ME and CFS – What is ME?

ME is a complex, neuroimmunological illness which profoundly limits patients’ health and wellbeing. It is triggered by an infection, often viral. It can appear suddenly or develop more gradually. It is not well understood and there are no tests or cures. It affects people from all ages and backgrounds. It is twice as common in women as in men. It may be triggered by a number of factors, including a virus, surgery, trauma, hormonal shifts (pregnancy, menopause) and traumatic events.

GPs are able to diagnose ME/CFS with an accurate history and clinical examination. It is important for patients to work closely with their doctors, documenting and communicating their symptoms accurately. Patients with ME/CFS can find it helpful to keep a diary of their symptoms and use the resources available on the Action for ME website.

A key symptom of ME is post-exertional malaise, which is a worsening of symptoms following physical or mental activity. This can last for weeks or longer. ME/CFS can also be accompanied by other symptoms, such as trouble concentrating, unrefreshing sleep, pain, periods of bloating and constipation and problems regulating body temperature. It is important to recognise and treat these other conditions, known as comorbidities, as they can cause additional symptoms or limit patients’ ability to participate in daily activities.

Research is ongoing to explore the causes of ME/CFS, which is believed to be an autoimmune disease. Studies are looking at potential triggers, such as infections and hormones. One international study, Decode ME, aims to discover whether there is a genetic cause of the illness by testing thousands of individual DNA samples.

Research is needed to develop safe and effective treatments for ME. Until this happens, patients and their families need support to be able to live the best lives they can and to help manage their symptoms. It is crucial that the UK government, healthcare professionals and wider society understands ME/CFS better so that they can provide appropriate support for patients.

Understanding the Different Types of Love

The word “love” has a broad range of definitions. Some psychologists use it to describe a general feeling of positive sentiment, a more potent emotion than mere liking. Others define it as an emotion characterized by a mix of primary emotions, such as affection and trust. Still, other researchers see love as a cultural construct that arises from the combination of social expectations and psychological drives.

Love can be found in a variety of relationships, from the bond between parents and children to the camaraderie of friends to the butterflies of romantic feelings. Regardless of its form, it enriches our lives and provides support during tough times. However, it is important to remember that not all forms of love are healthy. The key to avoiding unhealthy loves is to identify what kind of love you are looking for and how you can find it.

If you are searching for companionate or eudaemonic love, try making deeper connections with those around you by having meaningful conversations and prioritizing emotional compatibility. This will help you discover a person with whom you are likely to find mutual trust and respect. In addition, try expanding your social circle by joining groups or attending events that align with your interests. This will increase your opportunities to meet people who share common values and passions.

On the other hand, if you are seeking romantic love, focus on finding someone who shares your interest in a particular activity or hobby. Developing a shared interest will not only deepen your connection, but it can also spark an intense feeling of attraction. To get started, try asking your acquaintances about their favorite hobbies and expressing your interest in their answers. This will create a sense of reciprocity, which can lead to a more serious relationship.

Biological models of love tend to see it as a mammalian drive, similar to hunger or thirst. Psychologists, on the other hand, often view it as a complex phenomenon that involves several emotions, including attachment and compassion.

Several psychological disorders are associated with love, including erotomania. Love can also have negative implications when it is used as an excuse to commit crimes. For example, a psychopath might love their victim and show little guilt. In addition, a man who is infatuated with another man may be unable to distinguish between the two.

Some philosophers and theologians believe that there are different types of love. For example, kama consists of intimacy and lust; prema consists of devotion and commitment; and consummate love consists of all three components. In addition, some Hindu writers and theologians have distinguished nine forms of bhakti (loving devotion to the divine).

What Is a Need and What Is a Want?

A need is something you can’t live without, such as food or water. It’s different from a want, which is something you desire or wish for. You can often have both a need and a want at the same time. For example, you may need a car but also want to be wealthy.

A person who is a need has an objective interest in avoiding serious harm. This need may be based on the societal setting in which they live or on their own personal perspective of what is good and bad. For example, if a person is homeless, they may have an objective interest in finding shelter.

People are often unable to differentiate between a need and a want, but there are certain differences. A need is defined as a deficiency that can lead to a harmful consequence, whereas a want refers to a desire or wish. This difference is important in terms of understanding human behavior, particularly in relation to consumption and consumerism.

The concept of need is central to the fields of philosophy, psychology and sociology. A common framework for discussing needs is the academic model of Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, which proposes that people have a set of logically ordered needs that must be satisfied before higher level psychological needs such as belonging and self-actualization can be fulfilled.

There are many different ways to categorize a need, but it is generally agreed that the most basic needs are physical (such as food, water and shelter) and psychological (such as security and love). In addition, it is often recognized that some of these needs have to be met before more advanced wants can be fulfilled, such as a desire for wealth or fame.

It is sometimes difficult to distinguish between a need and a want, especially when the object of the need is abstract. Ultimately, a need is a deficiency that can cause harm, while a want is a desire or wish that does not.

English learners can learn about the use of articles with the help of a grammar book or an online English learner’s dictionary. Generally, the article “a” is used with singular countable nouns and “an” with uncountable or nonspecific nouns. For example, the words car and package are countable nouns, so they need an article, but the word rain is not, so it does not need an article.

Another useful way to understand the distinction between need and want is to think of them as static versus dynamic. For instance, you will always need to drink water, but your taste in drinking water may change daily or even hourly. Similarly, you will always need to sleep at night, but what type of bed you sleep in will likely change from day to day. Consequently, most people will tend to prioritize their basic needs over their wants.

How to Choose Adjectives to Define Yourself

When you’re asked to describe yourself, the adjectives you choose matter a lot. They can help employers understand if your qualifications match the job’s requirements, and they can also communicate your personal brand. That’s why it’s important to think carefully about the words you use when answering interview questions, writing your resume or college application, and even in online profiles and dating apps.

To help you come up with adjectives that best represent you, think of the qualities and characteristics that your friends, family, coworkers, and mentors admire about you. Then, look up the meanings of each word to find the ones that best reflect your values and strengths. You can even go as far as asking your peers what they think of you and how they’d describe you.

Using adjectives that genuinely capture your personality and beliefs is the best way to ensure that you’re communicating what makes you unique. However, there are certain adjectives that should be avoided because they’re overused and can sound cliched. For example, the adjective “hard-working” can be used by just about anyone, and it doesn’t necessarily tell an employer anything about your abilities or work ethic.

It’s also important to avoid overused, general adjectives like “innovative,” “sympathetic,” or “creative.” While they may be accurate descriptions of you, they’ll probably leave a less-than-fantastic impression on an interviewer. Using overly-familiar adjectives can make you seem generic and unoriginal, which can cost you an opportunity for a great job or an internship.

Interviewers ask you to describe yourself primarily to see whether your qualities align with the job’s requirements and culture. However, they may also want to get a sense of your overall persona and how you fit in with the company’s existing team and community.

How to Define Yourself

Whether you’re answering this question in a job interview, on your resume, or in a college application interview, it’s important to know how to describe yourself in a way that’s honest and authentic. Choosing words that are meaningful to you and reflect your values will give a stronger, more positive impression to the person you’re talking to. However, there are certain adjectives that you should avoid using to describe yourself, as they can leave a negative impression or make it seem like you’re exaggerating your abilities.

If you’re suffering from myalgic encephalomyelitis, commonly referred to as ME, you may have difficulty explaining the severity of your symptoms to others. But there are ways to improve your quality of life and get better care through advocacy.

ME is a neuroimmune disorder with debilitating symptoms including fatigue, post-exertional malaise (PEM), unrefreshing sleep and cognitive impairment. The cause of ME is not fully understood, but it can be triggered by infections and is believed to involve genetics, immune system problems and hormone imbalances.

Many people with ME also experience comorbidities, such as fibromyalgia (widespread muscle pain), POTS (postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome, increased heart rate upon standing) and gastroparesis/irritable bowel syndrome (bloating and constipation). ME/CFS can have serious consequences for people’s lives and can cause substantial loss of income and productivity. There is no laboratory test for ME/CFS and diagnosis is made by ruling out other diseases that have similar symptoms. Many people with ME have to struggle for years before they receive a correct diagnosis.

A new campaign called #ThereForME is calling for a significant improvement in NHS treatment and care for ME/CFS patients, particularly those with severe forms of the disease. Campaigners are calling for local specialist services to be set up in every area, to provide home visits and add more support such as specialist nurses or physiotherapists. They are also calling for more research to explore potential causes of ME and the links it has with long Covid, as well as working towards a potential treatment.

The inquest into the death of Maeve Boothby O’Neill, who had ME, highlighted poor NHS care for ME. Her family have now called for a review of ME services in Devon and across England. You can support this campaign by writing to your MP and asking them to back the #ThereForME report’s recommendations, including for an urgent expansion of funding for ME/CFS research. You can do this using the tool on this page.

Tell Me About Yourself

Many people have to answer this question in some form or another: “Tell me about yourself.” This is often asked in job interviews and can be found on college applications and resumes. But this question is also asked in everyday conversation, when someone wants to know more about you and your personality.

How you respond can make a big difference in how others perceive you and the way they interact with you. If you want to have the best self-image possible, it is important to choose your words carefully – especially when describing yourself to others. Words like “hardworking,” “team player” and “pro-active” may sound great in a job interview, but they can quickly devolve into overused phrases that do not provide a unique or accurate view of who you are.

ME/CFS (myalgic encephalomyelitis and chronic fatigue syndrome) is an illness that affects the nervous system. It causes a wide range of symptoms that have an impact on day to day life. These include post-exertional malaise (PEM) where symptoms get worse after physical or mental activity that wouldn’t normally cause problems, difficulty concentrating, unrefreshing sleep, pain, achy joints and muscles, periods of bloating and constipation, dizziness or lightheadedness when standing up or changing position, difficulties regulating temperature and more.

Research is currently underway to find out more about the causes of ME/CFS and how it is treated. It is hoped this will eventually lead to better treatment for the illness.

It is not known whether ME/CFS can be cured at present, but there are some treatments that can help alleviate symptoms. These include cognitive behavioural therapy and medication to help with sleep issues and pain. Other treatments are being looked at and can be used to control the symptoms if they flare up, such as heat or ice packs.

People who have ME/CFS often have other health conditions such as fibromyalgia (widespread muscle pain), postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS, increased heart rate upon standing up) and gastroparesis or irritable bowel syndrome (bloating and constipation). These are called comorbidities. It is important to identify and treat these other health conditions, as they can aggravate ME/CFS symptoms.

ME/CFS can have a significant impact on the lives of those affected, including work and family. This can be compounded by the lack of understanding and awareness that surrounds the condition. People with ME/CFS can sometimes experience disbelief and discrimination from friends, family, health and social care professionals and employers. This can be very distressing and can result in people not receiving the best possible care and support.

For more information about ME/CFS visit the Emerge Australia info line on 1800 865 321, or Bridges & Pathways. There is also a ME/CFS peer support group in the Perth area, contact ALISS to be signposted to this group. In addition, the national ME/CFS support and advocacy organisation is Action for ME.

Writing an Essay About Love

Love can be an elusive concept to define, and there are many different views of its nature. Some view it as a feeling that arises from sexual attraction or emotion, while others see it as a human need similar to hunger or thirst. Still others believe that it is a spiritual force that can transform lives and our world. A popular theory is that love is an emotion that drives people to seek connection and fulfillment.

When writing an essay about love, you should focus on describing how the relationship makes you feel. Using metaphors and imagery can help you convey the emotional intensity of the experience. You should also focus on the positive aspects of the relationship, including moments of connection and personal growth. However, don’t forget to include the low points, as they are an essential part of the experience as well.

Whether you’re writing an essay about romantic love or platonic love, it’s important to take a broad approach when defining the concept. For example, a woman might define a platonic love as her desire to protect and care for her friends, while another might view the same love as a sexual attraction to a particular person.

Writers who wish to create a persuasive essay on the topic of love should conduct research and use primary sources. This may include interviews with individuals who have experienced the concept of love, such as couples counselors or marriage therapists. In addition, it may be useful to read literary works and watch movies that depict various views of love and relationships.

Some scholars have viewed love as an essential human need that can contribute to a sense of belonging and happiness. Others have argued that the experience of love can inspire people to work harder, achieve goals and develop their best self.

The question of what love is has fascinated philosophers, writers and ordinary individuals for centuries. Some writers, like William Shakespeare, have written plays and poems that explore the idea. The enduring popularity of these works suggests that the concept of love has broad appeal.

Biological models of love tend to see it as a mammalian drive, similar to the way in which hunger or thirst are triggered by bodily sensations. These theories rely on hormones, such as oxytocin and neurotrophins, and pheromones to explain how humans behave in love.

A more anthropological view of love views it as an activity that requires both trust and sacrifice. This view is supported by the fact that a significant amount of time and energy is spent building relationships, and most successful relationships require an investment in the other person’s needs as well as one’s own.

In the Hindu religion, a variety of ideas about love exist. Kama means physical attraction, pragma is loving behavior that involves making practical decisions in relationships and agape is the love of selfless service. Some scholars have suggested that some people possess a mixture of these love styles.

What Is a Need?

A need is something that you must have in order to function well in your life. This term is often used in contrast with “want,” which refers to things that are not essential. Psychologists distinguish between physiological and psychological needs. Physiological needs are basic requirements for life, such as food, water and shelter. Psychological needs are higher, such as a sense of belonging and self-actualization.

A person’s needs are different for everyone. You can find out what your personal needs are by doing a needs assessment. You can also do this in a group, such as with your family. To identify your needs, think about the experiences that made you feel successful and unsuccessful in your life. Make a list of those experiences. Then, narrow down the list to only include experiences that are relevant to your life right now.

You may be able to satisfy some of your needs, while other needs may be more difficult to fulfill. This is why you must learn to differentiate between your needs and wants. For example, you may need food to survive, while you might want a delicious cheese burst pizza. You can also distinguish your needs from your wants when planning a budget. For instance, you need to spend money on necessities, such as rent and food, but you might not need a designer wardrobe.

Using the word “need” as a verb can confuse people because it is similar to the phrase “need to.” However, the difference between need and need to is that “to” is an infinitive, while “need” is a noun. The distinction between these two words can be confusing for many people, but it is important to know the difference in order to distinguish your needs from your wants.

The most widely known academic model of needs is Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. This theory states that people have a series of psychological needs, starting with the lowest level, such as physical hunger and thirst, and moving upward to emotional connection. People spend most of their energy trying to meet these lower level needs before they can move on to satisfying the higher-level desires for belonging and self-actualization.

A more recent approach to the concept of need is Gough and Doyal’s Self-Determination Theory. This approach is more focused on human rights and argues that every person has an objective interest in having their basic needs satisfied, but they must take responsibility for the satisfaction of these needs. This approach emphasizes the importance of rational identification of needs, consideration of actual experiences in everyday life, and democratic decision-making.

How to Use You in English

The word you is a second-person pronoun that can refer to a single person (singular) or more than one person (plural). As the only second-person pronoun that can be both singular and plural, you is an essential part of our language. It is also unique in that it can be used to make an object of a verb or to make a predicative complement.

The first use of you as a singular pronoun dates from Old English, when it was pronounced yeow and yowd. It was replaced by the more formal you around the mid-16th century. Thee and thou continued in polite if informal use as personal pronouns, though they were sometimes used to show deference or superiority to strangers or social inferiors. They began to lose respectability as singular you became more common, leading to the rise of special plural forms like youse, you-uns, yousies, and yez, which never fully replaced the regular singular form.

In modern English, you can function as an object of a verb in the present indicative, the perfect indicative, and the past indicative: You are going to school today. You washed the car. You went to school. You washed the car.

It is also possible to use you as a subject of a sentence in the subjunctive, the conditional, and the imperative: You might go, you might not go, you might not go. You can also use you as a conjunction: You can, you could, and you might, which are all examples of auxiliary verbs.

Aside from the auxiliary verbs, you can also be used to make adjectives: You are red, and you might be blue. You can also combine it with another noun or noun phrase to create a compound noun: You are so busy, and you might be tired.

You can also use it to make a noun phrase in the accusative: You are annoying, and you might be rude. You can even use it as an adjective: You are obnoxious, and you might be loud.

The most common way to use you is in the plural form you guys, which is often shortened to just youse. It is a common informal expression that can be heard in many regions of the United States. Younger speakers and some politically progressive speakers are more likely to perceive it as gendered and problematically noninclusive of trans and nonbinary people, so they might avoid its use. Plural yous is a more acceptable option, but it can be perceived as unnecessarily formal and stuffy in some contexts. The letter u can also be used to replace you in certain informal contexts, as in I miss u!

What is ME/CFS?

ME sufferers are not just tired, they’re unable to complete daily tasks, and can sometimes be confined to bed for extended periods. They struggle with headaches, muscle pain, difficulty thinking and memory problems – sometimes called brain fog. They find it hard to maintain relationships, get work and even attend school or college.

The illness can appear suddenly, or develop more slowly over months or years. It appears to be triggered by an infection, typically but not always viral. It is unclear why some people have ME/CFS and others do not.

There is no cure for ME and it is often misdiagnosed and not recorded properly, which can lead to delays in accessing treatment. There is no single test to detect ME/CFS and a diagnosis is only made after other possible known causes of symptoms have been excluded.

The main symptom is extreme fatigue, which persists for six months or more. The NHS’s guidelines state that disabling fatigue must be present for a diagnosis. However, the charity Action for ME has suggested that this criterion may be too low, as the illness can cause many other serious symptoms such as headaches and muscle pain, which are also recorded in medical records.

A lack of understanding about the illness means that patients can experience disbelief, discrimination and social isolation. Despite the physical and emotional impact, it is possible to manage ME/CFS over time, by using a range of coping strategies, such as good sleep hygiene and energy management (also known as ‘pacing’).

People with ME and CFS need to adapt their lives to take into account their illness, and can often struggle financially. This can be especially challenging for young people, who may miss out on opportunities and career progression because of their ME/CFS. The charity ALISS has a guide to entitlements to welfare benefits for ME and CFS sufferers.

ME/CFS can be a debilitating condition, but it is possible for people to live well with it if they are supported by family, friends and community. Support groups and charities can provide information, support and advice on managing ME/CFS, as well as signposting to local services.

Research into ME/CFS is ongoing, with an international team of researchers from organisations around the world working together at the ME/CFS Collaborative Research Centres. This is an open, global network of clinical and basic science laboratories with a shared mission to improve the lives of people affected by ME/CFS.