Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Support Group
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) describes a sense of exhaustion and post-exertion malaise, even when you have gotten enough rest and sleep. The disease is characterized by six months of incapacitating fatigue experienced as profound exhaustion and extremely poor stamina, and problems with concentration and short-term memory. The cause is unknown, but it is a...
Does anyone have hypothyroidism as well as CFS? If so, besides the fatigue what are some of your symptoms?
uncommon. One would think that the thyroid would be one of the
first things that a doctor would check. I agree with Triunfadora.
In my case, I feel like I fell through the cracks with this. Even
though I was exhausted and had many symptoms, a few GP's
said I was 'fine'. The main one to have tested is your TSH. The
recommended ranges can vary. Also, T4 and T3 need to be
tested. There are some others but these are the main ones
I also had my adrenals tests by a saliva test. They were
barely functioning. Sometimes the two go together.
Dr. Jacob Teitelbarm talks about this in his book,
"From Fatigued to Fantastic". (you can order it used off of
Amazon) if you're up for that. I haven't gone to 'fantastic' and I
rather think that's an exaggeration, but I did learn a lot from it
in dealing with this illness. And going onto armor and an
adrenal supplement have made a big difference.
Once the OTHER hormones (estrogen, progesterone, testosterone) were checked AND found to be SUBSTANTIALLY LOW to NONE in producing then I NO longer had thyroid problems after taking it them for a couple of days.
It was me that HAD TO DEMAND that the OTHER hormones be checked. He said, "they will probably come back normal." At this point I had to insist. When they came back as a result of producing LOW to NONE, he was NOT THERE TO GIVE ME THE RESULTS; he was outa the office for that appointment so his assistant gave me the good/bad news. It took another 30 days for him to approve the prescription though!! I obtained the hormones from a compounding pharmacy so there is where I was also being treated for the CFS so I was IMMEDIATELY brought to a functioning point within a few days.
The thyroid problems seem to mimic CFS symptoms so the MEDCICAL doctors NEVER did a thorough check up on me. When we take our cars to get fixed, the mechanics do more of a thorough check to see where the problem lies than the MEDICAL doctors do for us! That sheet that they ask about family medical history, THAT IS IGNORED. They make us think that they care about us but they never look at that. When I walked in, she said, "something is wrong with you, nobody's face is that red; you have lupus." Something so simple, no other m.d ever caught this symptom, a butterfly rosacea on the face. I was treated for hypothyroid but never ever could function.
I gave each doctor at least 2-3 years to at least get me to the point of having less severe symptoms but they never did. I didn't know any better back when I first got the diagnoses then I learned that if in 3 months they were not helping me then I moved on to the next m.d.
I discovered that stress causes this and fuels the CFS so once I learned to maintain my body then the symptoms are kept in a low to medium mode. I'm not in such bad a shape as I was 10 years ago, barely functioning.
By Mayo Clinic Staff
Scientists don't know exactly what causes chronic fatigue syndrome. It may be a combination of factors that affect people who were born with a predisposition for the disorder.
Some of the factors that have been studied include:
Viral infections. Because some people develop chronic fatigue syndrome after having a viral infection, researchers question whether some viruses might trigger the disorder.
Suspicious viruses include Epstein-Barr virus, human herpes virus 6 and mouse leukemia viruses. No conclusive link has yet been found.
Immune system problems. The immune systems of people who have chronic fatigue syndrome appear to be impaired slightly, but it's unclear if this impairment is enough to actually cause the disorder.
Hormonal imbalances. People who have chronic fatigue syndrome also sometimes experience abnormal blood levels of hormones produced in the hypothalamus, pituitary glands or adrenal glands. But the significance of these abnormalities is still unknown.
Chronic fatigue syndrome has eight official signs and symptoms, plus the central symptom that gives the condition its name:
Fatigue
Loss of memory or concentration
Sore throat
Enlarged lymph nodes in your neck or armpits
Unexplained muscle pain
Pain that moves from one joint to another without swelling or redness
Headache of a new type, pattern or severity
Unrefreshing sleep
Extreme exhaustion lasting more than 24 hours after physical or mental exercise
Yah, these mimic thyroid symptoms as well. Been there!!
Fatigue
Increased sensitivity to cold
Constipation
Dry skin
Unexplained weight gain
Puffy face
Hoarseness
Muscle weakness
Elevated blood cholesterol level
Muscle aches, tenderness and stiffness
Pain, stiffness or swelling in your joints
Heavier than normal or irregular menstrual periods
Thinning hair
Slowed heart rate
Depression
Impaired memory
ALL of these symptoms are also pretty much CFS symptoms too.
On a different note, I was diagnosed with poly cystic ovarian syndrome about 5 years ago, but have actually had it for many years - probably since before I developed chronic fatigue. It messes up hormone levels including testosterone, estrogen and insulin. With what you were saying about hormones, energylost, I wonder if the two have anything to do with each other.
I discovered that HORMONES seem to run the body and NOT THE BRAIN, Without them, we or I CANNOT function nor can THE brain.
Hormones eradicated this symptoms which seems to be A weird symptom -- during sleep, I would sleep, all night, with a super tight face AND tight lips like when one tastes a sour food look on the face -- lack of RELAXATION; once I got the hormones, my face was relaxed. This super tightness caused me to wake up often with migraines.
Hormones work in a blink of an eye. I immediately slept all night with a restful sleep. I woke up FEELING normal. All I did was open my eyes, I had not got up from bed, I just felt normal and functioned normally.
I've said this before, I also recently learned the art of Deep Breathing. This ERADICATED all of the symptoms for good: restless leg syndrome, severe cramps in my feet & legs, brain fog, nauseousness, the stinging pain at the bottom of my feet, stress pains in my shoulder area, low stamina, lethargy and just brings a calmness in my body; I use Deep Breathing when an anxiety attack starts or to keep it from starting.
I told the Endo, "I don't believe that ANY woman has ever escaped menopause without the help of HORMONES so I want mine checked, they have NEVER been checked." I looked perfectly normal to the naked eye even though I could hardly function so this is why he didn't want to check them. At this point I was fighting severe, brain fog, lethargy, low stamina; these were the symptoms that the thyroid did not eradicate! These symptoms went on for years so the D.O. sent me to him. She said, "I need to you to somebody that knows more than me." Turns out, by accident, I knew more than both of them.
I returned to the D.O. for nauseousness and anxiety attacks and she said, WOW! You look good. See what Hormones can do for the face. Anyway, she put me on an SSRI, couldn't take it. Threw it out and discovered the Deep Breathing.
I was diagnosed after my hair began to thin quite a bit, my skin was flaky and my eyes so dry I could not wear my contacts. I felt I couldn't think clearly even when I was having a good cfs day.
I feel best with my TSH between .75 and 1.25; T4 levels at medium and T3 on the high side, currently it is just above the lowest. Seeing endo next week.
Fast forward. At an appointment with private doc he said didn't I agree that CFS was really just low thyroid and I said no that I believed current studies say CFS is viral or autoimmune. Then he never called me back for an appointment again. He didn't want to hear any disagreement with his theory.
Energylost, are you post menopausal and taking female hormones? The above private doctor prescribed estrogen, progesterone for me but I think that is dangerous. My hormone levels for these are low but not for my age (post menopausal). My cousin was just visiting and she's had breast cancer and it has shown up other places. Her doctors tell her the female hormones cause cancer in women. I'll never take them again.
I've been symptomatic for CFS for over five years now, had the usual suspects ruled out, lupus, lyme, etc. and my thyroid levels have always been "fine". My old md doesn't believe in CFS, hence the new doc, a DO.