The Chronic Fatigue and Burnout Recovery Podcast

In this episode, Anna shares the experience of completing her longest hike since chronic illness — a 21km hike lasting almost 6 hours — and reflects on what the following 72 hours revealed about recovery, capacity, and nervous system regulation.

This is not an episode about pushing harder.

It’s a conversation about what late-stage recovery often really involves:

understanding load distribution

preparing the body appropriately

supporting recovery intentionally

and learning how to take on bigger physical challenges without overwhelming the system.

Anna explores:

training and pacing considerations

planning around wider life stress and menstrual cycle timing

fuelling and post-exertion recovery

sleep and nervous system support

active recovery tools such as restorative movement, heat, cold and body work.

Blending personal reflection with clinical insight, this episode offers a realistic and grounded look at what rebuilding capacity can look like in the later stages of recovery.

Useful Links

Take the Chronic Fatigue Quiz: https://app.annamarsh.co.uk/quiz-page

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anna__marsh_

Work with me: https://annamarsh.co.uk/work-together/

Website: https://annamarsh.co.uk/

Creatine is often associated with the fitness industry and sports performance — but emerging research is now exploring whether it may have relevance far beyond the gym.

In this episode, Anna explores the current evidence surrounding creatine supplementation in Long Covid and fatigue-related conditions, including its potential role in energy metabolism, muscle function, cognitive symptoms, nervous system health, and recovery capacity.

This conversation also looks at:

Why creatine is being investigated in Long Covid

The link between ATP production and fatigue

Potential neuroprotective and antioxidant mechanisms

Brain fog and cognitive symptoms

Muscle weakness, PEM, and pacing considerations

Why individual responses to supplements can vary

Considerations around dosage, safety, and supplement sensitivity

Creatine and the menstrual cycle

Importantly, this episode takes a balanced and non-dogmatic approach. While early research is promising, creatine is not presented as a “magic bullet” or standalone solution for Long Covid.

As always, recovery is complex, individual, and multifactorial.

This episode is intended for educational purposes only and should not replace personalised medical advice.

Useful Links

Take the Chronic Fatigue Quiz: https://app.annamarsh.co.uk/quiz-page

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anna__marsh_

Work with me: https://annamarsh.co.uk/work-together/

Website: https://annamarsh.co.uk/

Referenced Articles

Effects of six-month creatine supplementation on patient- and clinician-reported outcomes, and tissue creatine levels in patients with post-COVID-19 fatigue syndrome

Reduced tissue creatine levels in patients with long COVID-19: A cross-sectional study

Creatine Supplementation in Women’s Health: A Lifespan Perspective

Creatine Supplementation and Brain Health

Diagnostic and Pharmacological Potency of Creatine in Post-Viral Fatigue Syndrome

Role of Creatine Supplementation in Conditions Involving Mitochondrial Dysfunction: A Narrative Review

In this episode, Anna explores a side of recovery that is rarely discussed:

What happens when the nervous system begins to reconnect with emotions, sensations, and internal experiences that were previously difficult to fully feel.

As the body becomes safer and more regulated, many people notice unexpected shifts:

emotions feeling stronger or more accessible

increased sensory awareness

old feelings resurfacing

a changing relationship with capacity, vulnerability, and self-protection.

Drawing from both personal experience and Somatic Experiencing concepts such as undercoupling and energy wells, Anna explores why these changes can emerge during recovery — and why they are often part of the nervous system recalibrating rather than “going backwards.”

This episode is a gentle conversation about the emotional and physiological complexity of healing, and the process of learning how to feel safely again.

Useful Links

Take the Chronic Fatigue Quiz: https://app.annamarsh.co.uk/quiz-page

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anna__marsh_

Work with me: https://annamarsh.co.uk/work-together/

Website: https://annamarsh.co.uk/

In this episode, Anna breaks down a recent study exploring brain neurochemicals in Long COVID and ME/CFS — with a particular focus on glutamate and its potential role in symptoms, particularly physical capacity. 

Rather than simply summarising the research, Anna walks you through what these findings may actually mean in practice. We’ll explore how glutamate fits into the wider picture of nervous system regulation, inflammation, and energy metabolism — and why these conditions can’t be understood through a single lens.

Anna talks about where targeted approaches like diet, supplements, or medication may have a role, and why addressing underlying drivers is often key to more meaningful, sustainable progress.

This episode is designed to help you make sense of the science — without oversimplifying it — and to offer a more integrated way of understanding your symptoms.

Useful Links

Take the Chronic Fatigue Quiz: https://app.annamarsh.co.uk/quiz-page

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anna__marsh_

Work with me: https://annamarsh.co.uk/work-together/

Website: https://annamarsh.co.uk/

In this episode, Anna is joined by Lexi Boreham, who shares her experience of living with and recovering from Long Covid.

This conversation gently explores the reality of rebuilding a life alongside ongoing symptoms — from the early confusion of becoming unwell, to navigating setbacks, identity shifts, and the emotional impact of recovery.

Together, they talk about the often-unspoken parts of the journey, including loneliness, the role of community, learning to set boundaries, and what it means to move forward when life looks very different to before.

They also explore the complexities of breakups and dating during recovery — how illness can shape identity, relationships, and self-perception, and the process of learning to trust yourself and others again.

This is an honest, grounded conversation about the messy middle of recovery — and the gradual, often quiet process of rebuilding a life that feels meaningful, supportive, and your own.

Useful Links

Find Lexi: https://www.instagram.com/_lexisophie/

Take the Chronic Fatigue Quiz: https://app.annamarsh.co.uk/quiz-page

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anna__marsh_

Work with me: https://annamarsh.co.uk/work-together/

Website: http://annamarsh.co.uk/

Join the Nurturing Resilience Subscription: https://annamarsh.co.uk/nurturing-resilience/