Change is Good for CFS

In order to effectively deal with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, one needs to be able to embrace change. When first handed with the diagnosis, a doctor will often tell you that you must make lifestyle changes. This is when the 50% rule is given. You will probably have to learn to eat better, and find a type of exercise that will work for you. For the first little while, your life is all about change. It is not easy. But you do learn to cope.

Just because you make the initial changes, doesn’t mean the work stops there. Sometimes the medication you are prescribed isn’t as effective – or it causes more problems, you develop food allergies, you react badly to stress, and the list goes on and on. What do you do about it? You change.

If the meds that you have been prescribed are causing you more problems, you report this to your doctor – and you develop a plan to get off them safely. There may come a time when you want to discuss alternative therapies – make sure you have this discussion with your doctor. Just because some doctors of western medicine don’t practice alternative therapies, does not mean that they aren’t against them. They can give you great insight on what may and may not work for you.

If you begin to have reactions to certain food items, try to keep a food diary. Write down everything you eat and drink – and the time its consumed ~ and then write down how you feel. Look for patterns. Some reactions happen immediately, some take a few days to appear. When you figure out what’s causing the problems, eliminate it from your diet altogether. After a few months (or more) try to introduce it back into your diet, slowly.

Have problems with stress? Everybody does. However, not everyone feels like they just ran a marathon after a particularly stressful day. What helps? Fresh air always helps. So go for a short walk to the corner of your street. If you can’t do that, wrap yourself in a blanket, and go sit on your patio. When I am stressed, and a walk didn’t actually help a whole lot, I try to do a small amount of cooking. No one will ever be blown away by my culinary skills. However, I can poach an egg, and I do know how to use a toaster. A small meal will sometimes give me enough energy to cope with whatever stress is going on in my life.

When these coping mechanisms stop working, then you make more changes. Start meditating. Find a new distraction. Anything at all! The point is, when you start letting your illness speak for you…you are done. Fighting is the only thing you have. Relying on medication to make you better – isn’t going to help you reach your goal. It is a tool…and it will only get you so far. Idly waiting for something to happen will not work. Change is what is going to get you well.

Good luck.