Mental Health Support And Me/cfs
ME/CFS is not a psychological disorder. However, living with a chronic illness is challenging, especially one that involves missing out on normal life activities, and this may lead to mental health problems like anxiety or depression.
Speaking with a qualified mental health professional who understands the challenges of living with ME/CFS can be very helpful. They can help with things such as coping with changes to schooling, employment or social activities, and symptoms such as difficulty with sleep or pain. With the availability of Medicare rebates for telehealth, many mental health practitioners now offer remote consultations which makes healthcare more accessible for those who are housebound or bedbound with ME/CFS.
How Can Parents Help
To help your child cope with the emotional symptoms of chronic fatigue syndrome:
- Encourage your child to keep a daily diary to identify times when they have the most energy and help plan activities for these times.
- Help your child to recognize and express feelings, such as sadness, anger, and frustration. It’s OK to grieve the loss of energy.
- Get support from family and friends because emotional health is important when coping with a chronic health problem.
- Allow more time for your child to do things, or break down activities into smaller steps, especially activities that take concentration or physical effort.
- Work with your childs teachers and school administrators to adjust their workload so that it fits within the limits of what your child can tolerate.
What Does A Cfs Crash Feel Like
Some people with CFS/ME “crash” experience a period of immobilizing physical and/or mental fatigue. This often happens when a person is “overloaded” physically, mentally or emotionally. Some people with CFS have virus-like symptoms. They feel “unwell” and feverish, have a sore throat and swollen lymph glands.
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Seeking Support For Grief And Loss
The pain of grief can often cause you to want to withdraw from others and retreat into your shell. But having the face-to-face support of other people is vital to healing from loss. Even if youâre not comfortable talking about your feelings under normal circumstances, itâs important to express them when youâre grieving.
While sharing your loss can make the burden of grief easier to carry, that doesnât mean that every time you interact with friends and family, you need to talk about your loss. Comfort can also come from just being around others who care about you. The key is not to isolate yourself.
Turn to friends and family members. Now is the time to lean on the people who care about you, even if you take pride in being strong and self-sufficient. Rather than avoiding them, draw friends and loved ones close, spend time together face to face, and accept the assistance thatâs offered. Often, people want to help but donât know how, so tell them what you needwhether itâs a shoulder to cry on, a listening ear, or just someone to hang out with. If you donât feel you have anyone you can regularly connect with in person, itâs never too late to build new friendships.
Long Covid/ Long Haulers
Following the outbreak of COVID-19 in late 2019 in Wuhan Province, China, and its rapid spread into other parts of the world, researchers, scientists, and patients familiar with post-viral syndromes began to become concerned not only about the acute danger of this particular virus but the potential long-term sequelae. Following SARS-1, West Nile Virus, H1N1 influenza virus, and other reports claim, that up to 11% of patients who had severe infections from Epstein-Barr virus , Q fever , or Ross River virus , and others, develop ME/CFS. Other studies following SARS and MERS suggest an even higher proportion develop ME/CFS or Fibromyalgia.”
Given that some estimates suggest as much as 75% of all ME/CFS patients developed their illness following a post-viral or post-bacterial illness, there has been considerable frustration in the ME/CFS community-researchers and patients alike-that had ME/CFS patients been taken more seriously all along, then research into what causes this debilitating outcome in some patients and not in others would have been identified and potentially remedied by now.
Additionally, there is great frustration in the ME/CFS community as they watch these new cases as they are now being officially diagnosed as they pass the six-month mark required for official ME/CFS diagnosis.
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How To Help Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Rest and sleep in chronic fatigue syndromeRest periods in the daily routine are part of management strategies for all people with chronic fatigue syndrome. Relaxation techniques at the beginning of each rest period can be helpful. Try to balance the need for rest during the day against how you are sleeping at night. Introduce changes to your sleep pattern gradually.
Physical functioning and mobility problems in chronic fatigue syndromeStrategies to help maintain and prevent deterioration of your physical function and mobility need to be carried out in small amounts and spread out throughout the day. Strategies should include joint mobility, muscle flexibility, balance, postural and positional support, muscle function, bone health and cardiovascular health.
Care and support plans in relation to physical functioning and mobility may include bed mobility, moving from lying to sitting to standing, transferring from bed to chair, using mobility aids, walking, joint mobility, muscle stretching, muscle strength, balance, and going up and down stairs.
People with CFS may experience intolerance of changing position, such as when first standing up. This may include postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome . You may need to be refered to a specialist if your symptoms are severe or worsening, or there are concerns that another condition may be the cause.
- Losing weight and at risk of malnutrition.
- Gaining weight.
- Following a restrictive diet.
Diagnosis And Treatment For Me/cfs
Currently, there is no single test to diagnose ME/CFS. Doctors make a diagnosis by excluding all other illnesses that might be causing symptoms and following accepted diagnostic criteria. The persons results from routine medical tests will often be normal, but additional tests may show abnormalities.
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How Long Does It Take For Post
h Disabilities Act . Learn more: Guidance on Long COVID as a Disability Under the ADA, Section About Long COVID or Post-COVID Conditions Post-COVID conditions are a wide range of new, returning, or ongoing health problems that people experience after first being infected with the virus that causes COVID-19. Most people with COVID-19 get better within a few days to a few weeks after infection, so at least four weeks after infection is the start of when post-COVID conditions could first be identified. Anyone who was infected can experience post-COVID conditions. Most people with post-COVID conditions experienced symptoms days after their SARS CoV-2 infection when they knew they had COVID-19, but some people with post-COVID conditions did not notice when they first had an infection. There is no test to diagnose post-COVID conditions, and people may have a wide variety of sympt
What Is The Outlook
The long-term outlook for chronic fatigue syndrome varies from person to person. Although some people recover or have a long period of remission, many will need to adapt to living with /CFS. The outlook is better in children and young people than in adults.
Chronic fatigue syndrome affects everyone differently and its impact varies widely. For some people symptoms still allow them to carry out some activities, whereas for others they cause severe impacts on different aspects of the lives of people with CFS and their families and carers, including activities of daily living, family life, social life, emotional well-being, work and education.
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Physical Symptoms Of Grief
Grief is a natural reaction to the death of someone important to you. Itâs common for grief to cause physical symptoms. But you may find it frightening if you do not know why youâre having these symptoms. And you might be worried that you have an undiagnosed health problem, or that grief is making you ill.
Tina, Dan, Tasneem and Ella share their experiences of grief. They talk about feelings of shock, anger, anxiety and loneliness. You might find that there are some things you can relate to. But you might find that your experience is different and thats OK too.
Are Symptoms Of Long
This condition has no known cause but may look like long-haul COVID-19 symptoms. Chronic fatigue syndrome can cause intense lightheadedness, fatigue, brain fog, or something called post-exertional malaise . PEM can happen after your child does more physical or mental activity than they’re used to.
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What Causes Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
There is no one identifiable cause for CFS. Medical professionals theorise that CFS can be triggered by things such as an infection, major trauma or a very stressful life event that can make people more prone to developing this health condition. Some suggested causes for CFS include pneumonia, glandular fever, a weakened immune system, a genetic predisposition, and a hormone imbalance.
When Should You Call Your Doctor
It’s important to talk to your doctor about any symptoms you may have.
- Severe fatigue that lasts longer than 2 weeks, causes you to limit your usual activities, and does not improve with rest.
- Sleep problems that last for more than 1 to 2 months. These problems may include being unable to fall asleep or stay asleep, tossing and turning, and waking up feeling tired or not rested.
- Swelling in the glands in your neck or armpits that lasts for at least 2 weeks.
- Severe fatigue along with frequent urination , extreme thirst, weight loss, or blurred vision. Fatigue that occurs with some or all of these may be a symptom of undiagnosed diabetes.
- Severe headache that does not improve with home treatments.
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Housebound Or Bedbound With Me/cfs
About 25% of people with ME/CFS are housebound or bedbound. Those who are housebound may be able to undertake minimal daily tasks for themselves, such as brushing teeth, cooking or using a computer for short periods of time, but they have to pace their activity and often use aids to help them . They are unable to leave the house, often because this requires more energy than they have available. When they do leave the house, they often need mobility aids such as a wheelchair or mobility scooter, or other assistance . Recovery from a trip out of the house can take days, or longer.
Some people are so severely unwell that they are bedbound some or all of the time. The most severely unwell may be unable to undertake even simple tasks, like eating or going to the toilet by themselves. They may require additional medical devices, such as feeding tubes, to help them get enough nutrition and fluids, and can be totally dependent on carers.
Other Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Symptoms
Other symptoms that may be associated with CFS/ME include:
- Dizziness, palpitations, fainting, nausea on standing or sitting upright from a lying position.
- Increased sensitivity to temperature, causing increased sweating, chills, hot flushes or feeling very cold.
- Twitching and other abnormal uncontrolled body movements.
- Flu-like symptoms, including sore throat, tender glands, nausea, chills or muscle aches.
- Intolerance to alcohol, or to certain foods or chemicals.
- Increased sensitivities, including to light, sound, touch, taste and smell.
- Pain, including pain on touch, muscle pain, headaches, eye pain, tummy pain, or joint pain.
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When Loss Hurts: 6 Physical Effects Of Grief
If you have ever lost a loved one, you have most likely experienced grief. Grief is an intense feeling of sadness or sorrow. It is generally brought on by the loss of something or someone. The end of a long-term relationship, like a divorce, or the death of a family member may cause grief.
Grief is not always thought of as a full-body experience. But just as grief can affect mental health, it can also have physical aspects. Physical symptoms may not come with every kind of grief. But intense grieffor example, that caused by the death of a child or partnercan bring about side effects that may feel more physical than anything else.
Grief can trigger a number of mental health symptoms and issues. These might include depression, loneliness, and anxiety. The line between the grief period and a mental health issue may be hard to define. It can help to consult a trusted therapist or counselor if you are having trouble with grief or similar feelings.
Knowing which symptoms of grief to watch for may allow you to soothe and address any effects you experience.
Home Remedies And Lifestyle Changes
Making some lifestyle changes may help reduce your symptoms.
Limiting or eliminating your caffeine intake can help you sleep better and ease your insomnia. You should limit or avoid nicotine and alcohol too.
Try to avoid napping during the day if its hurting your ability to sleep at night.
Create a sleep routine. Go to bed at the same time every night and aim to wake up around the same time every day.
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I Didnt Go Through The Stages Of Grief How Will This Affect Me
Avoiding, ignoring, or denying yourself the ability to express your grief may help you dissociate from the pain of the loss youre going through. But holding it in wont make it disappear. And you cant avoid grief forever.
Over time, unresolved grief can turn into physical or emotional manifestations that affect your health.
In order to heal from a loss and move on, you have to address it. If youre having trouble processing grief, consider seeking out counseling to help you through it.
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What Questions Should I Ask My Doctor
- Take along a list of all the symptoms you are experiencing in case you forget some of them during your talk with the doctor or nurse.
- Talk about how much you can do at work or school and around the house.
- Ask if there are any financial supports or services you could apply for.
- Ask for help with pain, sleep and remaining active if these are problems for you.
- Ask about what you should be eating.
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Do Doctors Believe In Fibromyalgia
But yet your family, friends, and even your doctor may not appreciate the level of your concerns. Some people may also not think fibromyalgia is a real condition and might believe symptoms are imagined. There are many doctors that recognize fibromyalgia, although it cant be recognized by diagnostic testing.
What Is The Latest Research On Me/cfs
Today, we have a better understanding of ME/CFS, but researchers are still searching for the cause. ME/CFS is sometimes seen in members of the same family, perhaps because of a genetic link. Researchers are also testing a variety of treatments for ME/CFS, including anti-viral medications and medications that affect the immune system.
Researchers also are looking at ways to help health care providers identify and diagnose ME/CFS more quickly. HHS currently supports a study led by the Institute of Medicine to recommend improved and updated criteria to help physicians make a diagnosis of ME/CFS. The IOM’s recommendations may also guide future research.
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Get Specialist Care When You Need It
Visit your doctor every few months to help track your symptoms and check for any need to change your treatment.
Get specialized care if you need it. For example:
- A rehabilitation specialist can help you treat pain and improve your ability to do your daily tasks.
- A pain management specialist can offer a number of pain treatments.
- There are some specialists who work with experimental treatments such as antiviral medicines.
How Is Me/cfs Diagnosed
There’s no single test to detect ME/CFS. A diagnosis is made after other possible known causes for symptoms have been excluded.
The earlier the illness is recognised, the sooner you can get help to manage your symptoms. Many people with ME/CFS find it helps to keep a diary of their symptoms so that they can take this to their GP or specialist.
Your GP will usually:
- do a physical and mental examination to rule out other conditions
- ask about recent travel, tick or insect bites, unusual infections, and drug and alcohol use
- review current medication
They may be able to make a diagnosis after 3 or 4 months of seeing a pattern of symptoms. Anyone suspected of having ME/CFS should be considered for routine blood tests to identify other possible illnesses. More investigation may be needed if the diagnosis remains in doubt.
Some people with ME/CFS also have another long-term condition and it’s important that you talk to your GP about how to manage the symptoms of the 2 conditions.
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Do You Feel Fried In Grief
Posted August 6, 2011
Grieving and Burned Out
Last night my friend and I went to hear Joan Borysenko talk about her new book, Fried: Why You Burn Out and How to Revive . It was definitely worth the time out of my âvery busy scheduleâ to hear this lovely woman expound on what I thought I already knew about caring people who try to cram 25 hours into a 24-hour day.
Having spent the better part of my adult life working for mission-driven organizations , I know how parasitic âdoing goodâ can become. Too many worthy causes literally suck the life out of leaders and followers alikethe result being not nearly so much good as one might have hoped. What I hadnât realized is just how many chronic health problems stem from the systemic inflammation of what I call âhigh-octane stress.â Borysenkoâs presentation was a real eye-opener.
Get It Done Now
Perpetually working 80-hour weeks, stressing about never getting to the end of our âTo-Doâ lists, always being too busy to exercise or eat healthy foodsthese are all familiar manifestations of burn-out. And itâs not like we donât know when weâre flirting with the edge, when weâre âdoing good badlyâas Borysenko quotes Thomas Moore.
Worn Out from Doing
What Hot Water?
