The Office for National Statistics (ONS) estimates that 1.3 million people in the UK – or around 2% of the population – are suffering from self reported long Covid, with fatigue, loss of smell, shortness of breath and difficulty concentrating among the most common symptoms.
According to the ONS, people aged 35 to 69, women, people living in deprived areas, those working in health, social care or teaching and education or people living with another activity limiting health condition or disability were most likely to report long Covid.
People who are concerned about their recovery from Covid-19 should visit Your Covid Recovery or speak to their GP. For more information and local resources, visit Long term effects of COVID (Long COVID).
Councillor Jasbir Jaspal, the City of Wolverhampton Council's Cabinet Member for Public Health and Wellbeing, said: "It is very worrying that, while most people will make a full recovery from Covid-19 within a few days or weeks, around 2% of people will have long term symptoms of this terrible virus, lasting 12 weeks or more.
“In Wolverhampton, that's the equivalent of over 5,000 people living with long Covid and, with thousands of people testing positive every week, that number is only going to grow.
"The evidence suggests that long Covid can happen to anyone who has had Covid-19, even if the illness was mild, or they had no symptoms at all.
“The good news is that there is help and support out there for people living with long Covid, and there are various things you can do to help you in your recovery, most importantly by remaining active and carrying out light exercise as much as possible.
“But it is also an important reminder that we must continue to take Covid-19 seriously, and do all we can to protect ourselves and others from the virus.
"It continues to pose a major risk to public health, so please follow the guidance and, most importantly, get vaccinated as soon as you are able to.
"Please remember, if you’ve not had your first jab yet, or you didn’t go back for your second or your booster when it was due, it’s not too late – the vaccine is an evergreen offer and the sooner you have it, the better because you will very quickly develop protection against this potentially deadly virus.”
For a full list of local vaccination centres, many of which are offering walk in appointments, please visit NHS. To book an appointment in advance, please visit Book or manage a coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccination or call 119. Opening times and ages vary from site to site, but all offer first, second and booster vaccinations without an appointment.
Latest figures show there were 1,894 new cases of Covid-19 per 100,000 people in Wolverhampton over the last 7 days. That means 4,982 people tested positive for the virus in that same period – though the true number of cases will likely be higher.
