Recognizing The Signs And Symptoms Of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
The difficulty in assessing chronic fatigue symptoms is that they resemble several other illnesses, diseases and conditions. The eight defining items on the CFS symptoms list include fatigue, post-exertion malaise, lack of refreshing sleep at night, muscular pain, joint pain, tender lymph nodes, sore throat and headaches. To be diagnosed, an individual must have at least four of these concurrent symptoms. However, the Centers for Disease Control says these symptoms also resemble mononucleosis, Lyme disease, lupus, multiple sclerosis, fibromyalgia, primary sleep disorders, severe obesity and depressive disorders.
Chronic fatigue indicators often arrive on the scene directly following an infection, injury or illness and they never seem to actually disappear. Sufferers usually describe extreme light sensitivity, along with sensitivity to sounds, sensations and smells. They feel like the most mundane daily experiences are overwhelming, as their senses are kicked into overdrive. These indicators frequently leave the sufferer feeling rundown, dizzy, clumsy, queasy and confused. Lots of individuals also develop sudden allergies and feel like they’ve got the flu.
Of all the warning signs, exhaustion stands out as the best known. The exhaustion is acute, incapacitating and all encompassing. Frequently a sufferer will get up in the morning feeling just as tired as when they went to bed. A mental fog overtakes the patient, which makes it difficult to focus, recall words or complete day to day responsibilities. Many sufferers say your mental faculties are so lacking in feeling, it feels like you have the flu all the time. The most severe cases cause an individual to resign from their job, stop going out and to a large extent remain confined to bed.
Most, but not all, patients report pain as one of their chronic fatigue symptoms. They may feel this pain in their muscles, joints, head, jaw, eye, abdomen or lymph nodes. Often the pain mimics arthritis, without the redness or swelling. Some patients report that the pain moves from location to location for no real reason at all. Muscles feel heavy like lead, which is not unlike the feeling of catching the flu. The pain sometimes leads people to research more about fibromyalgia treatments because nearly all fibromyalgia patients also suffer from chronic fatigue. In some cases, the conditions are both present together, so treating one will help the other.
Cognitive impairment is said to be one of the worst chronic fatigue symptoms because it is so frustrating. CFS patients might suffer short-term memory loss and have trouble assimilating new information, even when it seems obvious to remember. They misplace keys, wallets and important documents. They have a hard time concentrating on a television show, a book or a conversation. They cannot retain what they’ve read or calculate numbers a lot of the time. They may search for a word while speaking and forget their train of thought. In the worst cases, speech may be slowed or impaired. Patients describe these symptoms as “brain fog.”
How much do you know about the causes of chronic fatigue syndrome? If you suffer from this condition, you have to educate yourself as much as possible and try to find the treatments that work best for you. You can find the help you need at Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Help.
