A new study by researchers at UCLA has uncovered a troubling post-pandemic reality: while most people physically recover from COVID-19 within three months, many continue to battle mental health challenges for far longer—sometimes up to nine months or more. Alarmingly, one in five participants reported feeling in poor health even a year after their initial illness.

Published Tuesday in Open Forum Infectious Diseases, the study followed more than 1,400 individuals who experienced COVID-like symptoms between December 2020 and August 2022. Seventy-five percent of the group had tested positive for COVID-19. Over the course of a year, participants completed surveys every three months measuring their quality of life, including sleep, fatigue, cognition, and social functioning.

The research revealed a significant divide between physical and psychological recovery. While the majority saw physical symptoms ease within three months, mental health improvements—including reductions in anxiety, depression, and fatigue—lagged behind, often taking six to nine months or more to rebound.

“These findings emphasize the need for healthcare providers to take post-COVID mental health seriously and offer more robust resources to support psychological recovery,” said Dr. Lauren Wisk, co-lead author and assistant professor of medicine at UCLA.

Participants were categorized into four groups: optimal health, poor mental health, poor physical health, and poor overall well-being. Notably, 42% of those who experienced the worst outcomes identified as having long COVID—underscoring the link between prolonged symptoms and enduring health challenges.

Curiously, participants who tested positive for the virus were slightly more likely to return to full health than those who tested negative. Researchers believe this could be due to undiagnosed conditions or inaccuracies in testing during the early stages of the pandemic.

Dr. Wisk stressed that future research must evolve to address the needs of long COVID patients—particularly as approximately 20% of individuals may continue experiencing significant symptoms more than a year after their infection.

“Improving models of care and integrating mental health support into long COVID treatment strategies will be crucial in helping these patients regain quality of life,” she said.

The study was conducted under the umbrella of INSPIRE (Innovative Support for Patients with SARS-CoV-2 Infections Registry), a project funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to better understand the long-term impacts of COVID-19.

By Staff Writer, Courtesy of Forbes | June 10, 2025 | Edited for WTFwire.com
Source: San Francisco Chronicle