Share

I was a very busy yet happy 19 year old student when I first became sick in 2006. I started to get a number of sinus and thrush infections.

I was tired all the time and didn’t have any energy like I used to. This didn’t get better with rest or sleep, at the worst times I would be in bed for 14 hours overnight, and still wake up tired and with extreme difficulty to get out of bed. I also had joint pain, aches and sharp stabbing pain, this seemed to be worse with storms or changes in weather (I felt like I maybe had arthritis). My glands were painful and large particularly in my neck. This would be worse in the morning and evening.

I had concentration difficulties/ poor short term memory eg with names and this was unusual for me. I found that it was very difficult to study and I became just as tired from mental tasks as physical ones.

I became short of breath in the shower, often I would have to sit down for 1/2 hour afterwards before having the energy to get dressed; sometimes I also sat down in the shower and was too tired to get up again for a long time. Sometimes the mental effort was exhausting to convince myself to stand up again. Any activity such as walking 200metres to the mailbox would make me tired and sick for the next 3 days.

In the summer of 2006-2007 I spent most of my days in bed, getting out for main meals but tired enough to need to rest my head on my hand to stay seated upright. The effort of even an activity such as eating meant I needed to have a rest and might be short of breath. I was recommended to try tai chi for exercise but could usually only do one of the movements before needing to rest, short of breath and exhausted. Alcohol made the symptoms worse and I also became very easily affected by alcohol and the symptoms (as mentioned already) were worsened.

I was often so tired I couldn’t roll over in bed even when I was uncomfortable from being in the same position.

The worst symptoms lasted for at least a year, but it is difficult to know because I continued at university, quit my part-time work when I first became sick, and reduced my social activities. I managed to pass my subjects, but my grades were lower and I would usually be in bed during the day any time not spent at uni or doing necessary jobs such as washing clothes, groceries.

After many trips to doctors & specialists I was diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome. I was tired all the time with a range of other symptoms that made me feel generally unwell. Any small amount of activity would increase the symptoms & it would send me back to bed to recover. I was told there was nothing that I could do to improve my health.

Gradually my symptoms grew less and less over a period of about 5 years until I was back to almost normal health. However without warning or seeming cause the symptoms would often come back & I would be tired again.

I had a few days in 2013 when I had a return of symptoms for no apparent reason, then back to regular health. In 2014 there was an increase in symptoms again (though not to as bad as it was in 2006-2007).

In early 2014 I received some advice that helped me look at my activity levels, diet, sleep routine, & my autonomic nervous system to find out the cause.

With guidance and further assessment using a heart rate variability biofeedback assessment I found the symptoms were linked to my body’s ability to manage stress. By improving my diet, improving the amount & quality of my sleep, & using mindfulness techniques to manage my stress, I have been able to reduce my fatigue & other symptoms & keep them away!

In mid 2014 I completed a 10k run.

I now work as a health practitioner and am completing my Master’s course at university in 2015.