Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Chronic fatigue syndrome treatment is not only difficult but unsatisfactory. This puzzling disorder complicated by moderate to severe fatigue affects thousands of individuals and no one really knows why. Although many theories have been put forward, the exact cause remains murky. For many years chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) was not taken as a serious medical disorder but today it is an accepted as a bona fide illness which affects millions of individuals all over the world.
Features of chronic fatigue syndrome symptoms include:
Fatigue
Loss of concentration
Sore throat
Unexplained chest and muscle pain
Mildly enlarged lymph nodes in the neck, groin or armpit
Pain that moves from one joint to another without any fever, swelling or redness
Headache with an altered pattern and unpredictable
Poor sleep or feeling exhausted despite a good night’s sleep
Extreme fatigue lasting 1-2 days following any type of physical or mental exercise
Other chronic fatigue syndrome symptoms include cough, bloating, dry mouth jaw pain, dizziness, night sweats, diarrhea, tingling sensations, weight loss or gain or blurred vision.
The exact cause if CFS is a mystery but some experts indicate that it may be associated with depression, iron deficiency anemia, history of allergies, low sugar, autoimmune, dysfunctional immune system, low blood pressure or changes in the brain. Some people believe that fibromyalgia chronic fatigue causes may be related to a virus but so far no direct link has been shown. Fibromyalgia chronic fatigue causes symptoms more frequently in women than men but this may simply be due to the fact that more women report their symptoms to the doctor. When the condition progresses, it often leads to depression, social isolation, lifestyle limitations and absenteeism from work.
There is no blood or x ray to make a diagnosis of CFS. Certain criteria have been developed and in general persistent fatigue for 6 months with at least 4/8 other associated symptoms may indicate that CFS is present. However, physicians generally do some blood work to rule out other disorders like hypothyroidism, substance abuse, eating disorders or anemia.
There is no special treatment of CFS. Moreover, no two people respond in the same way to identical treatments. The major emphasis of treatment includes the following:
Avoid emotional and physical stress
Enter an exercise program
Cognitive behavior therapy to help overcome fatigue and getting rid of negative beliefs
Treatment of depression is undertaken with anti depressants.
If there is pain, this may be treated with NSAIDs or stronger pain pills
Develop improve sleep patterns
Treating allergies and low blood pressure
Other miscellaneous or experimental chronic fatigue cures include use of psycho stimulant drugs like Ritalin, corticosteroids, injections of immunoglobulin’s, acyclovir and choline esterase inhibitors. None of these chronic fatigue cures have been shown to have any effect on CFS. On cyberspace there are hundreds of therapies for CFS but none have ever been proven to work. Among the alternative care treatments, D ribose and acupuncture have been touted to be the two best treatments. Other complimentary treatments include medidation, massage, yoga, tai chi and so on. When it comes to these natural therapies, remember the adage, natural does not always mean safe.
The best way to deal with CFS is to learn how to manage fatigue and improve the quality of life. Chronic fatigue syndrome treatment which includes reduction of stress and exercising regularly appear to show the best results.