For
20 years, I lived with a great mystery in my life. I was diagnosed with
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS/ME) and nobody could tell me why I had it
or why it made me feel the way it did.
It was back in 1996, when
my life completely changed. I was a busy, energetic woman who liked to
keep on the go. I was rather casual about how I ate, what personal care
lotions and potions I applied to my skin and hair, and after four years
as a student in the USA, my general way of living was less than ideal.
It was during the winter that I was hit with a bad case of flu. While
others around me recovered, the constant fatigue and weakness that comes
hand in hand with the virus, never completely left me. When it came to
physical or mental exertion, I had no stamina and would have to take to
my bed nearly every day to get through to the evening.
The
symptoms were not only restricted to extreme fatigue. My eyesight would
judder, like a TV programme with a poor signal, I would feel dizzy and
have to sit down or I'd fall down, my heart would beat at 90 miles an
hour just from the strain of waking up in the morning, and it felt like
the signal that went from my brain to move my legs, was just not
transmitting correctly. If I came in contact with any chemicals, even
just to smell them, I would feel very unwell. I had bad IBS (Irritable
Bowel Syndrome), my periods became erratic and my concentration was
appalling. It seemed that every function in my body was out of kilter.
After
two years of relentless tests it appeared that everything that could be
tested was 'normal'. As a result, I received a diagnosis of M.E or, as
it is more commonly known today, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS/ME).
Diagnosis of CFS happens with elimination of all 'known' conditions, and
a fulfilment of several symptom criteria listed in the International
Consensus Criteria for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS/ME).
Finally,
having a diagnosis to focus on, I began to find out all I could about
the illness. Year by year, I discovered that I could fight the symptoms
from many different angles. This included looking carefully at what I
ate and how it made me feel, managing my physical and mental output, as
well as keeping my stress to a minimum. I realised that I needed to
avoid harsh chemicals and that standing too long would make me very
dizzy.
So gradually, living my tightly managed life, I was able to
function to about 85% capacity. But still no one could tell me why my
body couldn't totally keep up with the demands of normal life.
Nineteen
years on from my original diagnosis, I was faced with a frightening
prospect. The CFS symptoms were getting worse again. Instead of holding
ground, (my health ticking along, blighted by the odd relapse), I was in
fact getting steadily weaker without reprieve.
My work and life
had been getting overly busy, and I realized I was no longer living a
very good lifestyle. I was once again setting up the 'Perfect Storm',
which was taking me back to the depths of Chronic Fatigue. I felt a mix
of complete bewilderment and despair arriving at this place once more,
but I'd 'recovered' previously, so I knew I could do it again.
This
time though, I was in a different situation. I had done years of
studying lifestyle, health, and nutrition and I had the internet as my
friend. To my delight, I found some fantastic new research, which would
finally solve the mystery of why I felt like I did.
The research
being done was in relation to the Mitochondria. These little sausage
shaped elements of every cell in our body are fundamentally responsible
for producing the magical chemical ATP (Adenosine triphosphate). ATP
provides energy to our muscles and all the busy internal organs in our
body, including the liver, heart and brain. Research level testing has
been developed, that shows how the production of ATP, and its subsequent
recycling, can be reduced and blocked.
So this then raised the
question of what's causing the blockages? To my real surprise, my test
results showed it was due to various, off-the-shelf chemicals (found in,
amongst other places, personal care products and household cleaners)
along with a mix of nutritional deficiencies caused by malabsorption or
diet deficiencies. In other words, modern day life was truly taking its
toll!
This information about energy creation in the body all made
perfect sense to me, and was why I struggled so much to keep up with
everyday functions and demands. It also confirmed why the many protocols
of healthy lifestyle changes, as well as good nutrition, and minimal
exposure to chemicals, had produced results in the past. My slipping
into bad habits, and allowing too many chemicals to enter my life had
once again, gradually blocked and reduced the production of ATP in my
cells. With my new knowledge to hand I could now follow an even more
targeted approach to get myself back on track.
Finally, the
mystery of my life was solved. Instead of 10 years, as previously, to
get to the point of walking again without a stick, it took 12 months.
Reversing
the effects of such imbalances in the body can be a slow process, and
the lifestyle changes and nutritional needs of each person varies, but
to travel with a new understanding of what was happening, gave me a
sense of clarity. The open loop of the last 20 years had finally been
closed.
If you're dealing with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS/ME),
knowledge is key, and when it comes to getting well again, Mitochondria
rule!
https://myportfolio.ac.nz/user/clarinda-sauer/best-essay-writing-provided
http://mywiki.americansentinel.edu/display/~6492409/Advantage+Of+College+Admission+Essay+Creating+Services
https://netplusadmdev0.internet2.edu/community/index.php?p=/discussion/18758/custom-term-papers-essays-exactly-where-can-you-discover-the-best-assist
http://jobs.millennium.edu/user-14202.html
https://ritanime.rit.edu/forums/member.php?action=profile&uid=2861
http://caelt3.harrisburgu.edu/studiowiki/index.php/User:Adlimelch
http://www.transcribe-bentham.da.ulcc.ac.uk/td/User:Adlimelch
https://community.bus.emory.edu/dept/ISOM/GoGreen/Lists/Test%20Discussion%20Board/DispForm.aspx?ID=398
https://jmars.mars.asu.edu/forum/member.php?1353
https://sac.edu/Lists/SharePointIssues/DispForm.aspx?ID=126
http://climateapps2.oerc.ox.ac.uk/cpdnboinc/team_display.php?teamid=14531
http://volunteer.cs.und.edu/csg/team_display.php?teamid=133355
https://setiweb.ssl.berkeley.edu/beta/team_display.php?teamid=96979
https://cs.byu.edu/job-posting/how-create-essay
http://www.lssc.edu/about/Lists/ContactUs/DispForm.aspx?ID=249
https://xxm.times.uh.edu/forums/users/adlimelch/
http://music.yale.edu/forums/users/adlimelch/
https://vue-forums.uit.tufts.edu/user/profile/637803.page
http://languagebox.ac.uk/4430/
http://humbox.ac.uk/5473/
No comments:
Post a Comment