The Independent Womxn Experience Series: Finding a New Life Path As a COVID-19 Long Hauler Ep.36

Independent Women Series
Written By Siena Walker

In the early days of the pandemic, Maya was the first young female in upstate New York to contract COVID-19. She was hospitalized, put on a ventilator, and eventually was in a coma for 35 days. She tells us her harrowing story and how she’s healing a year later. 

Takeaways from Maya:

  • 10 months after first contracting COVID-19, Maya still has intense chronic pain in her body. She’s what’s called a COVID long hauler.

  • Every milestone she achieves in her health, she celebrates. Her health struggles have illuminated how much gratitude she has for her body.

  • Being a long hauler can have a serious effect on your mental health. Maya started a support group, COVID Wellness Clinic, for other people to navigate their health journeys that may need different levels of support and recovery.  

  • Maya went from independent to codependent, but that taught her how to ask for help and accept that she needed help sometimes. 

  • Now Maya feels that she was put in this position in order to help and empower other people struggling with COVID and other health risks. It can be hard, but she feels she was chosen to support others, and she’s learned how to lift others up with her own experience. 

  • You are stronger than you think! You have to believe you’re capable of doing anything. Trust yourself, and know that you are enough. This mindset is what helped Maya move forward in recovery and learn that she could be a resource for other people, too. 

Connect with MAYA::

Preview of the episode for my show on the Happiness Is Attractive Roku channel - watch the whole thing by subscribing here

Siena Walker https://www.sienaleigh.com/
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