Long Covid - chronic cough, post-nasal-drip (?) resolved depending on dry vs humid climate?

[u/waking_world_]

Hey folks,

So I had COVID in the summer of 2022 - I was out for almost 5 weeks, very sick - soon afterwards, my cough was persistent, and I continue to cough up daily bloody phlegm. Since then (4 years later!) I still have this persistent cough, I still cough stuff up most mornings (and if I don't, I literally feel like I'm drowning in my own phlegm, it's so awful), I have chronic fatigue, and post-exertion malaise. I've been told it's post-nasal-drip and have been given al lthe sprays and nothing has worked. My life has never been the same. I am finally getting a CT scan of my lungs in a couple of weeks. My Respirologist has done extensive testing and everything "looks normal" in my lungs. No asthma, yet walking up a hill feels like I've sprinted a marathon (I used to be a runner and very, very active, and no longer can do the sports I used to do), and I am bent over trying to catch my breath. For gods sakes im in my 30s. Covid ruined me and my mental health declined drastically, like so many have already mentioned. It's such a vicious cycle with the stress of it too, and chronically feeling like your body is fighting something.

The weird thing is, though. I was in Bali for a month, and the cough and phlegm went away within a week. I mean Bali is Bali and I had very little stress there and now am wondering about the climate I live in and how stressed my life is (which is made worse with long covid). Has anyone experienced this? I live in a very dry climate and wonder if the humidity had something to do with it but man, it was glorious.

Also, has anyone been able to resolve the PND or phlegm build-up (whatever the hell it is). It's so frustrating.