With Ellen DeGeneres’ chat show ending after 19 seasons, many fans have reflected on her career highlights and lows. In a more recent case, the 64-year-old reported “excruciating” back pain after getting COVID-19 during the peak of the pandemic.
DeGeneres elected to walk away from the spotlight amid allegations that her show was a toxic workplace, preferring to devote more time to her passion for animal conservation, having recently completed The Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund in Rwanda.
However, the actress was recently diagnosed with Covid and posted an update on social media, in which she expressed astonishment that back discomfort was a symptom.
After verifying that she did, the host reported that she had taken “proper precautions” when she contracted the virus in December 2020.
A week later, DeGeneres issued a health update in which she stated that she was “100%” before going on to reveal something about her ailment that medical professionals “don’t tell you.”
Every weeknight at 11:35 p.m. EST, “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” has a variety of celebrities, athletes, musical performers, comedians, human interest stories, amusing segments, and a house band.
On Tuesday, April 20, guests included Ellen DeGeneres, Billie Joe Armstrong, and musical guests Jimmie Allen and Brad Paisley.
“I feel fantastic,” she said. “What they don’t tell you is that you will have severe back pain. I had no notion that was a symptom until I spoke with a few other people.”
“Who would have thought?” “How so?” DeGeneres wondered. “I’m having back pain.”
Having contracted Covid in the year it initially appeared, there was less investigation into symptoms than in previous years.
At the onset of the pandemic, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) did not officially include back pain as a Covid symptom. Notably, one of them was “muscle or bodily aches.”
Other early Covid symptoms were fever or chills, cough, shortness of breath, fatigue, headache, new loss of taste or smell, sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea or vomiting, and diarrhea.
In contrast, the NHS explains why so many people experience back pain and other joint and muscle problems.
According to the NHS website, “many patients will have had some aches and pains before becoming unwell with Covid.” “Illness may have resurfaced or worsened these difficulties.” This is because regular movement benefits our joints and muscles.
“People who are unwell with COVID are less active than usual. Aches and aches, stiffness, and muscle weakness are possible outcomes.”
If your muscles are weak, you may have difficulty standing, climbing stairs, holding objects with your hands, or raising your arms above your head. As Covid spread globally, back ache and shoulder pain were often reported complaints.
Another factor contributing to the advent of back pain during this time was the increase in work-from-home opportunities. Even when people were not required to work from home, limits on socializing and venturing outside meant that they were less mobile and spent more time sitting.
According to a 388-person survey in Malta, 30% of persons had chronic back pain prior to Covid, compared to 49% who had back pain after the outbreak, with the majority of the latter claiming they had never had back pain before the pandemic.
It is crucial to recognize that just because you have back pain does not imply that you have Covid. Backache can be caused by a variety of circumstances, and if it is accompanied by nasal congestion, sneezing, coughing, or fever, muscle discomfort may indicate the presence of another sickness, such as flu, which is more common in the UK during the winter months.
Similarly, patients with pneumonia may experience back pain due to thoracic inflammation and infection. Back soreness might also cause the following symptoms:
- Shooting, burning, or stabbing sensations
- Pain is traveling down your leg
- Pins & Needles.
- An inability to relax
- A continuous, dull aching.