COVID-19 was a tricky viral disease to contain. For starters, it was incredibly virulent. It was also unpredictable. However, the most sinister thing about it was its potential to trigger long-term health complications. For those inflicted with long COVID, there’s a stark contrast between their pre-COVID and post-COVID lives. Young tennis star Tanysha Dissanayake knows how it feels.

In 2021, Tanysha was a budding tennis player who dreamed of winning Grand Slams. She even played against Emma Raducanu, the current World No. 68 in the WTA rankings. Fast forward to 2023, and Tanysha’s dreams have been shattered, and it’s all down to long COVID, as the young Briton revealed in a recent interview.

July 2021, the month that will haunt Tanysha Dissanayake forever

On a July 2021 day, Tanysha and her friend Thel were watching a film. However, later in the day, Thel tested positive for COVID. Unsurprisingly, Tanysha herself tested positive a few days later. Little did she know that it would signal the end of her fledgling tennis career.

In an interview with Sky Sports, Tanysha said, “Initially Thel thought I wasn’t really going to be that unwell, and then I was.” At the time, she believed she would recover swiftly similar to most of her friends who tested positive. While the uncomfortable symptoms did ease for a little while, the disease had already affected her organs to such an extent that she could never completely recover.

Now, Tanysha is dependent on a wheelchair, and even going out for an hour leaves her exhausted. “I leave the house once every two weeks, only for an hour, and then it takes me five days to recover.” She went on to say, “I can’t cook, I can’t clean, I can’t do anything. I have had to stop my education. I’ve had to stop playing tennis.”

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The world has turned a blind eye to people living with long COVID, claims Tanysha

COVID vaccines definitely played their part in stopping further waves of the viral infection worldwide. However, so far, long COVID research remains limited, and according to Tanysha, people with the condition are not getting enough attention.

She said, “I think I can speak on behalf of the whole long COVID community when I say that we feel forgotten, we don’t feel like anyone’s trying to understand the virus and what we’re going through.”

Tanysha also commented on how she is feeling like she is “getting left behind in life”. Right now, Tanysha is experimenting with a variety of techniques to relieve her long COVID symptoms. “I try yoga. I try meditation.” According to Tanysha, time is the only thing that can help her get better.

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