Revelstoke resident Nathan Harrison is pictured at Revelstoke Mountain Resort in this undated photo.

Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Nathan Harrison

Nathan Harrison had an active healthy lifestyle growing up swimming, water skiing and snowboarding in Vernon, and continued enjoying recreational activities after moving to Revelstoke where he worked as a chef for years while raising his daughter.

All that changed for the now 49-year-old when he contracted COVID-19 in January, 2021.

“I had heart palpitations and shallow breath,” he said. “I couldn’t walk up the stairs at work, my boss drove me to the hospital. I thought I was having a heart attack.”

Harrison was hospitalized three times that first month, but was never given a diagnosis. He had fatigue, memory loss and heart problems.

“Initially they didn’t know what COVID was and couldn’t figure it out,” he said. “My heart didn’t slow down for three months and I’d go to bed thinking I wasn’t going to wake up.”

It has been years since the COVID-19 pandemic shook society, and for most BC residents, the viral infections and imposed restrictions are a thing of the past, but an unknown number are still suffering the impacts of the virus, with their lives potentially restricted forever. It's called long-COVID.

More than four years later, Harrison is still living with memory loss, extreme fatigue and balance issues that limits his daily life, and with no cure available, it isn’t clear if he will ever recover.

“I have balance problems when I stand up but once I’m moving, I’m OK,” he said. “The fatigue is major, I hit the wall around 1 p.m. and if I’m driving, have to pull over for a power nap. If I’m working, I have to push through it. I keep walking and moving every day but don't have the stamina like I used to.

“Memory loss is still a thing, it’s hard coming up with words.”

Harrison gets his blood tested every year to ensure there are no other concurring health issues masked by long COVID symptoms. 

People are counted as having “long COVID” if they’ve been living with symptoms for more than three months following a presumed or confirmed COVID-19 illness, where symptoms can include shortness of breath, debilitating fatigue, body aches, coughing, loss of taste or smell, joint pain and headaches.

It isn’t clear how many other British Columbians are suffering like Harrison and there are two reasons why cases are not recorded or monitored, according to an emailed statement from the Post-COVID-19 Interdisciplinary Clinical Care Network.

“Health professionals are not routinely testing for COVID-19, so total case numbers are not reported, and not everyone with long COVID symptoms seeks or has access to assessment and care,” the statement reads.

The network said based on data from other Canadian jurisdictions, between 7 and 19 per cent of people affected by the virus are living with long COVID symptoms.

Under the Provincial Health Services Authority, the network offers online education resources to help BC patients in their recovery, including group education sessions and rehabilitation support from a range of medical professionals and research organizations across BC.

There is still no single medical treatment or medication available for long COVID, and the severity and duration of symptoms varies among sufferers.

“Everyone’s recovery journey is different and patients may experience lingering symptoms or flare-ups long after their initial infection,” the network said.

“Our experience to date, and that of scientists around the globe, show that most patients benefit best from self-management tools, rehabilitation and mental health support.”

As of Feb. 28, 2025, the network has treated 4,670 patients with long COVID symptoms in BC since 2021.

The number of patients referred to the network peaked at 755 in June, 2021, but there is still a consistent number of referrals made every month. 

Harrison has been a member of the virtual post-COVID Recovery Clinic through the network for the past three years, where every month he has the option of joining a program on various topics related to the condition. He said there are roughly 1,000 members signed up.

“I know a member who was downhill skier in her thirties, and now she's in worse condition than I am," he said. "We have zero clue what this condition is or what lies ahead. I wonder with all the professionals in the world, why can’t they figure this out?”

Coronavirus is an infectious disease caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome called coronavirus 2.

First detected in China in Dec. 2019 the virus quickly spread to other countries and the World Health Organization declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern on Jan. 30, 2020 that wasn’t dropped until May 5, 2023.

The virus claimed tens of thousands of lives in Canada and still exists, although humans have built up immunity through vaccinations and infections and the virus no longer tops the list of leading causes of death.

Doctors don’t know why only some people get long COVID. It can happen even after a mild case and at any age, and researchers are discovering that remnants of the coronavirus can persist in some patients’ bodies long after their initial infection.

Studies show vaccinations can lower the risk but shots have to be updated to match the virus that continues to evolve into new variants.

Harrison had four vaccinations and tested positive for COVID-19 four times in the past.

“When I had my second shot, I felt really good for about two days, symptoms cleared up and I thought it cured me, but those symptoms came back,” he said. “I’m not getting anymore shots, they haven’t done anything for me.”

As of March 16, 2025, 1,105,824 BC residents were vaccinated, down roughly 22% from the same time the year before, according to an emailed statement by the BC Vaccine Operations Centre.

If you have a BC Services Card and are still experiencing symptoms that limit your quality of life three months or more post-COVID-19, you can get a referral from a health practitioner to access a virtual Post-COVID Recovery Clinic through the Post-COVID-19 Interdisciplinary Clinical Care Network.

— With files from the Associated Press 

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