Erin, I so know what you mean about being cheated.....I got sick before starting grad school and barely managed to get thru it (at a greatly reduced class load spread out over a longer time), but then I crashed so badly there was no way I could work even part time....I so want to use my degree and to have a life in general again.

I am supposed to start grad school this fall. It seems impossible to go to school and work. I know what you mean about wanting to use your degree and actually have a life. Sigh. Are you taking any medications? I am taking 70 mg of vyvance but it doesn't help. I have read very promising things about taking adderall for the fatigue, the trouble is finding a doctor that believes in chronic fatigue and will prescribe it.

Pixi, I hope that you can manage grad school, but at the same time, I think it was one of the things that really facilitated my downhill slide....and then not only could I not work, but I had a ton of money owed in loans......they are currently in the process of being forgiven but getting to that point was tough and they are still in a probationary period with that

I am not on any script meds for the CFS.....I do take Sudafed and it helps some, but I have tried about a million different meds and without fail I have reacted very badly to them

Hi All
I can relate to many of the posts here.I gave up a government job and haven't worked full time for about 13years.I did get better once I removed myself from work but now I find myself struggling with not only the illness but with the shame and lonliness of not working .ALso,people get mad at you when you suddenly have to cancel a social engagement so I find myself more withdrawn from people which is really not my nature.

ragteshi, I totally understand the social thing....I used to have a lot of friends and do things with them, and with my family, and now I hardly ever see any of them.....I started telling people when they would ask me to do somethign that I would only say yes if they knew that there was a good chance I might have to cancel.......said that bc it was true & I didn't want to commit to somethign and then not be able to do it; however, as the yrs have gone by my social circle has shrunk to about 2 people and I barely see them, and my family moved .....I hate it but I just never feel well enough to do stuff

Ragteshi Tammie all of you I can soo relate to your experiences especially Ragteshi and the reduction of the working week and lack of social life. I need a career I know I'll get further depressed not working, but I'm finding it hard, I've recently had 2months off work & feel soo ashamed/low.......I need a solution. & Tammie I too have a multitude of allergies that are steadily increasing in volume....I wonder if there is an autoimmune link. I believe we are too costly for GPs/Doctors and they havent the resources to help us all!!

Ragteshi- I use to be the most social person alive. I hated being at home alone and always surrounded myself with friends. My circle of friends has dramatically decreased in the past few years. I also feel very guilty agreeing to go out with friends only to cancel the day of. I have told a few friends about cfs but none of them truly believe that this condition exist.

Tammie- I have been greatly considering the idea of not pursing grad school. I just dont think I can do it. It took me almost 7 years to finish undergrad because I took a few classes at a time. I also am afraid of once I graduate not being able to work and having debt.

Lunar- I am not working now, most of my life I have worked part time. I worked full time a few years ago, and my pain and fatigue grew worse. Now that I have graduated college, naturally the next step is to get a "REAL" job. I have been offered a great full time job. I am SO worried I will not be able to make this work and will let down my boyfriend who has been supporting me for the past few years. I know exactly how you feel about feeling ashamed and low. I feel the same way. It seems like no one in my life understands. They all say I should be lucky I don't have cancer and people with cancer make it work, so should I. So I feel even more guilty. I dont seem to have any allergies, but I am worried that one day that will be a problem for me also. I have read so many articles and theories about an autoimmune link,. I wish there was a definite answer and a solution. I cant seem to find a doctor that has any interest in helping me dealing with cfs.

lunar, I don't know about autoimmune....it wouldn't surprise me, though....I do know that they have shown that with chemical sensitivities, there is an increase in cytokines (which are part of the immune system....they are what makes people feel so sick when they have the flu), and I also know that they have shown with MCS that there is also a decrease in blood flow to the organs and even sometimes cell death from that.

pixie,
I hope that my reply re grad school wasn't too discouraging - I just know from experience how hard it was and then how scary to get done owing so much money and being too sick to work

also re people with cancer, I absolutely am not saying that they don't have it bad, but I do know of more than one person who has had both cancer and CFS and they have all said that they could deal with the cancer a lot better than the CFS.....in fact one of those people is a mother whose daughter was recently diagnosed with cancer and the mother who has had cancer and now has CFS said that she was happy that it was cancer that her dtr got rather than CFS bc that's how much worse the CFS has been for her

Oh no your comment didn't discourage me. I just realized how I can not possibly work and go to grad school at the same time. I am still not sure I can even work although I accepted the job I am worried how I will manage when I start working. Sigh I feel so hopeless. All I want is to be normal. I am relying on adhd type meds to provide me enough energy to make it. But these meds have awful side effects, and I am worried about long term effects.

pixia, sorry you are having a hard time, but I am gald that i didn't make it worse

You defiantly did not. I have just been having a rough few months. It seems like the summer months are the hardest on me. And I am SO worried I wont be able to work full time. How does someone cope with that?

pixie, the summer is the hardest on me, too........as to working/not working and coping I don't know what to tell you......I am still struggling to deal with not being able to work and it has been several yrs for me now.....I am on disability but it barely pays anything and I really want to be able to work - I worked so hard getting my MA, I want to be able to use it........I just keep hoping that someday things will improve at least enough that I could work a little........and I hope that you are able to manage somehow too

I feel as though the past year my symptoms have gotten worse, so realizing that I may NOT be able to work is fairly new for me. I am still pushing my body to do more that what it wants in hopes that it will just go away. I accepted employment even though my body is screaming NO. I am afraid of letting down those around me down because they think CFS can be cured with a life coach. I just have to keep my hopes up I guess.

pixie, I definitely do not want to discourage you and I really hope that you are able to work, but please, please be really careful.......in the 7 yrs I have been sick, every time I have really overdone it I have not recovered back to my previous level of functioning.....and as such I am often stuck in bed altogether for long periods of time......and I have heard far too many similar stories.....I used to run marathons and train for triathlons, work, go to church and school and have a very busy social life, too, and so slowing down killed me, but I have learned the hard way that I cannot afford to try to keep pushing myself ......I truly hope that you are one of the fortunate ones for whom this does not happen, and i hate to say anythign that sounds so discouraging, but I would also hate for you to wind up like me