# #28  From Olympic hopeful to Long Covid: Oonagh Cousins’ story

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/make-visible-chronic-illness-explored-7015207/28-from-olympic-hopeful-to-long-covid-oonagh-cousins-story
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/make-visible-chronic-illness-explored-7015207/28-from-olympic-hopeful-to-long-covid-oonagh-cousins-story.md
Podcast: [Make Visible: ME/CFS, Long Covid, POTS, EDS, Fibro & MCAS Explored](https://stenobird.com/podcast/make-visible-chronic-illness-explored-7015207)
Published: 2026-02-20T18:01:02+00:00
Episode link: https://madevisible.podbean.com/e/28-from-olympic-hopeful-to-long-covid-oonagh-cousins-story/
Audio file: https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/mxkgympf68p9kve6/Visible_S1_Ep28_Oonagh_Cousins.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/make-visible-chronic-illness-explored-7015207/episodes/28-from-olympic-hopeful-to-long-covid-oonagh-cousins-story
Duration seconds: 3221

## Resource

From Olympic Hopeful to Long Covid: Oonagh Cousins When Olympic rower Oonagh Cousins was pre-selected for Tokyo 2020, her dream of representing Great Britain was within reach. But after COVID-19 swept through the team, Oonagh didn’t recover. She developed Long Covid, post-exertional malaise (PEM), and dysautonomia — forcing her from peak performance into chronic illness. In this powerful conversation with Emily Kate Stephens and Gez Medinger, Oonagh shares what happens when the mindset that makes you elite — resilience, discipline, pushing through — becomes the very thing that deepens your illness. We explore Long Covid in elite athletes, the psychological impact of losing an Olympic dream, the grief of chronic illness, and why rest — not grit — is often the path to recovery. Oonagh now advocates for people living with Long Covid and ME/CFS, working with Long Covid Support and helping shape patient-centred care through her work at Visible Health.

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## Transcript

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