My Story

Before my first SARS-CoV-2 infection, I was physically strong, cognitively high-performing, and already deeply engaged in health, nutrition, and self-regulation.

I had followed a vegetarian diet since the age of 10 and a vegan diet since 19, and had spent years experimenting with fasting, supplementation, meditation, and different approaches to optimizing both physical and mental performance.

From the outside, my system appeared stable and highly functional. At the same time, I had always been aware of a more sensitive nervous system, which required a certain level of structure and awareness to maintain balance.

Many of the approaches later presented as “solutions” were already part of my everyday life. What changed over time was not my willingness to experiment, but the depth of dysregulation my system eventually reached.

The first SARS-CoV-2 infection in April 2021 marked the beginning of a new phase. The acute illness was more severe than expected and primarily characterized by strong systemic and neurological symptoms rather than isolated respiratory issues.

During the acute phase, I experienced fever, pronounced internal nervous agitation, episodes of insomnia, and breathing irregularities. At times, this was accompanied by dizziness, shivering, and a level of instability that made it necessary to lie on the floor for extended periods.

After approximately three weeks, I returned to work and regained a high level of external functionality. However, recovery was not a return to the previous baseline. Instead, a new pattern emerged: reduced resilience, increased sensitivity of the nervous system, and recurring symptoms such as orthostatic intolerance, heavy muscles, and fluctuating energy levels.

This phase marked the transition from a stable system to one that required ongoing adaptation. Many of the adjustments that followed were not new interventions, but modifications of practices that had already been part of my routine, now applied under different physiological conditions.

After the acute phase, recovery was not a return to baseline but the beginning of a structured adaptation process. While I had regained enough stability to return to work, a range of persistent symptoms remained, including heavy muscles, joint pain, orthostatic intolerance, and phases of emotional sensitivity and cognitive reduction.

During this phase, I began to systematically adjust my lifestyle. This included histamine-aware and gluten-reduced nutrition, fasting experiments, and early attempts to stabilize my nervous system through structured routines and reduced external stressors.

At the same time, I remained externally functional. I continued working and managing daily life, while internally operating under tighter constraints and with reduced physiological resilience.

By winter 2021/2022, I had reached a high-functioning state again. At that point, I would not have described myself as ill, as my symptoms were manageable and responsive to my interventions. However, the system had clearly shifted and required ongoing regulation.

A second SARS-CoV-2 infection in February 2022 reactivated elements of the existing pattern, although without a significant decline in overall performance. I remained highly functional in daily life and continued to operate at a high level professionally.

During this period, I founded and scaled a company as Managing Director, continued my PhD track, and stayed active in international projects, travel, and strategic work.

However, maintaining this level of functioning required increasing regulation. My dietary approach became more restrictive, expanding beyond histamine and gluten to include lectin-aware strategies, and I placed a stronger focus on targeted supplementation.

At the same time, I gradually shifted my physical and mental practices. High-intensity exercise was no longer well tolerated, leading me to prioritize lower-intensity movement, as well as more structured nervous system and body-focused approaches, including early neuro-regulation tools.

While my energy levels and external performance remained close to baseline, this stability was no longer inherent, but increasingly dependent on continuous adjustment and active system management.

The third infection in December 2023 initially appeared less severe than the previous ones, particularly in terms of acute nervous system disturbance. There was no immediate extreme dysregulation as experienced during the first infection.

However, the overall response of the system was different. Instead of acute instability, I experienced pronounced fatigue, increasing heaviness, and a gradual decline in energy and resilience over the following weeks.

This phase did not immediately signal a major shift, but retrospectively marked the beginning of a deeper loss of stability that unfolded more slowly and less visibly than before.

In the weeks following the third infection, I attempted to stabilize using the same strategies that had worked after the previous infections. This included dietary control, fasting approaches, structured routines, and targeted supplementation.

While these approaches had previously led to noticeable improvements, the system no longer responded in the same way. Progress was limited, inconsistent, or absent, despite continued effort and adherence.

This marked a critical shift: the existing model of self-regulation and recovery was no longer sufficient to restore stability.

Following the collapse in March 2024, my nervous system entered a state of profound dysregulation. The system was no longer able to reliably self-regulate, and even minimal input could trigger disproportionate responses.

In the first weeks, basic activities such as showering or holding a conversation were already enough to exceed my capacity. Speaking for longer periods became difficult, often accompanied by breathlessness, and it took time before I was able to have more stable, continuous conversations again.

Sleep was highly unstable. There were phases of almost no sleep, followed by partial improvement. However, any form of overexertion—physical, cognitive, or emotional—could trigger a crash, often leading to renewed insomnia and increased nervous system activation.

My initial response was to approach the situation as a crisis to be solved. I built a structured system of interventions, combining dietary control, supplementation, and nervous system tools. However, it became clear that this level of complexity itself was too demanding for the system in its current state.

This required a shift in approach. Instead of adding more interventions, I had to reduce complexity and continuously recalibrate based on what the system could tolerate in the moment.

Even nutritional strategies that had previously worked well had to be reconsidered. Approaches focused on detoxification, restriction, or metabolic activation became counterproductive, as digestion and internal processing itself represented a significant load on the system.

During this phase, stabilization was not a linear process. It required ongoing adjustment across all levels—biological, neurological, and behavioral—with the primary goal of maintaining temporary stability rather than achieving immediate recovery.

During this phase, the system remained highly unstable. Daily life was still characterized by repeated breakdowns, strong fluctuations in energy, and a very limited tolerance to physical, cognitive, and emotional input.

Most forms of activity were not tolerable. Walking, exercise, or structured routines would reliably lead to crashes, often followed by sleep disruption and prolonged instability. Cognitive load, including reading or working on a computer, remained largely impossible.

One of the few activities that did not consistently trigger the same level of deterioration was controlled driving. Sitting reduced orthostatic stress, and the predictable, low-input environment allowed for a form of engagement without overwhelming the system.

Based on this observation, I began to cautiously expand this type of activity. This included longer periods of driving and eventually the reintroduction of very controlled motorcycle riding. Initial attempts were limited and required frequent breaks due to dizziness, nausea, and autonomic instability.

Unlike other forms of physical activity, these exposures did not consistently result in full crashes. While symptoms were still present and sometimes intensified during or shortly after, the system was more likely to return to baseline without prolonged deterioration.

Progress remained highly non-linear. Exceeding certain thresholds still led to setbacks, including insomnia and increased nervous system activation. However, over time, these controlled exposures allowed for a gradual increase in what the system could tolerate.

Environmental factors played a significant role. Cooler conditions improved stability, while heat increased system stress and symptom intensity. As a result, daily structure and movement were adjusted accordingly.

This phase did not represent recovery, but a shift from complete instability toward the first repeatable forms of activity that could be integrated without consistently triggering severe crashes.