Until recently, the narrative of COVID-19 has been that it will either be life threatening, or it will feel like a bout of the flu; take some rest and you will recover quickly – especially if you’re young. But there is growing anecdotal and scientific evidence that some people are not recovering so quickly. There are growing reports of people having serious physical and neurological symptoms that can last for weeks and sometimes months affecting your ability to return to work or even lead a normal life. But when these long haulers get tested for COVID-19 weeks or months into their illness, the results are negative. So why are they still feeling the effects of the virus?

This guidance is to help journalists report on “long COVID” including terminology and scientific research.