Are you suffering from Chronic Fatigue Syndrome? Do you still have all of your senses and body functions working at top-speed? If so, then you most certainly are part of the millions of people who suffer from Chronic Fatigue Syndrome or Fibromyalgia. For many years, the best treatment for ME/Cfs was thought to be in a clinic or doctor’s office, with prescription medications. However, today more people are suffering from this disorder for which there is no cure.
If you are wondering what is ME/Cfs, then let me start by sharing something that might surprise you. The short answer is they are all the same. Fibromyalgia was initially diagnosed in the UK, and ME/Cfs is now being diagnosed in the USA as well. ME/Cfs is simply defined as any kind of severe or chronic fatigue syndrome. Although many people tend to think that there is only one common symptom of ME/Cfs, this is actually untrue.
There are several symptoms that can occur with ME/Cfs, but they are not all lumped together as ME. For example, many people suffering from ME have depression, anxiety, irritability, memory problems, or even a combination of these. In addition, the ME is often confused with Post-Viral Fatigue Syndrome, which has similar characteristics as ME, but is a completely separate neurological disease. In order for ME/Cfs to be properly diagnosed, it must have certain criteria. Those criteria are associated with an extremely severe or debilitating illness such as: a profound mental or physical fatigue; a persistent, recurrent skin rash (usually itchy and dry) in which there is loss of hair or eyebrows reoccurring for more than three months in a row; recurring fever; persistent muscle pain; decreased level of concentration or focus; constant headaches; loss of balance and coordination; feeling constantly tired and depressed.
As stated earlier, I have seen many people with ME who have had a normal life prior to their diagnosis, only to experience further symptoms once they began receiving ME treatment. Thus, without proper documentation of the ME symptoms prior to the diagnosis, such patients may receive diagnoses of other illnesses. Thus, it is very important to obtain proper documentation on your illness if you do not already have a ME/Cfs diagnosis.
Another way to think about it is this: what happens when the body systems of someone begin to malfunction? What happens to the brain and nervous system of someone suffering from a magic experience? If the nervous system is malfunctioning, how do the brain and the rest of the body systems “think” that the body is “nervous” or “ill?” And if ME is a magic disorder, how does it affect your ability to function normally on a daily basis?
In addition to the above, ME is often confused with other health conditions such as fibromyalgia syndrome, CFS, chronic fatigue syndrome or even cancer. This is why it is necessary to obtain medical help once symptoms begin to show. Medical professionals can run all kinds of tests on you in order to determine if you have a myalgic encephalopathy, or if you are really suffering from another health condition. Often times, it takes just one test to determine if someone is indeed sick with ME, or if they are suffering from something totally unrelated. Also, it is important for a doctor to know where the symptoms are coming from so that they can begin to target specific treatments for the illness, which should be much more targeted than treating the symptoms of ME.
