A detailed guide to Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS), including its symptoms, causes, and effective treatment strategies to improve energy and well-being.
I had fibromyalgia symptoms for 15 years before I was diagnosed. At that time, I took a course of physical therapy where I did the Wharton stretch method, where you put a strap around your ankle, stretch your leg, and then gently use the strap to extend the stretch for a second. This, combined with a slow, progressive walking program where I extended the length of my walk over time improved my energy and pain…
A wonderful database of patients who have accomplished a remission from Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome has been created by Chronic-illness Community has video-interviewed several survivors and he has made these available for review. The stories he presents and the stories I have heard from patients contain similar reports of survivorship, and it is exactly the healing journeys of these survivors that point to the causes and the diagnosis of Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.…
On a scale of 1-10, my average daily pain level is a 6 or a 7. All-day. Every single day of my life. It’s always there, and cannot be ignored no matter how engrossed in something I may be. Being in constant pain is exhausting. Fatigue is a huge issue in my life. Unrefreshing sleep is one of the hallmarks of this disease. I sleep about ten hours per night and still wake feeling like…
Tips for the Warrior Caring for someone with CFS or FM can be a stressful experience. You may take on extra responsibilities, experience financial strain, feel frustrated and resentful at times, lose companionship, face uncertainty about the future, and experience both reduced socializing and sexual difficulties. Even with all the challenges brought by serious illness, there are many ways to take care of yourself. Here are nine to consider. Maintain Your Health This is the…
Improving Communication The stresses brought by serious illness can make good communication difficult. To complicate matters, CFS and FM create the additional challenge of cognitive problems. Here are seven ideas for how to improve communication if you or your partner have CFS or FM. Pick a Good Time and Setting If you have something important to discuss with a significant person in your life, select a time when both of you will be at your…
Fibromyalgia and CFS put couples under stress. This chapter offers strategies for addressing three problems faced by couples: sexual difficulties, strained communication, and caregiver burnout. Improving Intimacy When CFS or fibromyalgia enters a marriage, one casualty can be intimacy between the partners. Pain, reduced energy, reduced interest, health problems of the partner, and increased responsibilities for the healthy spouse can all affect a couple’s sex life, but, like other aspects of long-term illness, intimacy problems…
“Fibromyalgia, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, and Objective Medical Evidence Requirements …” was the subject of a memorandum from Social Security Deputy Commissioner, Susan M. Daniels, Ph. D., (“the Deputy Commissioner”) to a Social Security administrative law judge (ALJ) in May 1998. This memo has been widely circulated. The memo was in response to memoranda from the ALJ to the Deputy Commissioner, to an appeal judge, and to the general counsel for Social Security. The ALJ asserted…
New research indicates that a disruption of brain signals for reward and punishment contributes to increased pain sensitivity, known as hyperalgesia, in fibromyalgia patients. Results published in Arthritis & Rheumatism, a journal of the American College of Rheumatology, suggest that this altered brain processing might contribute to widespread pain and lack of response to opioid therapy in patients with fibromyalgia. Click Here to Visit the Store and find Much More…. Fibromyalgia is a chronic, musculoskeletal…
It may seem counterintuitive, but young and middle-aged fibromyalgia patients report worse symptoms and poorer quality of life than older patients, a Mayo Clinic study shows. Fibromyalgia most often strikes women. It is characterized by widespread musculoskeletal pain with fatigue, sleep, memory and mood issues. The research, one of several Mayo studies being presented at the American College of Rheumatology annual meeting, suggests the disorder plays out differently among different age groups. Researchers studied 978…
More than 100 million Americans suffer from chronic pain. But treating and studying chronic pain is complex and presents many challenges. Scientists have long searched for a method to objectively measure pain and a new study from Brigham and Women’s Hospital advances that effort. The study appears in the January 2013 print edition of the journal Pain. “While we need to be cautious in the interpretation of our results, this has the potential to be…