I think Long COVID exists for some people but I doubt it's as prevalent as the media hysteria about it makes out. Nobody I know in real life has it. It seems to be more of an immune disorder than specific to COVID. My theory is that people who get long COVID are more vulnerable to long lingering reactions to diseases like Lyme disease too. So I doubt it's really caused by COVID being a scary "worse than any other disease" kind of virus and more about their particular immune systems. Which we should still find a cure for! Obviously! But the scaremongering about it doesn't work on me and actually makes me trust the media less. When there's a big discrepancy between the world I see with my own eyes, and the world I hear about in the media, it makes me trust the media less. Yes I know that's a bias but I've also seen other examples of media propaganda and scaremongering, and usually scaremongering is for ulterior motives. Fear is not the most productive emotion for positive behavioural change. Most people would take reasonable risk avoiding procedures out of self interest and also out of compassion for our fellow humans. It doesn't require hysterical and emotionally overcharged clickbait to do so.

It could also be that I am so desensitised to the media now because of how overly hysterical all issues now are especially in relation to COVID. I stayed indoors and masked for 2 years because "if I didn't I was LITERALLY MURDERING OLD PEOPLE AND WAS A TERRIBLE HUMAN BEING WITH NO EMPATHY OR COMPASSION".

There's only so long one's emotions can be keyed up like that. Now I don't feel anything anymore about COVID. I will still take reasonable precautions but life is for living and all life involves risk. So that goes for long COVID and monkeypox too.