Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: The Basic Facts
Chronic
Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) is an illness that exhibits symptoms in patients like constant exhaustion and flu-like symptoms, that do not go away as
true flu normally does. Persons who suffer from CFS find themselves experiencing extreme fatigue for more than a day after doing any strenuous
physical activity.
Symptoms
The following is a list of symptoms one may experience while suffering from CFS according to a study conducted by a International Chronic Fatigue
Syndrome Study Group:
Loss of ability to remember or to be able to concentrate.
Sore throat.
Axilla (armpit) and neck lymph nodes that become slightly enlarged and become painful.
Muscle soreness that cannot be explained away as having occurred from normal causes.
Joint pain without accompanying redness or swelling that is experienced in more than one joint.
Unusual headaches that differ in type of pain, in pattern or in the severity of pain.
Chronic Fatigue Fast Facts
First Doctor Visit For Chronic Fatigue Syndrome And What To Expect
Once you have decided to see a medical professional concerning your symptoms, the best place to start is with your primary care physician. There is no one single test that will tell you that your symptoms are related to Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS). Basically what will happen is your physician will take a full medical history from you. Try to give as much detail as possible regarding your medical history including any stresses, depressions, and illnesses as well as a detailed description of...
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Disturbances in sleep patterns.
Intense exhaustion following normal type and duration of exercise.
Other symptoms reported by CFS sufferers have been:
Pain in the abdominal area.
Intolerance to alcohol.
Bloating.
Pain in the chest region.
Cough that is chronic (over a long period of time).
Dizziness.
Eyes and mouth that become noticeably dry.
Earache.
Heartbeats that become irregular in timing.
Stiffness of joints especially in the early morning.
Nausea.
Sweating while asleep at night.
Periods of depression, feeling anxious or experiencing panic attacks.
Experiencing periods of being short of breath.
Feeling tingling sensations.
Noticing weight loss.
Physicians have reported two types of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome; they are Sudden Onset and Gradual Onset. They report that the Sudden Onset, seems
to occur quite suddenly and is often times following symptoms of a flu-like virus, or the patient may have recently suffered a severe infection
or some other type of illness just prior to noticing the CFS symptoms. Some patients reported having suffered an emotional stress prior to
the symptoms. The Gradual Onset type of CFS were patients that observed milder symptoms that appeared more slowly over time, and increased in
intensity. Because their symptoms occur over time and are mild most of these patients did not pay as much attention and may have thought they
were experiencing other mild diseases or simply dismissed them as being caused by possibly stress or some other vague reason. Not until their
symptoms became chronic did they become concerned enough to consult a physician.
Also Referred To As:
You may have heard CFS referred to by other names such as: simply Chronic Fatigue or Immune Dysfunction Syndrome (CFIDS). Others call it Myalgic
Encephalomyelitis (ME), or Post-Viral Fatigue Syndrome (PVFS).
It does not matter much which name you choose to call this illness, the effects must be overwhelming to the sufferer and to their family. As you
can imagine those suffering from either form of CFS must experience devastation, as the disease robs them of energy to complete even simple daily
tasks. CFS patients are in chronic pain and long-term pain has been known to lead to depression. Physicians often times have difficulty
diagnosing CFS due to the widespread symptoms those who suffer from it may exhibit.
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