Why People Get Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

A woman with chronic fatigue syndrome symptoms often has a hard time explaining to her friends exactly how she feels. She might be getting eight hours of sleep a night, but feels like she could sleep eight more in order to feel well-rested. She doesn't just feel tired like she's had a long day; it's a different sort of tired, she says. Concentrating or remembering things is very difficult. After exercising, she may feel so exhausted that she can't get out of bed the next day. Her muscles and joints ache as though she has fibromyalgia. She always has headaches or a sore throat, as if she's coming down with a cold. There are many health questions yet to be answered about this tiredness syndrome, but the Centers for Disease Control says it's a very real disorder.

The most common of the CFS symptoms is naturally fatigue itself. Sure, everyone feels tired from working too much or from physically exerting themselves, so what makes chronic fatigue different from normal wear and tear? Sufferers of this tiredness syndrome say that they have a hard time participating in activities at home, work or school. After sleeping eight to ten hours, the patient feels like sleeping another eight hours to feel refreshed. No matter how much sleep or rest is taken, there is always that "run-down" feeling similar to how one feels when overcoming an illness. This constant feeling of exhaustion persists for at least six months.

Another one of the common chronic fatigue syndrome symptoms is cognitive impairment. No matter how much sleep a person gets, he or she always feels "mentally foggy." Patients report difficulty with their short-term memories (but not their long term memories) and report difficulty concentrating. Often individuals have difficulty finding or saying a particular word during normal speech (dysnomia/verbal dyslexia). They may feel constantly confused and irritated. Headaches plague sufferers of this tiredness syndrome, but they differ in their pattern and severity than past headaches. Many people with CFS feel depressed due to their inability to perform at work or at home.

Diagnosing chronic fatigue syndrome symptoms involves ruling out all other diseases and conditions that cause fatigue, such as a stressful lifestyle, cancer, adrenal disorder, thyroid disorders, HIV, AIDS, drug dependence, immune disorders, infections, muscle/nerve disorders (multiple sclerosis), endocrine diseases (hypothyroidism), disease of the heart/kidney/liver, psychiatric illness, depression and tumors. The diagnosis is primarily based upon symptoms, but the doctor may also conduct a brain MRI and blood tests to check white blood cell count or type.

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