Book: The Long Haul
My book, The Long Haul tells the story of millions living with the long term after effects of Covid-19, chronicling how long haulers are changing the health system forever. I applied everything I’ve learned as a patient, advocate, and storyteller into this story of tragedy, innovation, and ultimate hope.
The book, originally published in hardcover by Post Hill Press, was re-published in paperback by MIT Press with distribution through Penguin Random House. The new edition was released everywhere books are sold on March 5, 2024.
Praise for The Long Haul
“In this gripping, compassionate, and deeply reported narrative, Ryan Prior tells the story of Long Covid as it should be told, centering the experiences of people who predicted the condition, endured it, named it, and researched it. Long-haulers are the heroes of their own story, and this important book beautifully captures their struggle and their courage.”
— Ed Yong, Pulitzer Prize winning journalist for The Atlantic
“This is a timely and important contribution to our understanding of Long Covid, which has affected tens of millions of people around the world and will impact health systems for years to come.”
— Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization
“I’ve had low level nerve tingling symptoms ever since I got Covid in March 2020. I started to talk about it when I heard repeated stories of others whose more serious symptoms were being dismissed and doubted. Ryan Prior brings these stories to light, shows how patients’ advocacy pushed research into causes and cures, and illuminates how many questions we still need to answer. A book we need right now.”
— US Senator Tim Kaine
“Ryan Prior brings out the heart of the story simply because he puts his whole self into telling it empathetically and with utmost compassion. Matched with his passion for curiosity, it makes for a story not only worth telling, but worth reading with insatiable interest.”
— Stephanie Land, New York Times bestselling author of book and Netflix series Maid
Film: Forgotten Plague
An afflicted journalist embarks on a quest to find out why the CDC and medical system have neglected his disease and left millions sidelined from life.
Forgotten Plague told what we believe is one of the great under-reported medical stories of our time. Based on the success of personal stories I wrote about dealing with chronic fatigue/myalgic encephalomyelitis for USA Today, my co-director Nicole Castillo and I started a company, raised $150,000 and assembled a team to produce a feature-length documentary. We filmed patients in nine states as well as experts from Stanford, Harvard, and Columbia.
With more than 1 million patients in the US and 20 million worldwide, the disease usually follows a viral infection and can last for years or decades, often dragging its sufferers into severe pain and disability. The plague is being met, however, with innovative scientists exploring its molecular underpinnings, compassionate physicians risking their livelihoods to care for patients, and tenacious advocates sounding the call for reform in corridors of power.
The film premiered at the Chinese Theater in Hollywood and had sold-out showings on both coasts as well as abroad. It was called a “must-see documentary” in the Huffington Post, is available on Amazon Prime and DVD, and can be licensed for theatrical or community screenings.
In light of the global longer term post-viral complications being found in Covid-19 survivors, as well as the biological similarities between Long Covid and ME/CFS, we believe the film is now more important than ever.