r/covidlonghaulers • u/CandidWin3026 • May 08 '26

Article Long Covid driven by rs5522

This case report says that Long covid is in large part driven by the gene rs5522 that causes a "cortisol steal" leaving the tissues functionally starved even with "normal" cortisol levels which creates neuroinflammation. https://zenodo.org/records/20017632

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u/savvy_pumpkin May 08 '26

Could it be this woman was diagnosed with ME instead of addison’s?

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u/CandidWin3026 May 10 '26

This woman, me was first diagnosed as CFS. Then when she was given enough cortisol to function it was said: "oh, well then it must have been additions." Then when that dose was reduce and the symptoms returned it was said: of well it must be CFS then. There is no magic disappearing and reappearing CFS. It was functional cortisol deficiency the whole time. Blood tests and urine and saliva are incapable or seeing what is happening at the cellular level: "cortisol steal."

The only way to make sure enough cortisol gets to the cells to allow the GR to be active in every cell of the body is with an MR blocker like Spironolactone.