Chronic Fatigue Syndrome symptoms are common among fibromyalgia patients. This is because chronic fatigue syndrome or immune deficiency (CFS/ME/SEID or CFIDS) is often an accompanying condition to fibromyalgia. Millions of fibro people today are living with chronic fatigue immune deficiency symptoms and yet many still have not been properly diagnosed as having both fibromyalgia and CFS/ME. Part of this stems from the fact that it’s not picked up in conventional testing. Also, the CFS symptoms mimic fibromyalgia in many ways.
NOTE: According to a recent interview done with Dr. Ronald Davis of Stanford University, (April 29, 2019) there was a discussion of a new study and test for those of us with CFS/ME. “The new assay detects differences in impedance patterns in response to hyperosmotic stress between blood samples from CFS/ME patients and those from healthy persons” It “can potentially establish a diagnostic biomarker and a drug screening platform for ME/CFS in conjunction with preexisting evaluation measures”
(Medscape, 2019)
Diagnosed with Epstein Barr or co-infections?
Doctors can rule out other conditions and then diagnose CFS/ME through various tests that will also include detection of viral activity in the body such as Epstein Barr virus.
However, it can be helpful to also test for co-infections in the blood such as mycoplasma and anaplasma (we sometimes call them the cousins to Lyme disease) that can be instigators to developing CFS/ME symptoms and do often co-exist alongside this condition. These blood infections are different than a virus that causes the flu and this is important to understand when it comes to secondary symptoms.
Epstein Barr does not cause fevers like an actual flu virus can. In fact, many people with FMS have slightly lower than normal body temperatures. Epstein Barr, anaplasma and mycoplasma have all been implicated in both FMS and CFS/ME. (integrative doctors can check for these with blood testing)
By the way, the Institute of Medicine recently proposed a new name for CFS. However, I personally think this does not accurately depict the underlying source of the illness which is essentially the immune system. Fatigue happens to be just one issue that occurs in CFS due to faulty mitochondria, which we explain later in this article.
At any rate, the new name proposed for CFS/ME is Systemic Exertion Intolerance Disease. We will continue to call it by either for clarity and until further notice. The most important issue comes in treating the various symptoms that can play havoc with an already vulnerable fibro body.
So What Exactly Is Chronic Fatigue Syndrome?
Chronic Fatique Syndrome symptoms List
Notice that the CFS symptoms overlap FMS to a great degree:
- persistent mind and body fatigue not relieved by rest
- cognitive dysfunction and impaired memory
- adrenal stress (low stress tolerance)
- over active nervous system
- lowered immune status
- unrefreshing sleep
- muscle and joint pain
- headaches (migraine and/or sinus)
- sore throat
- tender cervical or axillary lymph nodes, parotid glands (jaw, neck area)
- abdominal pain/irritable bowel
- poor vision
- chest pain and/or inability to maintain an upright position
- post exercise malaise
- irregular heartbeat or palpitations
- weight loss or gain
- jaw pain (TMJ)
- anxiety, depression or mood swings
How Do We Treat Chronic Fatigue Syndrome?
There are currently no drugs available to treat CFS/ME. And again, from my own experience from attending various holistic treatments (including intensive IV therapy), I do believe the best course of treatment involves addressing the vulnerable immune system and creating an overall stronger foundation. CFS/ME is complex and there is no single treatment that has been shown to be effective in most cases.
Treating CFS/ME can be complex and as stated by the Center for Disease Control (CDC), full remission is rare with only about 5-10% of patients able to achieve total remission. Just like with fibromyalgia flares, those of us with CFS will also cycle into chronic fatigue syndrome symptoms due to stress, weather, trauma, surgery or lowered immune resistance.
As I’ve stated before, I personally attended three months of holistic intensive IV therapy in 2005 for CFS/ME and it did not eradicate the virus or co-infections anaplasma or mycoplasma that I have lived with. So yes, that is why I say, let’s work to do this in the most cost effective way possible!!
It is also imperative to treat the immune system effectively on a regular basis. Read more here about how we work to improve our immune status.
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What about Candida fungal infections?
Learn more here about Candidiasis and fungal infections related to Chronic Fatigue. You see, your symptoms could also be related to Candidiasis. This type of fungal infection can affect every system of the body, but especially the GI tract, brain and immune status.
What are we to do when we fall into that 90-95% category of people who may have ongoing CFS symptoms to some degree of severity over a lifetime?
All of the protocols here on this website address both fibromyalgia symptoms and CFS symptoms. The better we are at supporting our immune health, the less severity in symptoms we will endure. If you have Epstein Barr or any other virus, you know how it feels when your body is constantly ‘fighting’. Any auto immune illness is much the same. This ongoing battle easily depletes the body and energy reserves.
For increasing immune status, be sure you are getting a few of the essentials like glutathione, selenium and zinc.
What about nutrition for Chronic Fatigue?
For nutrition protocol, we use the “Body Ecology Diet” to sustain a stronger foundation and help to eliminate perpetuating factors in our diet such as sugars, excess grains, yeast and additives. (This book is available on the Books/Resources page here on the website. See the Nav Column on the left side of this page)
For exercise guidelines, I have included an important additional article on working out with CFS and ways to avoid post exercise malaise and stay consistent. As a trainer living and working with Fibro and the primary co-conditions, I have gotten creative over the years in creating and modifying exercises and routines that are appropriate for CFS/ME and Fibro.
Ubiquinol CoQ10 and PQQ (for oxidative stress)
For supplementation, we have articles here in the site devoted to the importance of addressing the faulty mitochondria in CFS/ME and the need for a quality form of CoQ10 Ubiquinol with Pqq. Swanson Enhanced Enhanced Pqq with Ubiquinol is cost effective and recommended.
I also recommend taking PQQ to reduce the effects of oxidative stress.
Remember that we utilize a few different companies for supplements. We believe in cost-effectiveness and quality and not every company makes the best of every supplement.
This need for ubiquinol has been well established and verified. If you are interested, you can read the scientific basis of the critically of CoQ10 Ubiquinol for CFS.
How can we avoid de-conditioning?
As the research article pointed out, it is especially critical to overcome oxidative stress for a CFS victim in order to successfully engage in a low impact exercise program to prevent total deconditioning. If our body cannot make something essential, or we cannot get it from food, then that will make it a critical priority in our supplement regimen. As always, we work to prioritize and only take the necessary supplements. This is more cost effective as well.
As we stated above, CFS/ME can be challenging to treat and live with, however the principles we ascribe to here and throughout the website have been helpful to attaining a stronger immune status and decreasing overall intensity of symptoms.
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References:
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