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...
Hello all! I hope everyone is doing okay. I just wanted to get your opinion on something.
I was diagnosed with CFS about 3 years ago, I think. I was diagnosed with fibro 13 years ago. Anyway, I firmly believe I've had CFS all my life. My mom said I was always tired and I used to get sick if I didn't get enough sleep. Of course, I outgrew the sickness part which is a good thing since I have 2 kiddos.
Anyway, I was born with a hole in my heart between the left and right ventricle. It did not close until I was 10. I believe that because of that my body worked harder and was tired and even though the hole closed, my body never recovered from it. I don't have any heart problems now except for an occasional skipped beat or fast heart rate.
I was just wondering what you all thought. I did ask my dr. if you could be born with it but I forgot to mention the hole.
I was diagnosed with CFS about 3 years ago, I think. I was diagnosed with fibro 13 years ago. Anyway, I firmly believe I've had CFS all my life. My mom said I was always tired and I used to get sick if I didn't get enough sleep. Of course, I outgrew the sickness part which is a good thing since I have 2 kiddos.
Anyway, I was born with a hole in my heart between the left and right ventricle. It did not close until I was 10. I believe that because of that my body worked harder and was tired and even though the hole closed, my body never recovered from it. I don't have any heart problems now except for an occasional skipped beat or fast heart rate.
I was just wondering what you all thought. I did ask my dr. if you could be born with it but I forgot to mention the hole.
I'm not sure if I'm clear on your question here! Is it that the hole closed, but left your body so weak that THAT is what brought you to CFS? If so, many people are diagnosed with CFS after a traumatic event, or a flu-like illness. I would guess that if your system was already weakened from the heart valve problem, that it is possible that this weakness contributed to you eventually getting CFS.
It is a wonderful thing that the hole closed and that you do not have heart disease or problems with it. Phewwwwwww!
CFS can be passed from parent to child, so I would suppose that you could be born predisposed to it. I'm not a doctor. I don't know that they know this hereditary thing to be a fact. There's very little that they know about CFS that is documented as "fact"!!
I hope some of this answer was helpful to you. I'm very glad your heart is ok. And I hope you do not have CFS. It's a long testing process to rule it out though. Everything else has to be eliminated first. If you're up to it, you can find a CFS knowledgeable doctor and get started. if you have Fibro, there's a good chance you could have it. However, Fibro also causes pain and fatigue.....it's a puzzle.
I wish you the very best!
It seems very likely that cfs may have begun as a result of the extra stress put on your body due to the hole in your heart. Or maybe the hole in your heart was making you weary all by itself. I don't know much about symptoms that would cause.
If I remember correctly I read this information at about.com in the cfs section under a section called something like could I have cfs? The cfs section of about.com is written by someone who has cfs. I have confirmed elsewhere almost everything I read there so I trust the info. She writes it in a way that is clear and easy to understand. That was a big deal at that time because my brain fog was worse then. I feel like she put voice to things I couldn't quite put together enough to communicate to other people.
I have been diagnosed with CFS but I was just curious if it was caused by the hole. Even though it closed, I was still tired afterwards and obviously even to this day. I also have fibro and that doesn't help either. I just thought maybe since the hole compromised my immune system for so long that CFS settle in and never left! ;o)