Reality Check

A number of people when hearing about my health problems have said things like, "hope it hasn't stopped you getting out/climbing/walking/etc" because they know how much a part of my life that is/was.

However this I think shows that many people do not know what the reality of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome is. You can read a leaflet about it here, however I thought I'd share with you what it is like for me...

I have a lot of pain in my joints and muscles- spending too long at the keyboard or simply holding my electric shaver is enough to give me pain/discomfort in my arm for several hours. I can't walk for more than a few hundred meters without getting tired. My legs then either get heavy and don't want to move or my muscles scream in pain. If I overdo it I can feel this for days. My sleep is disturbed- I go through phases of being unable to sleep at night for days. I get dizzy spells or feel disorientated (it can feel as if I'm drunk for hours). I get dizzy when I stand up. I get really painful headaches. My neck muscles twitch when I lie down. I keep having a sore throat. I get pins and needles in my fingers and toes- my hands and feet get very cold. I can find it difficult to concentrate and think clearly. My stomach gets bloated and I suffer from wind, my legs and arms are losing muscle because I can't exercise like I want to. I get depressed easily and very nervous and worried about things. And that's before we get to the matter of not being able to work since April (admittedly at first they thought it was a virus and they kept telling me it would get better and that I could work again soon... not anymore- my week in Denmark looks like it set me back months- if I know it was CFS I wouldn't have done what I did) and the fact that as of yet I haven't managed to get a penny of sick pay from my 'employers'.

So no, I haven't been climbing for a while (I went bouldering in Feb/April... nothing since), I haven't being going out for a while either.

Please I'm not trying to complain about how bad I have it, I'm trying to get through this. I have been so lucky with the support I receive from those closest to me- I really do understand how hard its been to have to live with me living with this... I just want to put this out there so that people understand what Chronic Fatigue Syndrome is... after all its only been a few years since the medical world took it seriously.