Ben Williams
The ‘Cicada’ Covid variant has been getting plenty of attention lately, partly because of its dramatic nickname and because people keep comparing notes on how rough it actually feels next to the previous versions of the virus once it hits.
Officially known as BA.3.2, the strain has already been linked to the same broad symptoms people now associate with Covid, but that has not stopped fresh anecdotes from spreading as more people share what happened when they caught it.
Experts have already said there is no clear sign ‘Cicada’ causes more severe disease than previous strains, but that does not mean the people dealing with it are having an easy time.
One Reddit user, it was not the worst of the illness itself that stayed with them, but the brain fog that seemed to drag on after everything else had started easing off.
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Responding on a Reddit thread concerning the spread of ‘Cicada’ Covid in the US, they wrote: "Can confirm. Got a vaccine a little over a month ago. Seemed to get this traveling cross-country. About a week of symptoms, give or take, with the worst peaking on day 3-4 and then slowly tapering off each passing day. Brain fog lingered the longest, but slightly better by day 7-8. My doc said I was lucky I didn’t have the flu."
Whilst brain fog is not a brand new Covid symptom, it can be harder to describe and deal with than a cough or sore throat. The longer it lingers, the more it can be a cause for nerves, too. Another commenter in the same thread echoed that feeling, writing: "Brain fog was the worst. I was afraid it would never leave."
Even so, experts say the overall picture with ‘Cicada’ still looks broadly similar to other Omicron strains. Pharmacist Ian Budd previously said: "In terms of symptoms, it looks very similar to what we've been seeing with other Omicron strains. People should keep an eye out for things like a sore throat, cough, fatigue, fever, headaches and congestion."
As for the signs of the ‘Cicada Covid variant, health experts say these are the symptoms to look out for — in line with other recent Covid strains:
• cough
• fever or chills
• sore throat
• congestion
• shortness of breath
• loss of smell or taste
• fatigue
• headache
• gastrointestinal symptoms
Budd also said: "Some early reports suggest that a particularly painful sore throat might be more noticeable with this variant, but overall, it's not presenting in a completely new way."