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COVID-19 Has Made Marathon Training Harder

I’ve been learning the hard way that recovery from COVID-19 is in some ways reminiscent of dealing with sarcoidosis. After being diagnosed with COVID-19 in early January, quickly obtaining monoclonal antibodies to aid in my recovery, and then completing a 20-day isolation period due to my immunocompromised state,…

Dancing the Sarcoidosis ‘Cha-Cha Slide’

“Optimist: Someone who figures that taking a step backward after taking a step forward is not a disaster, it’s a cha-cha.” — Robert Brault This is exactly what sarcoidosis is like. It’s like we’re living in the song “Cha-Cha Slide.” Having sarcoidosis is a never-ending dance of symptoms, doctors,…

I’m Thankful to Have Reached the End of My COVID-19 Isolation

Yesterday, my doctor cleared me to return to the office, effectively ending my COVID-19 isolation. After testing positive more than two weeks ago, and feeling quite sluggish for several days beforehand, yesterday’s at-home test came back negative. What a relief. Thankfully, as I previously mentioned, I was able…

Learning Which Numbers Really Matter

It’s easy to forget what’s most important when living with a chronic health condition. I reflect on this often, especially when I’m working out at the gym or trying to do “normal” activities. Achieving a sense of normalcy with sarcoidosis is difficult, especially during a pandemic. A shifting sense…

I’m Learning to Give Myself a Break

My last doctor’s appointment of 2021 was on Dec. 30 and involved a six-minute walk test and a follow-up with my pulmonologist. The walk test didn’t seem to go well, as I required more supplemental oxygen than I usually do while working out at the gym. I explained this to…

Sarcoidosis Made My Close Call With COVID-19 Even Scarier

We’re all familiar with the evolutionary fight-or-flight response. When faced with stress or danger, we go through physiological changes that enable us to either battle a predator (fight) or escape the situation (flight). However, there is another option, although we probably wouldn’t choose it willingly: to freeze. That’s…

COVID-19 and Inequities in Access to Treatment

“Of all the forms of inequality, injustice in healthcare is the most shocking and inhumane,” Martin Luther King Jr. said in 1966. I have COVID-19. As of this writing, I am one of 326 million people who have contracted this disease worldwide. As a pulmonary sarcoidosis fighter who…