Symptoms

M.E. is a complex illness that affects people in different ways. There are many possible symptoms but you probably won’t suffer from all of them. It’s common for symptoms to change and fluctuate during the course of the illness.

Your symptoms may include some of these:

Overwhelming and persistent fatigue or tiredness especially after doing things that didn’t used to make you feel exhausted. You may notice the fatigue straight away or it may take a day or two to kick in and is not relieved by rest. This delayed reaction is a distinctive feature of M.E. which can help doctors to make a diagnosis.

This is NOT ordinary chronic fatigue, this is an overwhelming weakness and exhaustion which can last weeks or years, you feel just as bad when you wake up or even worse. It is NOT just feeling extremely tired and worn out. People with CFS/ME will tell you that this is different and much more severe than anything they have experienced in their lives before. They have to be very careful how much energy they expend because the after effects are severe and can take several days to take their full effect.

Feeling generally unwell or malaise which is similar to feeling like you have the flu. A sore throat with or without swollen glands.

Pain is common and can be felt as aching in the muscles and joints, as pins and needles, muscle twitching and headaches or migraine.

Sleep difficulties such as needing to sleep excessively or not being able to sleep, unrefreshing sleep, waking in the early hours, light, dreamy, restless sleep and sleep reversal (for example, sleeping from 4am till midday).

Problems with thinking such as concentration difficulties, memory problems, difficulty finding the right words and problems organising thoughts.

Problems with the digestive system such as nausea and loss of appetite, indigestion, excessive wind, bloating, stomach cramps and alternating diarrhoea and constipation.

Problems with the nervous system including poor temperature control, sweating, dizziness and difficulties with balance and vertigo.

Increased sensitivity to alcohol, medication, some foods, bright lights, noise and odours.

And it is also possible for you to have other symptoms which aren't listed. It is also possible that your symptoms will change over time.

A certain percentage of ME sufferers develop severe symptoms and are bed bound for long periods. The 25% group specifically deal with severe sufferers. The groups name comes from the estimate of how many sufferers are affected long term and severely.

If you wish to learn more about the severest symptoms The Hummingbird's Guide to ME website is an excellent source of reference and was written by a lady with severe ME.