From another board, does this sound like CFS?

Hi, I have ulcerative colitis, and usually just look at the posts there, but for the past six months or so (since recovering from my last flare of UC) I have been exhausted.  I have no energy, everything seems too difficult.  I struggle to get up in the morning, and could literally sleep any time during the day.  When I get home from work, I always have a sleep, and can still sleep at bedtime.  At the weekends, I just sleep, sleep, sleep whenever I can.  I also suffer from joint pains (back, knees, hips) and just generally feel blah!...all of this could be related to the UC and/or the medication that I have for this. Also,  my job is quite demanding/stressful (I work with young people with behavioural problems), a friend suggested that it could be CFS....any thoughts or advice would be appreciated!

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pancolitis diagnosed 1986 aged 14

HI tiger, it's so hard to tell where the fatigue and pain might be coming from, especially since you are dealing with UC. You are right that these symptoms could be part of the health problems you already have, or it could be something different like CFS. A lot of your symptoms are present in CFS, but it's hard to diagnose because these symptoms are also present in a lot of other illnesses. What does your doc think?

I guess I would start with a good doc that you trust and can really talk to and go over your symptoms in depth. Your doc should rule out any other illnesses with labs and then hopefully you can get to the bottom of these symptoms. Since these are newer symptoms, I would think your doc would be looking into the cause.

Let us know if you have any other questions. I wish there were easy answers, but of course nothing is asy when you are dealing with a chronic illness.

Hang in there and take care.

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Thanks hippimom, as you say, with chronic illness, nothing is easy...doctors seems to blame everything on the UC! Sometimes its just good to offload dont you think! I will make sure I talk all of my issues through with him next time I see him. Hope you are well and thanks again.

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pancolitis diagnosed 1986 aged 14

Hi Tigerb. I agree with hippie mom as this could be related to many different things. Please don't accept a diagnosis of CFS until you rule out other things. I thought I had CFS for 14 years, but it turns out I have lyme disease. I am now in treatment for that and recovering. I look forward to being healthy again instead of sick for the rest of my life.

Your symptoms sound just like mine, especially the joint pain. I also used to sleep whenever I could. I still sleep alot, but not allday and night like I used to.

My advice would be to find a doctor who will run some tests to rule out things like mycoplasma infections, cytomeglio virius, Epteiin barr virus and lyme disease and others. An igenex test is the best test for lyme disease. You could also have your thyroid checked, as this can cause many problems as well. Thyroid illness is common with some of these other illnesses. I take t3 which has helped me as well.

 

good luck to you!!

I dont even know if I am doing this right. I think I have cfs. I am having a sleeping study done in 3 weeks. This fatigue is consuming my life. I was wondering if anyone out there has excessive thirst. I am always so thirsty. I have had a lot of blood work done and everythig has come out normal. So, are you thirsty all the time?

Stutterbug,

Thirst is an issue of mine for sure. I assume you have been tested for diabetes? That's usually the first thing they check for excessive thirst.

This can be a symptom of many illnesses. So is your fatigue. I have lyme disease and these symptoms are a huge part of my illness. They are symptoms of other illnesses such as Candida, EBV, Fibro, CFS and many others. Google candida as this is very common with people with lyme disease, fibro and CFS. I have candida along with lyme disease.

good luck