My Journey With Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

I was officially diagnosed with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) at the end of 2022 and it brought my life to a grinding halt. I call it an official diagnosis because I suffered with symptoms for years before I actually got diagnosed. The symptoms started in 2019 when my immunity seemed to take a hit every month, and when I fell ill with Covid-19 in 2020 my health never recovered. When I look back, I had moderate post-viral fatigue which ultimately became a more severe case of CFS.

My life before CFS is one that seems to be very common amongst patients. I was your typical Type-A, perfectionist individual and went from being an Entrepreneur who was training for my second marathon to being bed ridden and needing help to carry out basic hygiene. It was humbling to say the least.

However, as we are conditioned to have a “suck it up and get on with it attitude” we often ignore signs our bodies are sending us. We aim to cultivate relationships with everyone around us but never the one we have with ourselves. We fill our heads with so much information, goals, tasks to-do lists and take our bodies for granted that we really don’t know when it is sending us signals of distress. In a society where burnout is celebrated, putting yourself first is frowned upon and tiredness is worn as a badge of honour, it can be hard to know when you need to slow down. 

My physical health was the first to decline in 2020 and shortly after my mental health. I now cannot count the number of times I complained to my GP, saw specialists and had countless blood tests. It slowly became a dance that I took part in for 3 years. I was told countless times it's because of my low vitamin D, B12 or perhaps my diet. I then got diagnosed with the last remaining factor when a seemingly healthy person, who is complaining a lot medically has nothing wrong with them- yes you guessed it - depression. And so began the start of a very slippery slope.

Although this was the first time that I knew I had to take charge of my own recovery it never made me slow down. I was slowly spinning out of control and fatigue was starting to settle in a way I hadn’t experienced before, but I continued to suppress it and pile on the pressure. I experienced a few good weeks and a few bad ones, and this became my reality for years. There is a great quote which says “if you listen to your body when it whispers, then you won’t have to hear it scream.” Needless to say it started to scream.

I then crashed. The CFS got to a stage where I couldn't function anymore. I couldn't get out of bed without help and brushing my teeth felt like i was lifting 50kg weights. I truly did not understand what had happened and was lost, overwhelmed and confused.

Getting a diagnosis was difficult and truth be told I also didn’t get one until I suggested it myself. After 3 years of a downward curve, multiple tests to rule out other conditions and a final blow, I finally understood what had been plaguing me for so long. But that is when it got really complicated. I basically got given the diagnosis and was sent on my merry way. Although I was lucky enough to meet very helpful GPs and specialists, they acknowledged that medically there is nothing that can be done.

And so began my journey with CFS. When my life stopped I felt like I had failed, but my path to recovery has been truly transformative. However, it took compassion, awareness and copious amounts of patience and resilience. I still have days where I need to slow down, but I have become so much better at listening to the signals my body is sending me. We live in a quick fix society and often take our bodies for granted. Recovering and healing from a chronic illness forces you to go a lot deeper and analyse your life through a microscope. The principles for recovery apply to everyone and not just those who suffer from chronic conditions, and I look forward to sharing them more on this blog.

Thank you for reading.