January 25
Star Weekly has looked back at our editions and picked out a selection of our favourite stories from 2022, including…
Peter Thomson is a shell of his former self.
Having contracted COVID-19 in August
2020, the Brimbank resident’s life has been
turned upside down.
He spent months in hospital and feared at
one point he would die after being put in a
coma and on a ventilator.
While Peter was released from hospital in
March, he has found himself readmitted on
a regular basis due to the ongoing effects of
COVID.
The virus has also made some of his existing
medical conditions worse.
One hospital admission came after a reaction
to the COVID-19 vaccine and he’s been told
not to have a second dose, meaning he’s not
fully vaccinated.
That throws up more challenges.
“I came home from the hospital at the end
of March after seven and half months in the
hospital,” he said.
“I’ve got fatigue. My short-term memory is
deplorable. I’m still getting headaches, I had
never had headaches before.
“I’m pretty much living on painkillers. I’m
in and out of hospital, what sort of life is that?”
Peter said the last 17 months had been a
mixture of emotions.
He said it has been a never ending cycle of
going between home and hospital.
His most recent admittance in January was
for breathing and lung problems.
The fear of what lies ahead scares the hell out
of him.
With rising incidents of people getting
COVID-19 for a second time, he fears what
will happen to him if he gets it again.
“I was told to get the vaccine and I had the
first dose and was back in the hospital for nine
days and had a really severe reaction.
“The doctor said the first one put me in
hospital for nine days, the second one could
kill me. I have an exemption but that runs
out this week, I don’t know if they’ll give me
another one.
“I’m frightened to go out of the house. I’ve
said that if I get it again there’s a fair chance
they’ll be signing my death certificate.
“I’m scared.”
And then there’s the anger about the lack of
support for long-term COVID sufferers.
He said governments had done nothing
and were way behind in research compared to
countries like England.
“The government doesn’t seem to care,’’ he
said.
“It’s in the too hard basket and it gets me
down and makes me angry. There’s a lot of
other people who are feeling the same.
“More people are going to be diagnosed and
have long-term effects. But there’s nothing for
them.”
Peter had tried to set up a support group for
long-term sufferers, but had little success. He
has found one group on social media, which has
been useful.
“It’s pretty much the only place that I have
been able to find,” he said.
“It’s wonderful but one group isn’t enough. It’s sad that I get the most comfort from a Facebook group.”
While struggling with his own symptoms, Peter has a clear message for anybody who thinks COVID-19 is nothing but a mild illness.
“It’s not a walk in the park,” he said. “Believe me. I say that with tears in my eyes.”
