But the hardest symptoms to explain to people are how even mental stimuli can be exhausting and overwhelming – Light, sound, touch, motion, watching things or people move around. And how even feeling strong emotions (Good or Bad) can be exhausting and cause a relapse.
Leanne
Severe ME Story
I've had M.E for 16 years, and severe ME for 14 years after Graded Exercise Therapy (GET), and being told the harmful advice to push myself left me much worse, severe, housebound and bed-bound half the day. In all the years since, I've never recovered from it.
As well as debilitating physical symptoms which leave me constantly feeling like;
- I have the worst flu I've ever had.
- I have a terrible hangover.
- As if I was out exercising at the gym all night instead of sleeping
- Gravity is working against me weighing me down.
- And I have heavy weights attached to my limbs, body, head, and even on each finger.
- Not forgetting severe pain.
But the hardest symptoms to explain to people are how even mental stimuli can be exhausting and overwhelming – Light, sound, touch, motion, watching things or people move around. And how even feeling strong emotions (Good or Bad) can be exhausting and cause a relapse.
Trying to do something I enjoy is very difficult, because not only are those things extremely limited, but it also feels like I may get punished for it afterward with a flare-up of symptoms or a long-term relapse.
Unfortunately, I learned the hard way to follow what is now one of my favourite quotes.
If you listen to your body when it whispers, you won't have to hear it scream!
Following this advice stopped me from continuing to worsen, but it hasn't helped me improve. My limits constantly change without warning, making it difficult to predict and figure out.
We desperately need more biomedical research to find the cause of M.E and the treatment/cure!
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