Chronic Fatigue (ME) and TATT (Tired All The Time)

Chronic Fatigue is not always what it seems to be. Those who accept it exists are usually looking to blame a virus. However, the virus is irrelevant as many people with chronic fatigue symptoms do not have a virus present, and many with the virus present are fit and healthy. Many individual with chronic fatigue are sick because their immune systems have been weakened making them prey to any virus that comes along. It is of no use trying to find the magic bullet which will kill the virus but more a matter of looking at why the immune system has been compromised and then working at strengthening it.

Candida weakens the body and the immune system, and many chronic fatigue sufferers have candida present. The body and immune system can also be weakened by stress, by poor nutrition and by general toxicity, whether it be from a toxic-laden diet, drug abuse or environmental pollution. Antibiotic overuse and vaccinations are also frequent forerunners of chronic fatigue.

Chronic fatigue has been referred to as yuppie-flu and it is no coincidence that ambitious over-achievers are susceptible to the problem. Like most chronic fatigue sufferers, they have been living on adrenaline and pushing their bodies for too long. They may get up feeling tired, but once in the swing of the day, the adrenaline starts to flow and they feel fine. Later, when the energy flags, a game of squash or a three mile jog gives their adrenal glands another kick and they are ready for a busy evening. Add to this the type of lifestyle that many young people live – eating too much junk food, missing meals, partaking of alcohol, taking the pill, taking antibiotics for infections – and you can see how eventually the body inevitably gives in. The mother who works, or the overstressed business man, may not have the glamourous lifestyle of the yuppie, but the effects of living on adrenaline are the same. Chronic fatigue is not a disease but a series of symptoms which the body is using as a signal to let the individual know that all is not well. In fact, everything is exhausted.

Chronic fatigue can be seen at one end of the scale in individuals who generally do not feel well, but cope each day with a multitude of minor health problems and a continual lack of energy. They struggle by living on adrenaline and pushing their bodies to keep going. These individuals are on the verge of chronic fatigue and it only takes a strong antibiotic from the doctor, a dose of flu or a severely stressful situation to push them over the edge. At the other end of the scale are those chronic fatigue sufferers who are so sick and weak they can barely stand up. They may ache from head to toe, find it impossible to think or concentrate, feel permanently sick or dizzy, and will have many more individual symptoms.

In order to recover from chronic fatigue work needs to be done on raising the blood sugar levels. This relieves some of the symptoms which are due to low blood sugar (see Page 3) and takes pressure off the exhausted adrenal glands. The dietary regime outlined in this book is ideal for this. Chronic fatigue is similar to Candida in that it cannot be treated as an isolated problem without the individual being taken into consideration. Work needs to be done on detoxifying the body and replacing lost minerals in an attempt to repair and support all the organs, glands and systems which have become implicated. The issue of self-worth needs consideration because a lack of it is frequently the motivator for over-achievement (see Emotions, Addictions and Ill Health, Page 18).