Chronic fatigue may be alleviated by good mental health

Main Category: Mental Health
Article Date: 04 Jan 2004 - 0:00 PDT

email to a friend   printer friendly   opinions  

You may fare better with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) if you enjoy good mental health and refrain from taking sedatives. If you do not blame your symptoms on some virus or illness you also tend to improve faster (than those who do).

In order to have CFS you will have felt chronically tired for the last six months at least, you will also have headaches, sleep problems, muscle pain and you will have difficulty concentrating. Your lymph nodes may be swollen and you could have a low grade fever.

Not only is there no known cause for CFS, but there is no lab test that can diagnose the illness.

Most patients do eventually improve over time. However, most patients never really fully recover (The Journal of Psychosomatic Medicine).

Researchers tracked (monitored) 100 CFS patients over a year-and-a-half. They noted each patient's characteristics and who improved over time.

Lead researcher Dr. Karen B. Schmaling (University of Texas in El Paso) and the team found that after 18 months only one fifth (of the one hundred people) no longer had CFS.

Those who believed their condition was due to a non-physical or emotional problem (such as stress) improved better and more quickly than those who thought their condition was due to a physical illness.

Those who fared worse were the unemployed, the elderly and those who were depressed.

Taking sedatives (e.g. benzodiazepines) and muscle relaxants - something CFS patients may do to alleviate the pain from headaches, sore throat and tender lymph nodes - was also associated with a worse outcome.

Dr. Schmaling said that those who had good mental health through chronic fatigue might be showing signs of adapting to their illness (this ultimately helps them to recover).

Those with CFS who became unable to do things they loved doing and adapted to this were more likely to avoid depression (by pursuing or seeking out other activities).

• Additional
• References
• Citations