"Rising from the Ashes"
Central Lancashire ME/CFS
Support Group
last updated:
August 21st, 2008
M.E. (Myalgic Encephalomyelitis)
C.F.S. (Chronic Fatigue Syndrome)
A guide to symptoms, causes and treatments.
What is M.E./C.F.S.?
M.E. is a chronic illness that affects many body systems and their functions. The changes seem particularly to affect the nervous system and immune system, but they also affect other body systems. The illness can cause profound exhaustion, muscle pain, problems with mental function, such as memory loss and poor concentration, malaise and other systems.
Many people know the condition as M.E. but the formal term used currently by the medical profession is Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS).
Who does it affect?
M.E. can affect men, women and children of all ages and backgrounds. It is estimated that there are over 250,000 people in the UK with M.E.: nearly two thirds of them are women. A recent study in the USA showed that about 1 in 250 people in the community have symptoms of CFS. Most people develop the illness between their early twenties and mid-forties. However M.E. does affect children and young people, generally those between the ages of 13 to 15 but sometimes children as young as five.
What are the symptoms?
The central feature of M.E. is the way in which symptoms behave. Fatigue, malaise, muscle pain and other symptoms are characteristically provoked by increased activity of any type, usually with a delayed impact.
SYMPTOMS.
1. Persistent fatigue
2. Post-exertional malaise
3. Pain
Painful or aching muscles (with or without muscle twitching)
Painful or aching joints
Nerve pains/pins and needles
Headaches/migraine
4. Cognitive (activities relating to thinking) impairment
Reduced attention span
Short-term memory problems
Word-finding difficulties
Inability to plan or organize thoughts
Spatial disorientation
Loss of powers of concentration
5. Sleep disturbances
6. Other nervous system
symptoms
A feeling of poor temperature control
Dizziness on standing up
Dizziness (vertigo), balance difficulty
Increase sensitivity to light and sound
7. Recurrent sore throat (with or without swollen lymph nodes)
8. Digestive disturbances
These symptoms can be exacerbated by certain foods e.g. wheat and dairy
products and high cereal fibre foods.
9. Intolerance's and increased sensitivity
Particular features in children:
Children commonly experience pain, tummy ache and headaches and are more likely to experience loss of appetite or weight gain, abdominal pain and nausea. Although these symptoms can be very unpleasant, children stand a very good chance of complete recovery.
What causes M.E.?
The cause of M.E. is not yet fully understood. Abnormalities have been found in the immune system and nervous system, including the functioning of the hypothalamus (a part of the brain that regulates basic functions like appetite, sleep and temperature control). More research is needed to understand the exact role of disruptions in these and other systems.
What treatments exist?
There is no treatment that
can cure M.E. The limited understanding of the mechanisms underlying the
illness adds to the problems of finding more effective and focused treatments.
Energy or activity management
Managing energy is about finding the right balance between activity and rest.
How can being a member help?
Scores of people have decided to join South Lancashire M.E./C.F.S. Support Group because membership gives them:
'Sometimes the only thing that keeps me going is to know that you're
there and dealing with other people going through the same thing'
Jennifer, Preston District.