Disbelief, dualism and post-viral alliances in pandemic times

This manuscript explores the ways in which the future of long COVID was both always circumscribed and expertly managed. When long COVID emerged, it was immediately recognized as a contested condition, and as such, was destined to carry the baggage of many complex forms of suffering that came before it. However, those suffering from long COVID managed to harness the energy of the pandemic crisis to produce new opportunities and new possible futures, not only for themselves, but for others with contested conditions. These dimensions are examined through a close look at an interesting alliance that formed between those suffering from long COVID and those diagnosed with myalgic encephalomyelitis / chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), most prominently in the United States and United Kingdom; how this alliance has been both fruitful and challenging; and the roots of dualism that underlie widespread ontological and moral assumptions within medicine.