hey everyone-
long story short- i've had cfs many many years-
it was a gradual onset- getting worse each year- mild cfs- turned to moderate
then was very sick for a few years (sleeping/or lying in bed sick 15- 18 hrs a day), moderate/severe cfs
then in the last few years i have improved A LOT- back to mild cfs
because i was doing much better I thought i could handle more "activity" in my life. so the past few weeks i have been doing more things- some socializing (lunch with girlfriends,etc), taking a dance class once a week, getting out and about the town a bit -- things like that that are fun and enjoyable and should not make me sicker. well, i hate to report that it is affecting me, and i am feeling worse and worse. symptoms that were "under control" are returning- poor sleep, sore throat, that gross exhausted feeling (like a battery that is almost dead), body achey (not fibro ache- more of a cfs tired ache), the blisters on my fingers that mean my immune system is not working right, that overstimulation feeling where you cant stand noise like the tv and you need to be in a quiet dark room, etc.
this is classic PEM (post exertional malaise). and it sucks, as we all know. what a cruel illness that punishes you for just doing normal activities. i thought i was healthy enough for part time work, now i am reconsidering that.
just had to post this and vent a bit.
bigmama2
long story short- i've had cfs many many years-
it was a gradual onset- getting worse each year- mild cfs- turned to moderate
then was very sick for a few years (sleeping/or lying in bed sick 15- 18 hrs a day), moderate/severe cfs
then in the last few years i have improved A LOT- back to mild cfs
because i was doing much better I thought i could handle more "activity" in my life. so the past few weeks i have been doing more things- some socializing (lunch with girlfriends,etc), taking a dance class once a week, getting out and about the town a bit -- things like that that are fun and enjoyable and should not make me sicker. well, i hate to report that it is affecting me, and i am feeling worse and worse. symptoms that were "under control" are returning- poor sleep, sore throat, that gross exhausted feeling (like a battery that is almost dead), body achey (not fibro ache- more of a cfs tired ache), the blisters on my fingers that mean my immune system is not working right, that overstimulation feeling where you cant stand noise like the tv and you need to be in a quiet dark room, etc.
this is classic PEM (post exertional malaise). and it sucks, as we all know. what a cruel illness that punishes you for just doing normal activities. i thought i was healthy enough for part time work, now i am reconsidering that.
just had to post this and vent a bit.
bigmama2