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HOW DO I KNOW
IF I HAVE
LONG COVID?

Friday, December 16, 2022

In today’s newsletter, we track down a scarily elusive diagnosis, get stuck dangling 60 feet above the ocean, examine why food allergies are multiplying, talk with a Himalayan king, meet the world’s last grass-eating monkeys … and glimpse an Amazonian ‘ghost.’

A picture of a woman laying in bed

PHOTOGRAPHS BY JACKIE MOLLOY

The negative test usually comes within 10 days of infection. But the symptoms can last for weeks, months, or more.

How come some people bounce right back from COVID-19; and a large chunk of others—from 5 to 20 percent—may end up with long COVID? Without a diagnostic tip to confirm it, what should you do if you suspect you have it?

First, take it easy. Don’t overdo it. “We’re a culture of high-achieving and of pushing through pain, and that's the wrong advice for some conditions,” says Lucinda Bateman, a medical director for a nonprofit.

Read the full story.

Please consider getting our full digital report and our magazine by subscribing here.

A woman sits in a doctor's office room

What long COVID means? This fatigued patient (at top and above) begins a day waiting for the first of four doctor appointments. An active athlete, she had had to reteach herself how to dribble a basketball. Read more.

STORIES WE’RE FOLLOWING

A picture of a dark manatee sniffing a hand above water

PHOTOGRAPH BY JASON GULLEY

A rare glimpse of the ‘ghost’ manatees of the Amazon (pictured above by Nat Geo Explorer Jason Gully)

Why food allergies are on the rise

How did metals from outer space end up in Somalia?

Science may solve the mystery of who wrote the Dead Sea Scrolls

Where the world’s only grass-eating monkeys thrive

'Snakes' on the moon? These helpers could soon join our lunar mission.

Thousands of temples flood this sacred skyline

A new highway threatens a remote Himalayan kingdom

Are cures for some of the world’s deadliest diseases hiding in our sewers?

Judge rules U.S. labs broke law by not letting research chimps 'retire' in a wildlife sanctuary Related: What do we owe former research chimps?

WHOSE EYE IS THIS?

A picture of an eye

PHOTOGRAPH BY KARIM ILIYA, @KARIMILIYA

What creature is gazing? Hint: It’s an extremely intelligent and gentle animal that lives in family groups and spends much of its non-hunting time socializing. Give up? Click here for the answer.

Related: Researchers treat this gentle giant with respect
Also: See its hidden world and culture

WHAT ANIMAL IS THIS?

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

A picture of a person snorkeling

PHOTOGRAPH BY ANDY MANN, NAT GEO IMAGE COLLECTION

Magic, mystery, and love: In his latest epic, Avatar: The Way of Water, director James Cameron returns to the planet Pandora to explore brilliant alien oceans in hopes of inspiring audiences. “If they just love the underwater experience—and they love that sense of the profusion of life and the magic and mystery—then maybe it will reconnect them with what we are presently losing here on this planet,” said Cameron, a Nat Geo Explorer at Large, told Nat Geo. Watch the official trailer here.

Related: The real-life place that inspired the Avatar sequel (pictured above, a marine biologist explores a Polynesian lagoon)

Q&A WITH CAMERON

LAST GLIMPSE

A picture of a structure built over a large body of water

PHOTOGRAPH BY JORDAN SALAMA, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC

What could go wrong? Nat Geo’s Jordan Salama was covering this stunning lighthouse/lodge—32 miles from shore—when he found himself suddenly dangling 60 feet above the ocean. “Whoops, hang on,” a fisherman calls up, calmly. “I haven’t dropped anyone—yet.” Salama survived the scare to tell an engrossing tale of this remote place. (He managed to get the image above as well).

Today’s soundtrack: “Spotlight,” by Jennifer Hudson

This newsletter has been curated and edited by David Beard, Sydney Combs, and Jen Tse. Have a great weekend!

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