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Behind the Numbers: Long COVID

An energetic hairstylist loses her health and livelihood to long COVID

May 8, 2024
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Sonia Cadena
The effects of long COVID have taken a toll on Sonia Cadena's physical and financial health.

Sonia Cadena’s life took an unexpected turn in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. The vivacious mom and hairstylist living in Denver’s Ruby Hill neighborhood was among the state’s first recorded cases of the novel coronavirus. She is now one of the estimated 300,000 Coloradans who tested positive for the virus and had symptoms that lasted at least three months — what we now call long COVID. 

Sonia’s journey with COVID began in January 2020 when the virus was yet to be formally diagnosed the United States. While traveling internationally, Sonia unwittingly became one of the initial cases recorded in Colorado.

"It was really bad I didn’t know what was happening, but it was the worst flu-like symptoms I had ever experienced" Sonia recalled. Rather than a quick recovery like many COVID patients experience, the illness reshaped her life in profound ways.

"I went to the emergency room three times and spiraled into medical debt," Sonia said. The financial strain added to an already grueling battle against the virus. "Breathing treatments, twice a week, were meant to help, but I found no relief. Instead, I accumulated around $18,000 in debt as insurance didn't cover these treatments."

The toll on her health went well beyond discomfort.

"My lungs bore the scars of this ordeal, the aftermath of pneumonia," she said, recalling the fatigue and foggy haze that clouded her thoughts. "Long COVID’s weight drowned me, stripping away my ability to taste, smell, or even desire food. Days blurred into endless stretches where leaving my bed was an impossible task."

Her financial health suffered, too.

"I lost clients who couldn't wait for my recovery. Every moment at work became a silent battle — breaks turned into moments to gather strength. I had to keep paying rent for my house and for my chair at the salon even when I wasn’t working," she recalled.

Sonia also described the uphill task of paying rent despite losing her income, a challenge faced by many long COVID sufferers. "It wasn't just about keeping a roof over my head; it was about ensuring my family's survival." 

Long COVID not only hurt her earning potential but also the time she could spend with her husband and 8-year-old son. "Family outings, bike rides, and gym routines with my husband were all now impossible tasks. The money I can make back, but I will never get back all the moments I missed with them because I was constantly ill, or too fatigued." 

While Sonia has regained some sense of normalcy in her daily life, her lungs have yet to fully recover, leaving uncertainty about their future. She needs to use an inhaler for tasks that were once effortless, such as exercising. Additionally, she now faces heightened susceptibility to illnesses; her immune system no longer defends as effectively against even minor ailments like colds and flus.

Sonia's story represents only a fraction of those grappling with the lasting repercussions of long COVID. For thousands of Coloradans, the ongoing struggles linger well beyond the virus's initial onslaught. The uncertainties surrounding long COVID and its far-reaching societal implications extend far beyond mere figures. 

“Family outings, bike rides, and gym routines with my husband were all now impossible tasks. The money I can make back, but I will never get back all the moments I missed with them because I was constantly ill, or too fatigued.”