Symptomology

My illness, Myalgic Encephalomyelitis, is a complex one. It's causes are unknown, and there is no known cure. The research is in early stages, and the medical politics are from what I understand quite interesting, because it touches so many of the body's systems, and because disagreements between several factions as to naming and diagnostic criteria. It is also known by the misleading term Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. Fortunately for me, I live in Canada, where there has been consensus on the diagnostic criteria for some time, and I have not faced many difficulties in terms of credibility or getting adequate support. Whatever you call it, it is a serious illness that affects more people than you would imagine, considering how little most people know about it.

Seemingly the most affected points are my hypothalamus and my cells. You know, just the area of the brain that controls how the body functions, and those little things that are what make life possible. That's all  >_<

With no further ado, I present my symptomology, grouped more or less by the area of disturbance, with a brief note about how I'm trying to deal with each.

Stress Response and Anxiety (Neuroendocrine):
I overreact to any kind of stressful situation, I am more sensitive to environmental factors (smells, chemicals etc), and I have lower energy levels. Why? My hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis does not work properly. This means my body creates lower levels of cortisol. The theory is that my flight/fight response (sympathetic response) is overactive, and therefore throwing the system out of whack. So this means that I am more anxious, irritable, more prone to picking fights, or taking a passive-aggressive stance. I take things more personally than I should, and it takes longer to get over things. All of this because my body is reacting to every situation as if it were under a great deal of stress (because, you know, lying on my couch most of the day is very stressful). I am aware of this, and am working with and without my therapist to counteract these responses with conscious effort. I am also taking a homeopathic remedy that activates the parasympathetic response.

Autonomic:
I alternate between chills and sweats (and I'm waaaaay too young for menopause!), I get dizzy easily, I easily run out of breath (remember when I could sing?) I get palpitations, and sometimes my blood pressure is low. Anything controlled by my hypothalamus is not working properly. I keep a thermometer on my coffee table to monitor room temperature, because I got tired of continuously freaking out (see above) that my heater had stopped working. I dress in layers. Using a cane helps with balance and energy conservation. Lying down eases the palpitations.

Sleep:
My body does not produce sufficient melatonin (the sleep hormone) or tryptophan (the stuff in turkey that makes you sleepy), and my circadian rhythms (natural day/night response) are off. Added to the overactive sympathetic response, this means that it is very hard for me to fall asleep. Really really hard. And once I'm there, the lack of melatonin stops my body from getting enough deep sleep, meaning that I wake up unrefreshed. I have been guided to take sleep aids, and to remove my computer from the bedroom, which was hard to do, but has helped tremendously. 

Cognitive (Neuropsychological):
This set is, believe it or not, the most frustrating set of symptoms for me. Levels of concentration, recent memory and word retrieval are ridiculously low. Reading (or writing about) things that make me think make my head hurt after about 15 minutes. Apparently my processing speed has slowed substantially (I need an upgrade!), my working memory is impaired and I have trouble learning new things. This is hell. If you know me, you know this is where I thrive. My brain has always been my playground, and I love going to school, both as a teacher and as a student. I was the kid who got in trouble for reading too much. I repeat. This is hell. And there's not much I can do about it, besides take Omega3's, and take advantage of the brief moments of clarity such as this one right now.

Cellular and Muscular:
My muscle cells do not produce enough ATP (energy molecules). My muscles are therefore in an anaerobic state, which is what normal healthy people experience as that lovely "I just had a great workout and can barely move, my muscles are so tired" feeling. Only I get that all the time. And if I try to exercise, all my symptoms worsen. Enter controlled walking and activity levels that are slowly and gradually expanded.

Immune:
This all started with a virus. We don't know which one, and we don't know why. It seemed to be a normal cold. It's a very common onset to this illness. But now my immune system is attacking all the 'wrong' things. I get sick easily, but not in the same way as the people who were kind enough to share their germs with me. Not much to do here, except the usual wash hands and all that. And avoid being sneezed and coughed on by my lovely affectionate child (as if).

All in all, it's not so pretty, but it's manageable. I just wish more was known.