{"doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9103579/v1","title":"“Trying to go at full speed with the handbrake on”: Living with persistent symptoms after COVID-19, a qualitative interview study","abstract":"<title>Abstract</title>\n                <p>\n                  <bold>Background:</bold>\n                  Despite individuals experiencing a gradual reduction in persistent symptoms following SARS-CoV-2 infection, a subset remains at increased risk of death and health loss up to three years post-infection. Given prior evidence of gender-related disparities in acute COVID-19 outcomes and informed by survivorship concept, we examined psychosocial aspects of Long COVID by considering gender-related differences in participants’ narratives.\n                  <bold>Methods:</bold>\n                  In this multi-center qualitative study, 27 patients with persistent symptoms following acute COVID-19 and three primary caregivers were interviewed using a semi-structured interview guide across centers in Austria, France and Sweden. Qualitative analysis was informed by Charmaz’s constructivist grounded theory and stratified by self-reported gender.\n                  <bold>Results:</bold>\n                  The study cohort consisted predominantly of individuals previously hospitalized for acute COVID-19 assessed at a mean follow-up of 3.4 ± 0.6 years post-infection. Functional constraints coincided with shifts in self-concept prompting retrospective reflection and a search for reassurance predominantly among women; altered roles and responsibilities increased caregiver strain and heightened structural vulnerability in the context of prolonged recovery. Perceived neglect in healthcare prompted both women and men to engage in self-advocacy in aid- and health-management. Survival-oriented positive future outlooks and resilience following near-death-experiences were salient among men. Neglect of health needs was associated with a premature pressure to perform due to caregiving demands among women, and with prioritization of the breadwinner role and masculinity-linked stoic ideals of invulnerability among men.\n                  <bold>Conclusion:</bold>\n                  Both patient and caregiver narratives revealed intersecting challenges warranting holistic, coordinated care attentive to systemic barriers, social relations, and gender-related patterns.\n                </p>","journal":null,"year":null,"id":634741,"datarank":0.0,"base_score":0.0,"endowment":0.0,"self_citation_contribution":0.0,"citation_network_contribution":0.0,"self_endowment_contribution":0.0,"citer_contribution":0.0,"corpus_percentile":null,"corpus_rank":null,"citation_count":0,"citer_count":0,"citers_with_citation_signal":0,"citers_with_endowment":0,"datacite_reuse_total":0,"is_dataset":false,"is_dataset_confidence":null,"is_data_producer":false,"deposit_databanks":null,"is_oa":false,"file_count":0,"downloads":0,"has_version_chain":false,"published_date":null,"fair_score":null,"fair_percentile":null,"algorithm_id":"datarank_citation_only_1hop_v6","ranking_scope":"data_only","authors":[{"id":1646422,"name":"Emelie Sarenmalm","orcid":null,"position":1,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":1646423,"name":"Elena Nowacki","orcid":null,"position":2,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":1156048,"name":"Emmanuel Dudoignon","orcid":"0000-0003-0429-4889","position":3,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":1646424,"name":"Morgane Michel","orcid":null,"position":4,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":56548,"name":"Björn Peters","orcid":"0000-0002-2941-1335","position":5,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":1646426,"name":"Lenka Vanek","orcid":null,"position":6,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":1646428,"name":"Janosch Niknam-Saeidi","orcid":null,"position":7,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":915540,"name":"Amelie Kurnikowski","orcid":"0000-0003-4282-9055","position":8,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":1646429,"name":"Justyna Siwy","orcid":null,"position":9,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":1646431,"name":"Astrid Erber","orcid":null,"position":10,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":271106,"name":"Mariann Gyöngyösi","orcid":"0000-0002-7083-2107","position":11,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":1646435,"name":"Ulrich Kropiunigg","orcid":null,"position":12,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":915549,"name":"Manfred Hecking","orcid":"0000-0002-8047-2395","position":13,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":1646421,"name":"Dilara Gülmez","orcid":null,"position":0,"is_corresponding":false}],"reference_count":0,"raw_metadata":{"citation_network_status":"fetched"},"created_at":"2026-08-06T14:05:20.356792Z","pmid":null,"pmcid":null,"fwci":null,"citation_percentile":null,"influential_citations":0,"oa_status":null,"license":null,"views":0,"total_file_size_bytes":0,"version_count":0,"fair_f":null,"fair_a":null,"fair_i":null,"fair_r":null,"fair_zscore":null,"fair_rationale":null,"fair_model":null,"fair_agent_version":null,"fair_fulltext_source":null,"fair_has_llm":null,"fair_computed_at":null,"clinical_trials":[],"software_tools":[],"db_accessions":[],"linked_datasets":[],"topics":[]}