Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS), or Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME) is a condition that causes long-term fatigue affecting daily living. It can occur after an infection, or after stress or an accident. People affected find that it does not go away with sleep or rest. CFE/ME is recognised by the Department of Health as a genuine, long term debilitating disorder but it is poorly understood as there are no known causes and a wide range of symptoms. There is no cure for CFE/ME so treatment focuses on easing the symptoms.

The severity of symtoms with CFS/ME:

Mild: you are able to care for yourself but may need time off work to rest.

Moderate: you may have reduced mobility, disturbed sleep and sleep in the afternoons.

Severe: you are able to carry out minimal daily tasks but occasionally you may need to use a wheelchair. You may have difficulty concentrating.

Very severe: you are unable to carry out daily tasks and need bed rest for most of the day. You may also experience intolerance to noise and sensitivity to bright lights.

ProTherapy helps clients to address and manage their symptoms more effectively through Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT).  There is good evidence that shows CBT can assist people to cope with their symptoms along with graded exercise therapy, which is a behavioural approach. Graded exercise may encourage the client to commence an activity, such as walking, which can be increased over a period of time.