New COVID Variant In Illinois Has Bizarre New Symptoms

You thought we had seen the last of COVID? Oh no.

4 years after the Year We Do Not Discuss, there's another round of COVID that's making the rounds and is establishing itself as the dominant variant: JN.1.

The CDC says that on the whole, most of the symptoms of the JN.1 variant are the same as they always have been through COVID: fever, aches, dry cough, headache, shortness of breath, and no sense of taste or smell.

New Possible Symptoms

The CDC hasn't officially classified these new factors as symptoms yet, but they've been often reported by people who have been positive for the JN.1 variant. They're notably different than the traditional COVID symptoms, as these are more behavioral.

We all know the symptoms of COVID vary greatly, as one CDC spokesperson put it:

the types of symptoms and how severe they are usually depend more on a person's immunity and overall health rather than which variant causes the infection

But in recent days (like a month ago), new symptoms that we haven't seen have been reported in COVID patients and while they're not official symptoms yet, they're different and something to look out for.

1. Trouble Sleeping

Almost 11% of recently COVID-positive patients in Britain & Scotland said that they experienced trouble sleeping when they were sick.

It's not confirmed whether insomnia was related to the diagnosis or not.

2. Increased Anxiety

In the same study in the U.K., 10.5% of recent COVID patients reported worry or anxiety while they were sick.

The study was done December 7th-December 13th and one argument being made for this outcome is a possible lack of Vitamin D for the patients.

The CDC says that if you have the updated COVID vaccine, you should be protected against the JN.1 variant. We all hate it, but COVID is still hanging around so be careful and safe this winter.