A lot of people struggle with finding one word to describe themselves. This is because they want to give a very unique answer that describes their personality and skills. While this is a good idea, it can be difficult to come up with an answer. To help with this, you can list all the qualities that you associate yourself with and then try to find a common theme amongst them.
Another way to describe yourself is by focusing on the characteristics that your family and friends see in you. This is a great way to get a more realistic picture of yourself and what other people think of you. It can also be helpful when it comes to preparing for interviews because you can use the feedback from your friends and family to determine how you want to be perceived by others.
Many people with ME/CFS have a comorbid diagnosis, with fibromyalgia (widespread muscle pain), postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS, increased heart rate upon standing up) and gastroparesis/irritable bowel syndrome being most common. Other diseases that can be found in ME patients include scleroderma, rheumatoid arthritis, gout, eosinophilic gastroenteritis and mast cell disorders.
Despite the fact that ME is a very real and serious condition, it is often misunderstood, under-reported and neglected by the medical community. A recent survey found that 90% of ME/CFS sufferers do not have a correct diagnosis and are either misdiagnosed or told they are not sick at all. People with ME are often unable to work and most can be housebound or bedbound on their worst days.
In some cases, ME can be triggered by infection and in other cases it develops spontaneously without any apparent cause. The majority of people with ME/CFS are women, and it strikes all ages, races and socioeconomic groups. However, it is more common in children and adolescents, with some studies showing a higher incidence in certain minority groups.
There is no specific laboratory test for ME, and diagnosis is based on history of debilitating fatigue that cannot be explained by other conditions, not caused by mental or physical exertion and is significantly improved by rest. People with ME/CFS are often misdiagnosed, and this is partly because other conditions that produce similar symptoms can be mistaken for ME/CFS, such as a psychiatric disorder or depression.
Currently, only 10% of people with ME/CFS have received a diagnosis, and the majority are not receiving any care or treatment. Quality of life scores for ME/CFS are worse than for HIV, cancer or heart disease, and this is largely because ME patients are stigmatised and mistreated by healthcare professionals who do not understand the disease. It is important to educate people about the illness so that they can receive the care they deserve. This can be done by raising awareness, encouraging healthcare professionals to attend ME/CFS training courses and by highlighting good practice. The campaigning organisation #MEAction is working to change this. They aim to grow and mobilise a global ME/CFS community to be strong advocates for health equality and to accelerate research into safe treatments.