“We usually tell them, ‘Talk to yourself, describe to yourself what you’re doing,’” Vanova says. “If, for example, if they are cooking, we say, ‘Pretend that you are in a cooking show, and talk yourself through the instructions, so you stay in touch with what you’re actually doing.’” It’s also important to learn how to take a cognitive break, which can be focused breathing for a period of 5 minutes for every 10 minutes of activity, for instance, says Vanova.
To be included in the study, Long Covid patients had to have objective cognitive impairment. Vanova or a colleague met with about 40 people for one hour a week for ten weeks, helping them set a series of personalized goals (like writing a report for 30 minutes without needing to stop), and teaching them strategies to try out to achieve them. A separate control group received no treatment.