TheSoko.com - Is Chronic Fatigue Syndrome for Real?

Is Chronic Fatigue Syndrome for Real?

By Nicole Stevenson

[Health & Your Life]

What disorder is CFS commonly misdiagnosed as? Nicole Stevenson unlocks the medical mystery.

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS), a disorder two to four times more likely to affect women than men, causes constant feelings of exhaustion despite the amount of sleep and rest one gets. It attacks muscles and joints, leaving patients to live in pain. Having no cure and few treatment options, CFS is an unfortunate condition many people are forced to endure for life. Although it has been around for much longer than you’d think, it is only recently becoming accepted as a legitimate medical condition.

An Age-Old Question

Does Chronic Fatigue Syndrome really exist? For years, doctors, sufferers and the general public have asked this question. In fact, CFS was described by Hippocrates and in the Egyptian “Papyrus Elbers” in 1400 B.C. and since then has been widely disputed as an actual disease. Also known as myalgic encephalomyelitis, CFS is a difficult disorder to put a finger on. Extreme and constant fatigue, muscle aches and pains, headaches, brain fog and a variety of other problems plague patients day in and day out. Some sufferers have such severe CFS that simple acts can wipe them out completely and working a full day becomes nearly impossible. Because it is so debilitating, many CFS sufferers cannot work at all. However, because of the nature of the condition, employers and insurance companies refuse to accept it as cause enough to be on disability.

It was once thought (and still is by some people) that CFS is all in the patient’s head. Though it has been brushed off as mere laziness, it is most commonly attributed to the person’s psyche. Quite often misdiagnosed as depression, this disorder is treated with inappropriate medications that fail to get to the physical root of the problem and can sometimes even worsen symptoms. With symptoms that are so common among other illnesses, like the fibromyalgia, mental illnesses and even the common flu, it’s no wonder CFS is doubted. It is, however, a very real and very troublesome disorder to live with.

Diagnosing a Difficult Disorder

As sufferers must first go through a battery of tests to rule out any other disease(s) that could be contributing to their symptoms, CFS is diagnosed by process of elimination. The major symptom is, of course, extreme and chronic fatigue. But this is not the tiredness we all feel after a late night, a long day at the office or a tough workout. This is pure exhaustion, from which there is no relief. No matter how much sleep a person with CFS may get, or how little physical activity he or she does, the fatigue remains relentless. This fatigue, which often comes on suddenly and lasts for at least six months, is usually accompanied by muscle and joint weakness and pain that is not unlike the pain experienced by fibromyalgia sufferers. Sore throats, swollen lymph nodes, headaches and migraines, and sleep dysfunctions like insomnia and frequent waking are common among those with CFS. Also adding to the discomfort are symptoms like an inability to concentrate (known as brain fog), sensitivity to sensory stimuli, change in appetite, nausea, below normal body temperatures and gastrointestinal problems.

NEXTContinued on next page...