Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Symptoms of Chronic Fatique Syndrom or ME

There are also other symptoms associated with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome or ME for instance, most sufferers wake up feeling exhausted, even after a good night’s sleep.  Or they feel as if they have a hangover despite having drunk nothing the night before. ME/CFS patients take more time (up to two hours) to actually wake up meaning that they are slow and sluggish in the mornings. They can also require large amounts of sleep but never feel that it’s enough and some also suffer from insomnia, which exacerbates the fatigue.

ME/CFS also has an impact on your ability to think and this often includes an inability to process new information quickly (such as when being given driving directions or someone’s telephone number or email address). It can also mean a reduced ability or inability to do maths in your head and difficulty with multitasking. Another common symptom of Chronic Fatigue Symdrome is forgetting words or getting your “wires crossed”.

There are a lot of other symptoms too, a less common one being orthostatic intolerance. This is where an ME/CFS sufferer might find it uncomfortable to stand in one place for a long time. The patient feels a strong urge to lie down or they may feel dizzy. Often patients adjust and unconsciously adapt their behaviour, say by folding their legs when they sit down, moving weight from one leg to another when standing or avoiding situations where they would have to stand for long periods of time. Further symptoms include muscle pain, sore throats, swollen lymph nodes, sound and light sensitivity, cold or heat sensitivity, headaches, easy bruising and vertigo. In total there are about 60 different symptoms included attributable to ME/CFS.

What should I do if I think I might have ME/CFS?

Of course the symptoms can be similar to this of other illnesses. so it’s important if you suspect you have this disease to to discuss this with your doctor, who will want to rule out other illnesses that have some of the same symptoms, such as fibromyalgia, hypothyroidism, cardiac dysfunctions, an infection, or depression. It is possible for a person to have one of these conditions but also have ME/CFS as well. Women aged between 35-50 are at a higher risk of coming down with this disease but the second most likely age group to develop it, is adolescent boys and girls between the ages of 11 and 23. However, it can strike anyone, including men and young children.

How does it start?

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome or ME can be triggered by a number of things such as an infection or series of infections, surgery, another illness, an accident, or any other physical or emotional stressor. It may come on gradually or suddenly. Commonly, people with the disease said they felt like they’d got a dose of flu, but it never went away. Some report the symptoms starting one day without any apparent trigger. ME/CFS seems to have a genetic component because it occurs more often among blood relatives.  Sadly it’s hard to pinpoint an exact cause and just as hard to treat.

Although there isn’t a cure for Chronic Fatique Syndrome, some lifestyle, diet and nutritional changes could result in significantly improved energy levels. At the Nutritional Therapy Clinic, we offer coaching for the Metabolic Balance Diet, which can impact on CFS/ME and help you manage the condition better. For a better understanding of how this works read the article produced by one of the Nutritional Therapy Clinic’s satisfied clients on how optimum nutrition and the Metabolic Balance plan helped her beat Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.*

https://www.wddty.com/magazine/2016/december/how-i-beat-chronic-fatigue.html