[Recovery] 80% recovered from Baricitinib

Long time lurker here writing this hoping to help anyone that might fit my specific long covid symptoms and help in their recovery. I'm finally free of most of my symptoms with a working brain that I can write my experience here.

Symptoms

Brain Fog, Fatigue, POTS, latent virus reactivation, PEM, headaches, dizziness, loss of smell, sensitivity to light, memory loss, shortness of breath, throat inflammation, heart palpitations, high blood pressure, bloating, acid reflux, hair loss, swollen lymph nodes, frequent urination, blurred vision, temperature dysregulation.

History

I contracted covid 4 times total. For first and second infection I was able to recover within a few weeks and third one took 5 months from lingering symptoms. However, last infection has become chronic long covid and I have been dealing with it for the past two years. At my worst I can provide EIPS score of 1 and at my best I was able to hit 8 as my new normal. Just as I thought I was getting better I pushed myself too hard on a vacation moving back down to 1 with full on long covid again. The relapse caused as if I had covid again with full on flu symptoms without an active infection. No matter what I did in terms of rest did not relieve any of my symptoms unfortunately.

Current Research

As research is currently actively ongoing for long covid it is clear for whatever reason our immune system is in flux constantly activated and fighting causing inflammation everywhere in the body and causing havoc. This in turn seems to cause everything from T cell exhaustion, inflammation (including the brain), and at worst reactivation of viruses that add even more fuel to the fire. While there are no drugs to remove what is causing the immune system to go wild, there are treatments to tame the immune system itself for treatments below.

Path to Recovery

Stellgate Ganglion Block

I was incredibly skeptical of this procedure as I had doubts how a temporary anesthesia could help long covid symptoms; however, after getting the procedure 5x on both sides of the neck I was able to improve from 1 to 4 (this was at my absolute worst). I got this procedure done in Korea for $500 each time without insurance. Those who are interested: https://m.osns.co.kr/ However, I was still unable to improve above the current level and unfortunately relapse (PEM) and started getting back to a lower baseline below 4.

Valtrex

Valtrex is an antiviral for herpes and in theory does not impact long covid; however, it's been proven our immune system could allow for latent virus activations as it is became weaker due to covid. Note this might work for some but it's worth trying as it is relatively cheap and safe (even with negative tests). I had improvements back to 4 after a week course and still taking it.

Baricitinib

I just recently started taking this exactly 2 weeks ago which is the minimum time it takes for it to take therapeutic effect. This medication is used for hair loss and arthritis with proven safety with multiple clinical trials. This medication is already EUA by FDA for acute covid infection. The main function of this drug is to tone down our innate immune system by inhibiting the JAK pathways reducing inflammation. Just after 2 weeks many of my debilitating symptoms such as brain fog, fatigue, low energy all improved significantly like "magic". Note this drug is prohibitively expensive in US and still expensive if purchased in India. I recommend buying Barigen (or other generics) from Bangladesh that has exactly same active components. Baricitinib is actively being trialed for Phase 3 but it is estimated to be completed 2027.. https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT06631287

Closing Thoughts
At this point I can say I'm about 80% recovered enough to work + walking exercise without inducing PEM. Unfortunately long covid has so many variations my experience might not help others but I'm hoping this post can help some. All the medications should be complemented with good sleep + low stress no medication can replace the recovery mechanism our body already has. One of the most important things is avoid PEM at all costs in my experience it seems to re-trigger the bad feedback loop bringing one into a worse state. If anyone is curious about the experience I had feel free to post below and I can help answer.

Videos that explain better than myself:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7inKF32vtl8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F6pOotJewb0

TLDR: Significant improvement from taking Baricitinib, a JAK STAT inhibitor to prevent inflammation.