Long COVID Care · Yoga Therapy
You're not imagining it.
And you're not alone.
Long COVID is real, complex and often misunderstood. Barbara has worked with people living with Long COVID since the early days of the pandemic — offering yoga therapy, breathwork, and peer support to help manage symptoms and restore a sense of agency.
ℹ️
The Long COVID Care peer support group is not currently accepting new participants. If you're looking for support, individual 1-2-1 yoga therapy sessions are available.
Barbara is also happy to point you toward other resources that may help.
What’s available?
Individual support is available:
Barbara offers 1-2-1 yoga therapy sessions tailored to your specific Long COVID symptoms. Find out more below.
Understanding Long COVID
A condition that's real, complex and still widely misunderstood.
Long COVID — a post-COVID condition — is when COVID symptoms persist or develop beyond 12 weeks after the initial infection. It affects an estimated 10% of people who have had COVID-19, and its symptoms are wide-ranging, can be extremely severe, fluctuating and often difficult to explain to others.
One of the hardest things about Long COVID is that it is invisible from the outside. Family, friends, colleagues and employers can find it difficult to understand why someone who "had COVID months ago" is still unwell. The isolation this creates is one of the most significant challenges — and one that Barbara's group work directly addressed.
You should speak with your GP about your symptoms. It is difficult to diagnose Long COVID, and other conditions need to be ruled out. Not everyone receives a formal diagnosis, even when it is very likely that they have it.
Common symptoms include
😮💨 Breathlessness
😴 Chronic fatigue
🧠 Brain fog
😰 Anxiety & stress
💓 Heart palpitations
😵💫 Dizziness
🌡️ Fluctuating symptoms
🦴 Muscle & joint pain
Always speak with your GP about your symptoms. Long COVID can be difficult to diagnose, and other conditions need to be excluded.
Barbara works alongside — not instead of — medical care.
The biggest challenge
Feeling understood makes a real difference.
It's hard for family, friends, colleagues, employers and sometimes even medical professionals to fully understand the challenges and complex nature of a fatigue condition like Long COVID.
The biggest benefit from Barbara's Long COVID Care group came directly from reducing the isolation that individuals felt — and from the experience of being in a room (or a Zoom) with people who simply understood.
Invisible illness Long COVID symptoms are real but often not visible — making it hard for others to understand, and easy to feel dismissed or disbelieved.
Social withdrawal Fatigue and unpredictable symptoms can make social activities difficult — compounding the sense of isolation and loss of identity.
Uncertainty about self-care Many people with Long COVID are unsure what activities help and what makes things worse. Finding out, safely, with guidance — is valuable.
Impact on work & daily life Long COVID affects the ability to work, exercise, and live as before. The group provided practical strategies as well as emotional support.
How yoga therapy helps
Mind-body practices that work with Long COVID, not against it.
Yoga therapy for Long COVID isn't about pushing through fatigue, attending a yoga class or achieving poses. It's about gentle yoga practice at the right level for the individual, that support recovery through the nervous system, through the body and through the mind — starting from where you are, not where you were.
Important note on fatigue and pacing: All practices are chosen with post-exertional malaise in mind — the worsening of symptoms after activity that many people with Long COVID experience. Barbara doesn't ask you to push through. Everything is adapted to your energy levels on the day, and rest is treated as a legitimate and important part of the practice.
What the group achieved
The results speak for themselves.
Participant questionnaires from the initial phase of the Long COVID Care group showed the following results across all three outcome measures.
100% of participants rated the Long COVID Care group as very good
100% reported that the peer-support meetings provided benefits in feeling supported and less isolated
100% reported feeling better equipped to manage their health and make the right decisions for them
Many thanks to the Amersham & Villages Community Board and Sport England and Leap who funded the original project.
What's available now
The group is closed — but support and yoga therapy is still available.
While the peer support group is not currently accepting new participants, Barbara offers individual support for people living with Long COVID — and she's happy to help point you toward other resources.
Recommended first step
1-2-1 Yoga Therapy Sessions
Individual sessions designed around your specific symptoms — breath, movement, fatigue management and nervous system support, adapted entirely to where you are right now.
Practices built around your specific symptoms and energy levels
Breath and relaxation work suited to breathlessness and nervous system dysregulation
Fatigue management tools and pacing strategies
A home practice developed with you — to use between sessions
Barbara's full attention — no group format to adapt around
While you explore your options
Other routes to support
Barbara's advice for anyone with Long COVID who is looking for community and resources right now.
Find a Long COVID peer support group either locally or online — the shared understanding of others who live with it is genuinely valuable
The Yoga Therapy Whole Person Healing YouTube channel has free yoga-based practices for Long COVID
Use the short breathing practice: "Breathing with Ease" →
Speak with your GP if you haven't received a formal assessment — other conditions should be ruled out
Useful resources
Start here if you're looking for help right now.
Here’s a short breathing practice: Breathing with Ease
A short guided breathing practice, free from Barbara, that you can watch on YouTube
Yoga Therapy Whole Person Healing
A YouTube Channel with breathing practices relevant to Long COVID - breath awareness, gentle relaxation, breath-centred movement and more. Free to access.
Plus link to yoga therapy practitioners for personal and individual support.
Long COVID support - find a support group that offers you accessible and positive support and where people understand what you’re going through
Common questions
Things people want to know.
How do I know if I have Long COVID - Long COVID is generally understood as COVID symptoms that persist or develop beyond 12 weeks after the initial infection. Symptoms are extremely wide-ranging and fluctuating — breathlessness, chronic fatigue, brain fog, anxiety and stress are among the most common. You should speak with your GP, as other conditions need to be ruled out. Not everyone receives a formal diagnosis even when Long COVID is very likely — that can be frustrating, but it doesn't mean your symptoms aren't real.
Is the Peer Support group open? The Long COVID Care peer support group is not currently accepting new participants. If this changes, Barbara will update this page. In the meantime, individual 1-2-1 yoga therapy sessions are available — and Barbara is happy to point you toward other Long COVID support groups.
I’m worried that exercise will make me worse - is yoga safe? This is a completely understandable concern, and Barbara takes it seriously. Post-exertional malaise — the worsening of symptoms after exertion — is a real feature of Long COVID. Barbara's approach to yoga therapy for Long COVID is not about pushing through or achieving poses. Everything is adapted to your energy levels and how you respond each day, and rest is treated as a legitimate and important part of the practice. She will never encourage you to do more than is right for you.
What happens in a 1-to-1 yoga therapy session for Long COVID? Every session starts with a conversation — how are you today, what's changed, what's been difficult. From there, the practice is built around you: breath work, gentle movement, relaxation, fatigue management tools, whatever is most useful for where you are right now but based a strategy of finding your baseline level and building on that. You'll leave with something to work with between sessions — a short practice or a breath technique that belongs to you. Nothing is imposed; everything is suggested and adapted to your response.
Do I need a Long COVID diagnosis to work with Barbara? No. Barbara worked with people affected by COVID-19 or Long COVID with or without a formal diagnosis. What matters is your experience and your symptoms — not a piece of paper. If you're unsure whether your situation would be a good fit, just drop her a message and she'll give you an honest answer about how yoga therapy can help you.
Looking for more personalised support?
Yoga Therapy & 1-2-1 goes deeper.
Individual 1-2-1 yoga therapy with Barbara is the most direct route to a practice that's built entirely around your specific symptoms, energy levels and circumstances. No group. No shared format. Just Barbara's full attention on you.
Many people with Long COVID find that 1-2-1 sessions give them the space to go at exactly their own pace — which can be hard to do even in a small, supportive group.
On the Yoga Therapy page you'll find
How 1-2-1 yoga therapy works
What happens in a session, how the practice is built around you, and what to expect over time.
Conditions Barbara works with
Including Long COVID, breathlessness, fatigue, anxiety, stress, sleep difficulties and more — all listed with specific detail.
Home practice between sessions
Every 1-2-1 session includes a home practice designed for you — short, doable, and specific to your symptoms.
What clients say
Real testimonials from people who've worked with Barbara individually — including those with health conditions.
Get in touch
You don't have to manage this alone.
Whether you're interested in 1-2-1 sessions, have a question about Long COVID and yoga, or simply want to talk through your situation for advice — Barbara is glad to hear from you. Drop her a message and she'll get back to you personally.
Or contact Barbara via WhatsApp on 07917 887321