Living with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Even before we got married, my husband and I knew that something was wrong with him. He had gained about 40 pounds in two months; he was exhausted to the point of not functioning; he had almost constant ear aches and sore throats; he was tired, but couldn't sleep; and his joints and muscles ached like he had arthritis. And he was only 27 years old.

In fact, he had just embarked on a long journey of diagnostic possibles. Maybe he had rheumatoid arthritis; maybe he had Epstein-Barr disease; maybe it was diabetes; or dysfunctional thyroid; maybe a rare form of cancer, even. The whole process was draining, time-consuming, and expensive. And we never got an answer.

And all that time, he continued working. There were days he was so out of it I don't think he knew his own name, but he went to work, and actually did his job well. I had friends with fibromyalgia, and I started telling him that his symptoms sounded very much like theirs. Doctors, however, are very reluctant to consider a 27 year old male for fibromyalgia. That is usually a diagnosis of a middle-aged female.

My husband has Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. Or, as it is called now, Chronic Fatigue and Immune Dysfunction Syndrome, or CFIDS. The guesses of fibromyalgia and Epstein-Barr were close, as some doctors believe there is a common link to these illnesses. Some of the symptoms of CFIDS are:

• Headaches of a new type, pattern or severity
• impaired memory/concentration
• Muscle pain
• Pain in the joints, without swelling or redness
• post-exertional malaise and fatigue
• Sore throat
• Substantial impairment of short-term memory or concentration
• Tender armpit and/or neck lymph nodes
• Unrefreshing sleep
• Weakness and exhaustion, lasting more than 24 hours, following mental or physical activity
• Panic attacks
• Allergies
• Depression
• insomnia