Be patient with them: It's the condition causing it and it's not their fault. Allow them to rest and sleep when they need to: As well as letting them be alone when needed, they also need downtime without feeling guilty.
Don't say: We all get tired
"They will say, 'Oh yeah we all get tired,' or, 'Come on it's just half an hour, you'll be fine,'" she says. "It's frustrating having to justify things the whole time and sometimes it can be quite upsetting. "It's not intended to hurt, it's just thoughtlessness."
A diet rich in polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats, avoiding saturated fats and refined carbohydrates—like the Mediterranean Diet—is reported by many people with ME/CFS to be helpful. Eat several small meals throughout the day. For example, three meals and three snacks might help keep energy levels up.
You were too sick to get much done, and definitely too sick to work or play with your children. You had too much fun and a few too many drinks one night, then couldn't get off the couch the entire next day. You felt so weak and tired that you had to call in sick with some made-up illness.
Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) is a serious, long-term illness that affects many body systems. People with ME/CFS are often not able to do their usual activities. At times, ME/CFS may confine them to bed. People with ME/CFS have severe fatigue and sleep problems.
One study suggests that the average lifespan of an ME/CFS patient is only 55.9 years, which is over 20 years less than the average U.S. lifespan. And the vast majority of patients—75 to 85 percent—are women.
The latest understanding however is that CFS is in fact a neurological condition which can in turn cause mental health conditions such as depression and anxiety to develop.
This is known as post-exertional malaise (PEM). People with ME/CFS often describe this experience as a “crash,” “relapse,” or “collapse.” During PEM, any ME/CFS symptoms may get worse or first appear, including difficulty thinking, problems sleeping, sore throat, headaches, feeling dizzy, or severe tiredness.
The primary signs and symptoms of depression include sad mood, social isolation and negative thoughts and although fatigue and poor concentration are symptoms, they are not the primary symptoms like they are in chronic fatigue disorder.
The definition of burnout is for example very similar to that of chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) with regard to fatigue and restraints on daily functioning. Burnout, however, can be distinguished from CFS by the attribution of fatigue to work instead of somatic factors (Hoogduin et al., 2001; Huibers et al., 2003).
Guidelines from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) say doctors should consider diagnosing ME/CFS if a patient has extreme tiredness that cannot be explained by other causes and the tiredness: started recently, has lasted a long time, or keeps coming back.
It is caused by a combination of factors that over time have weakened your body. Furthermore many people with chronic fatigue syndrome find that a very stressful event triggered their illness. Common triggers of chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) include: unprocessed emotional trauma e.g. divorce.
There is no cure or approved treatment for myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). However, some symptoms can be treated or managed. Treating these symptoms might provide relief for some patients with ME/CFS but not others.
For most people, ME/CFS is a lifelong disease. Full recovery (a return to pre-illness functioning) is rare and estimated at less than 10%. For some people with ME/CFS, as time passes and their disease improves, they will find they can do more, but it is a slow and gradual process.
Most people with ME/CFS describe their fatigue as overwhelming and a different type of tiredness from what they've experienced before. Exercising usually makes the symptoms worse. Sometimes the effect is delayed and you'll feel very tired a few hours after you've exercised, or even the next day.
Allow them to rest and sleep when they need to: As well as letting them be alone when needed, they also need downtime without feeling guilty. Still include them with social occasions: Go round to their house, offer lifts as public transport can itself be tiring and be flexible with arrangements.
Suggestions include: Drink plenty of water – sometimes you feel tired simply because you're mildly dehydrated. A glass of water will help do the trick, especially after exercise. Be careful with caffeine – anyone feeling tired should cut out caffeine.
Fatigue is a common complaint experienced by most of subjects during lifetime, which affects approximately 30–50% of general population as point prevalence. According to the fatigue-lasting duration, it is classified as acute (<1 month), prolonged (>1 month, <6 months), and chronic fatigue (≥6 months), respectively.
In summary, both burnout and CFS appear to be the result of long-term stress combined with a negative perception of the stress.
How is ME/CFS diagnosed? There is no single test to diagnose ME/CFS. Your doctor will ask you about your symptoms, and how long you have had them, and might do some tests to rule out other possible causes. You can only receive a diagnosis of ME/CFS after you have had symptoms for 6 months or more.