few times. But the
young occupational therapist noticed that something was wrong this time. She developed breathing problems, struggled with severe fatigue, inner restlessness, post-exertional malaise, and other
symptoms. After several visits to the doctor and an appointment at a post-COVID clinic, it was clear: she had Long COVID – and met the criteria for ME/CFS.
Her journey begins. In a video interview, Lena explains what helped her to recover from the illness to a large extent – even though she does not yet consider herself fully recovered. The video is
in German. Please activate subtitles, choose your language or try Youtube´s AI to translate.
What helped Lena:
- Pacing
- Leonie Förster's recovery video: https://youtu.be/Ghg8fs2XjKg?si=RD1iYwoJFFLqIqNZ
- The Gupta program “gave me a lot of hope,” she says, and “I benefited greatly from brain retraining.” However, she also put herself under pressure with the program, doesn't like meditating, and developed her own techniques over time
- Private doctors specializing in long COVID who recommended dietary supplements and other things
- Buteyko breathing
- Not exceeding a pulse rate of 100 beats per minute during activities
- A different approach to her inner drive and her body
- Acceptance
- Building up exercise with Frederik Gerber's team
- Online counseling
- Different approach to her social environment, involving people, asking for help, feeling embedded in a good social network
- Blood cleansing (apheresis) for autoantibodies and spike proteins with Dr. Schweiger in Bensheim, “afterwards I felt like my body was recovering faster and I had fewer crashes”; today she doesn't know if she would do it again.
- Mind-body reconnect therapy with Lena Arndt to access emotions and deal with them differently
- Things that bring joy
- Journaling
What didn't help:
- Rehab
- Conventional medicine
Lena's message: “There is hope, even for you.”
How to find Lena (German):
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fasse.mut/
Translated with DeepL.com
The content on this page is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for talking to your doctor or other therapist. Please talk to your doctor or therapist before making any decisions about your physical or mental health. Every way into a mind-body syndrome is something individual, and every way out.
