M.E?

[sarahby]

Hi
I am new to this site and think it is really great.
I have M.E and until recently didn't realise just how anxious I am. After looking into the symptoms I have and the way I feel, I am pretty sure I suffer with anxiety alot.
I wonder if anyone else has, or knows someone who has M.E, as after speaking to others with M.E it is pretty clear that anxiety has a big part to play in having M.E. I just wondered if some of the symptoms I get aren't down to M.E but anxiety?

Thanks any help would be great. :shrug:

[SIMON31]

Hi Sarah,

I have CFS, and I'm currently going through a bad spell of anxiety. I think it does have alot to do with my CFS. I'm beginning to wonder that maybe my symptons are 90% anxiety and 10% CFS. I think all the anxiety is making me tired all the time, aching body etc. What symptons do u get?

[Wenjoy]

My best friend has ME and also suffers huge surges of adrenaline and panic atttacks which the Dr has told her is part of the ME - she is also using a stick to walk with and cannot get out of bed some days as she cant move and has no energy. I read an article about Esther Rantzens daughter a few weeks ago and she had ME and had counselling treatment and NLP to help her overcome her anxieties and help herself get well. Love wenjoy x

[Quirky]

Hi Sarah,

I suffer from ME too, had it four years and yes anxiety can be part of ME. I have always been a bit of a worrier but never had any panic attacks until I got ME. ME can cause the body to release adrenalin randomly. CBT isn't working as well for me this time and I really feel that's because the anxiety has more to do with my ME than my thoughts.
It's very hard when you have ME to know what symptoms are due to that and what aren't. It's also possible that some of your anxiety is related to the ME and some isn't it times and the cause can vary at times, it's so hard to know isn't it.

I hope you find this site useful,

Take care,

Lisa

[Dshell]

Hello!!

I to have M.E but am a million times better now! Was at my worst about 5 years ago and noticed that I started to get better once I got on top of my anxiety - which only appeared towards the end! Does that make sense? That also happened to a friend of mine when she had M.E.

It sounds really strange but it is as though you go through a sort of cycle through the illness and you have to go through each one before you get to the other side so, hopefully once you get a hold of the anxiety (easier said than done, I know!) you do start to slowly feel better!!

I started with ME in 1999 and slowly got worse until I then started having panic attacks in the Dec of 2001, I was having 3-4 a week but by about the end of March 2002 I got a bit of a hold of them an by September 2002, I had started work again!!!

I think that the two are very very closely linked - your thought run wild as there is nothing else that you can do as you are so exhausted and that then leads onto a really horrid anxiety. I used a lot of reflexology, hypnotherapy and massage which I think really helped and was also on a low dose of seroxat.

PM me if you want a chat about things as I can sympathise and empathise whole heartedly with you and can also show you that people do get better from it! 4 and a half years on from initially starting back at work I am nearly a qualified midwife (with all the stress, work and responsibility that that brings!!)

You will get better hun - I promise,

DShell xxxx

[sarahby]

Ah thanks all so much! Really didnt expect anyone to say they had CFS or M.E too!
Yes it is difficult, because now I realise what symptoms of anxiety are, they are what I have been saying is M,E and probably is M.E., but who knows! They are very similar. And I now have heard such alot about adrenaline probs with people with M.E and also the anxiety side of it so it all links in. I am going for CBT soon hopefully because I think if I can get on top of the anxiety the M.E will get better or maybe even the whole lot is anxiety! Dont know! Thankyou so much everyone, I will keep tracks on this link as it is really interesting to hear other peoples views on this subject.
Also can anyone say if they get symptoms even when the are not actively feeling anxious? SOmetimes I get symptoms from nowhere!

Thanks again!

In reply to the question, my symptoms are too many to mention!, but main ones are dizzyness, left side part of my body feeling like it doesnt belong to me, weakness and tiredness, eyes feeling odd, muscle pain, ANXIETY! amongst more and more! If anyone wants to PM it would be great to talk x

[sarahby]

I must say I have had the same type of thought. Just how much of the M.E is anxiety?

[Quirky]

Also can anyone say if they get symptoms even when the are not actively feeling anxious? SOmetimes I get symptoms from nowhere!



Yes Sarah I get this alot, which is why I think it's often the ME doing it. Saying that people without ME can get anxiety symptoms out of the blue too as sometimes we are not consciously aware what sets it off each time.

Take care,

Lisa

[sarahby]

I recently saw a therapist who deals alot with people with m.e and said anxiety has a HUGE part to play in it. After talking to her yesterday she said she wouldnt be surprised if alot of mine was anxiety more than M.E

[Quirky]

Hi Sarah,

Yes your therapist may be right, it can work either way. The ME can cause the anxiety or anxiety can mimic ME! If your problem is mostly anxiety it may be far easier to get rid of than ME. Likewise if you do have mild ME aswell dealing with the anxiety will help anyway.

Good luck,

LJ

[sarahby]

Thanks LJ
Hoping to have cbt soon to knock this anxiety on the head once and for all. And wouldnt it be lovely if there were no symptoms left afterwards! m.e gone! Oh my god how amzing that would be!:ohmy:

[Quirky]

Good luck with the CBT, it's hard work but can really help :)

Lisa

[sarahby]

Thanks to you all. Yes really hoping the cbt will knock anxiety off and m.e will be very small amount there, if not gone! Thanks again. good luck to all x:winks:

[fed up with it]

Hi i too have suffered with m.e since sept 1999 and had anxiety with it too, i see an m.e consultant and for them it is really hard to tell, she always says its like the chicken and egg situation, what comes first. But as we all know the treatment for m.e is anxiety management, cbt. I know early on in my illness i had to energy at all, now mine is almost certainly more to do with anxiety, the symptoms are dizziness, feeling worse when out, palpations, weak heavy legs. so i don't really know what i have anymore? i just no i feel awful all the time.

[sarahby]

Thanks LJ and to all who replied

[feege]

Hi Sarah

I am another (long term) ME/CFS person and the relationship between the two is very difficult to manage. I also have other completely separate health problems.

ME certainly, without a shadow of a doubt, causes anxiety but anxiety does not cause ME!! However anxiety makes the symptoms of ME worse and can irritate the physical symptoms of ME which are so many and varied, mainly because it affects the central nervous system and your muscles added to which it is generally agreed your immune system is compromised. The constant variety of symptoms ME causes makes it hard not to become anxious.

Learning to cope with and manage your anxiety will definitely give your body the best chance to recover from the ME - and you CAN recover from both. I'm not sure I agree with Lisa, I think both are difficult to deal with and involve a very positive attitude, being very very kind to yourself and working hard on relaxation techniques both for the mind and the body.

Good luck to you - the most important thing is to accept you are ill and it's not your fault!!!

[Quirky]

Thanks LJ and to all who replied

You're welcome :hugs:

Great post from Fee there too :) What she says makes perfect sense to me and she managed to word it so it made more sense than my reply lol.

Lisa x

[crystalrainbow]

Just a quick reply as im just off out!
Internet has been down for the last couple of weeks, so am trying to catch up on posts.
i too have M.E and have been thinking the same for some time now. I was diagnosed in January of last year with M.E but have come to the conclustion that the anxiety and panic attacks have caused my M.E
I have all the same symptoms as you and had to laugh when I read that your left side feels like its not part of you!! Well I said it felt like i had an alien inside of me, my husband thinks im mad and the doctor just smiles and gives me another tissue.
Anyway got to rush I will be back to this post asap.
Your very welcome to pm me for a chat
Sue x

[bearcrazy]

Hi sarah,

Both my kids have M.E. officially diagnosed. They have had it since their early teens, one is 24 and the other 20. they both have serious problems with anxiety and since being diagnosed with GAD generalised anxiety disorder mysel. i am convinced that they have GAD and not M.E. Our symptoms are so similar. My son has had 2 jobs both he had to give up because of anxiety and PA's, and my daughter is at Un i and suffers a lot with anxiety over course work etc. the only difference is the aching muscles, but I get all the others!
Would be interested to find out what your GP's views on this are. My son has an appt at an M.E. clinic in Birm'ham soon. Maybe he will find out more then!

TC :yesyes:

[Seffie]

Hi,
I can relate very well to all of what has been said.
10 years ago my doctor diagnosed me with ME but after 3 months off work I made a gradual return & was fine. I only had afew of the ME symptoms-muscle fatigue & pain, muscle twitches, feeling hot if I did too much & I always seemed to relapse on day 23 of my cycle so think there was a hormonal; element involved. I have since had my doubts that it was ME & maybe just some kind of stress reaction.

Over the years whenever I went through a stressful period & would notice that my arms & legs would feel weak (but weren't) & the nerves would feel irritated, I would also get muscle twitches. This would then go off after afew days.

Then last October after a very stressful 18 months which included the unexpected loss of my mum, starting perimenopause & relentless anxiety & panic attacks I was hit by exhaustion & feeling really unwell.

9 months on & I am still having these symptoms. Mostly in my limbs but sometimes all over. Lots of burning, fatigue, aches & pains & generally feeling like cr*p. Doctors very unsympathetic-diagnosed with nervous exhaustion & offered AD's. Said if I was depressed it was only because I feel so awful!
Was starting to improve in May & June but recently, after lots of anxiety due to palpitations returning I have relapsed.

Asked the doctors if I had ME again-one said 'that's just a pot that people use when they don't know what the symptoms are' & another doctor said 'that's not really a helpful diagnosis'. Basically they don't 'believe' in ME anymore?! One of these doctors told me that I wouldn't feel better unless I 'stopped mithering'. Hmmm...

Obviously I don't want it to be ME & after seeing this post I know that it's possible that this is all down to the extreme stress & anxiety that I've been through & my hormones may be contributing too. This is the doctors view anyway.

Have any of you considered adrenal fatigue? Apparently this isn't officially recognised by medical profession-won't bore you with reasons why-but adrenal under-functioning has been seen in CFS patients. I have had a saliva test for this & it showed that I had mild AF. Lots on the internet about this & it makes perfect sense for people who suffer from panic & anxiety etc.

I am in the process of changing to a different surgery as I realise they won't necessarily tell me anything different but at least I may get the support & understanding that I need to help me to get better.
Interesting thread-sorry for another long post-just can't stop once I get on my soapbox!!
If you got this far-thanks for 'listening'!
Seffie xx