Two Adelaide COVID-19 sufferers warn against complacency as they continue their recovery
Anna Liptak, the sixth COVID-19 case in SA, spent almost a week in a critical condition. Though she survived, the fitness coach says she still suffers from chronic health issues months later, including being bed-bound for days whenever she exercises: “This disease is no joke.”
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Two COVID-19 survivors who withstood the worst of the disease say full recovery is uncertain and they urge South Australians to heed all recommended precautions.
Fitness coach Anna Liptak, 46, of Seacliff, was South Australia’s sixth case of COVID-1 9.
In mid-March, she was admitted to Flinders Medical Centre in a critical condition and developed pneumonia.
Almost five months on, after five days in hospital and recovery at home, the marathon runner describes a litany of health issues she still suffers from.
They include painful ears, aching joints and muscles and chronic fatigue. In a post on social media, she detailed the debilitating effects, saying the tiredness is “out of this world and whenever she exercises she finds herself “in bed for days upon end”.
“I hope I’m going to be OK but I’m having to revisit what health is to me now, be kind to myself and pull back,” she said yesterday.
“This disease is no joke and its effects are nasty for people young and old so, please, do not be complacent. Take it seriously.”
Mrs Liptak said she was still fit and had recently run 28km but then spent seven days barely able to get up from her bed.
Paul Faraguna, 69, of Rosslyn Park, who contracted COVID-19 on the Ruby Princess cruise ship, spent two months in the Royal Adelaide Hospital, including five weeks in an induced coma.
He was not expected to survive but said his fitness may have been a pivotal factor.
Mr Faraguna said he lost 16kg and had regained only half of that since leaving hospital in late May.
“The main issue I haven’t cleared up yet is my lungs because I had viral pneumonia,” he said.
“I still get short of breath and I get sore muscles.
“But I’m a positive person and I think in six months I might be all right.”
Mr Faraguna said the virus was “totally nasty” and he encouraged people to do everything they could to halt the spread.
“I was on the brink of death,” he said.
“I’m not a fearful person but I fear for my loved ones.
“Nobody should have to go through that.”