How I Beat Chronic Fatigue

In 2006 I was diagnosed with chronic fatigue. I could not really tell you why I ended up with this disease or how but I can tell you it was horrible. 

I saw many doctors and health care professionals and beyond multi-vitamins and other supplements I had very little help. So given I finally managed to cure the disease chronic fatigue I feel like it was my responsibility to share it with the world via this blog. 

In 2008 I had to leave my high paying job as a Director of a company and try to live my life as best I could, my family (wife and 2 children) effectively lost the primary money earner, a husband and a father. I only realised to what extent I was absent when I got better. I was missing in a haze of pain, guilt and fatigue for over 3 years.

I went through many doctors (7 actually) till I gave up and although I will not share with all the things I tried I will document all the things I tried in another blog post later. The information I was given by my doctors and traditional medical publications look like the following below. You can skip this if you like as it did not help me too much in the cure of my Chronic Fatigue but here it is. 

 GENERIC MEDICAL INFORMATION RELATING TO CHRONIC FATIGUE (skip if you like, my story continues below)Taken for an Australian Government Health Site Here

Symptoms

Fatigue can cause a vast range of other physical, mental and emotional symptoms including:

• Chronic tiredness or sleepiness
• Headache
• Dizziness
• Sore or aching muscles
• Muscle weakness
• Slowed reflexes and responses
• Impaired decision-making and judgement
• Moodiness, such as irritability
• Impaired hand-to-eye coordination
• Appetite loss
• Reduced immune system function
• Blurry vision
• Short-term memory problems
• Poor concentration
• Hallucinations
• Reduced ability to pay attention to the situation at hand
• Low motivation.

A range of causes
The wide range of causes that can trigger fatigue include:

• Medical causes – unrelenting exhaustion may be a sign of an underlying illness, such as a thyroid disorder, heart disease or diabetes.
• Lifestyle-related causes – feelings of fatigue often have an obvious cause, such as sleep deprivation, overwork or unhealthy habits.
• Emotional concerns and stress – fatigue is a common symptom of mental health problems, such as depression and grief, and may be accompanied by other signs and symptoms, including irritability and lack of motivation.

Fatigue can also be caused by a number of factors working in combination.
Medical causes
Many diseases and disorders can trigger fatigue, including:

• The flu
• Glandular fever
• Anaemia
• Sleep disorders, such as sleep apnoea or restless leg syndrome
• CFS/ME (formerly known as chronic fatigue syndrome or myalgic encephalopathy)
• Hypothyroidism
• Hepatitis
• Tuberculosis
• Chronic pain
• Coeliac disease
• Addison’s disease
• Parkinson’s disease
• Heart problems
• HIV
• Cancer
• Certain medications.

Lifestyle related causes
Common lifestyle choices that can cause fatigue include:

• Lack of sleep – typically adults need about eight hours of sleep each night. Some people try to get by on fewer hours of sleep.
• Too much sleep – adults sleeping more than 11 hours per day can lead to excessive daytime sleepiness.
• Alcohol and drugs – alcohol is a depressant drug that slows the nervous system and disturbs normal sleep patterns. Other drugs, such as cigarettes and caffeine, stimulate the nervous system and can cause insomnia.
• Sleep disturbances – disturbed sleep may occur for a number of reasons, for example, noisy neighbours, young children who wake in the night, a snoring partner, or an uncomfortable sleeping environment such as a stuffy bedroom.
• Lack of regular exercise and sedentary behaviour – physical activity is known to improve fitness, health and wellbeing, reduce stress, and boost energy levels. It also helps you sleep.
• Poor diet – low kilojoule diets, low carbohydrate diets or high energy foods that are nutritionally poor don’t provide the body with enough fuel or nutrients to function at its best. Quick fix foods, such as chocolate bars or caffeinated drinks, only offer a temporary energy boost that quickly wears off and worsens fatigue.
• Individual factors – personal illness or injury, illnesses or injuries in the family, too many commitments (for example, working two jobs) or financial problems can cause fatigue.

Workplace related causes
Common workplace issues that can cause fatigue include:

• Shift work – the human body is designed to sleep during the night. This pattern is set by a small part of the brain known as the circadian clock. A shift worker confuses their circadian clock by working when their body is programmed to be asleep.
• Poor workplace practices – can add to a person’s level of fatigue. These may include long work hours, hard physical labour, irregular working hours (such as rotating shifts), stressful work environment (such as excessive noise or temperature extremes), boredom, working alone with little or no interaction with others, or fixed concentration on a repetitive task.
• Workplace stress – can be caused by a wide range of factors including job dissatisfaction, heavy workload, conflicts with bosses or colleagues, bullying, constant change, or threats to job security.
• Burnout – can be described as striving too hard in one area of life while neglecting everything else. ‘Workaholics’, for example, put all their energies into their career, which puts their family life, social life and personal interests out of balance.
• Unemployment – financial pressures, feelings of failure or guilt, and the emotional exhaustion of prolonged job hunting can lead to stress, anxiety, depression and fatigue.

Psychological causes
Studies suggest that psychological factors are present in at least 50 per cent of fatigue cases. These may include:

• Depression – this illness is characterised by severe and prolonged feelings of sadness, dejection and hopelessness. People who are depressed commonly experience chronic tiredness.
• Anxiety and stress – a person who is chronically anxious or stressed keeps their body in overdrive. The constant flooding of adrenaline exhausts the body, and fatigue sets in.
• Grief – losing a loved one causes a wide range of emotions including shock, guilt, depression, despair and loneliness.

HOW TO BEAT THE SLUG (My own nick name for chronic fatigue).....

Ok so the information you are after .... I tried everything I could find and a huge amount of money from our savings to try and cure my Chronic Fatigue. After 39 separate treatment types (yes I documented it) I am finally living a full life again with all the energy and vitality I ever hoped for.

If I had to recommend to a friend, family member, or colleague how to beat chronic fatigue I would follow these following steps.

1. See the best nutritionist you can find. (Ask for a Blood type diet with recipes)

• I have lost 25 Kgs on the blood group diet and have no stomach issues any more.
• Ask for an allergy test just to be sure.
• Ask about local remedies to remove parasites, colon cleansing and herbal remedies (not chemical ones as they will throw your failing health around more than help, trust me I know having let doctors pump my body with chemicals and anti-biotic s). 
• Eat organic, fresh and seasonal food for the most healthy ingredients going into your body (Its about putting premium fuel into you engine)

2. Remove toxins, chemicals, heavy metals 

• Get your hands on ZeoLite InfoHere it is basically a mineral that filters your blood by trapping the bad stuff and safely removing
• Your nutritionist or health care store can help you their web site is here. 

3. MOST IMPORTANT Super Charge your Nutrition for optimum energy and cell repair.

• In 3 years I have tried more than 15 different brands of supplements with different success in each I have found the most amazing of all products. It comes in liquid form, is NOT heat treated like other supplements, and comes from completely natural organic sources. Due to all these factors and many more I suspect the result has been amazing. 
• Life Force Liquid Vitamins are available from their web site below.
• Life Force Liquid Nutrition
  

IN SUMMARY I DID THE FOLLOWING

1. Get a health care nutritional so you are not putting harmful food in your body

2. Get rid of harmful toxins, chemicals and free radicals

3. MOST IMPORTANT of all Three. Give your body all it needs to repair. Life Force Liquid

I hope that this information helps as I know how debilitating, frustrating and seemingly hard place Chronic Fatigue can be.

Take care and free free to contact me on this blog to get more information. 

John.