Chronic Fatigue Syndrome : Clearing the fog with Chinese medicine.
Hello there. It’s likely that you’re here because you’ve been beyond exhausted for months if not years, you’re in pain and you’re feeling weighed down by fatigue. You may have already been diagnosed with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome by your GP (or Doctor Google) or perhaps you’ve never heard of CFS before.
What is Chronic Fatigue Syndrome?
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) isn’t simply feeling tired.
CFS also goes by the name Myalgic Encephalomyelitis or Systemic Exertion Intolerance Disease. In essence, this terminology highlights the predominant symptoms of profound fatigue and body aches, which are not significantly alleviated by rest and are exacerbated by physical exertion. These symptoms are often preceded by a viral-like illness and persist for longer than 6 months. They may be accompanied by cognitive impairment such as brain fog and poor memory/concentration, headaches, recurrent sore throats and/or sleep disturbances.
The complexities of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome lie in its name, as the word “syndrome” implies a level of ambiguity. The cause of CFS is contentious, its disease mechanism is not understood, there isn’t a test for it and there’s no known medical cure. Fortunately, healthcare professionals are becoming more attune to recognising and supporting patients with CFS, where previously people were wrongly dismissed.
Diagnosed or deflated?
CFS is diagnosed by exclusion, which means it’s the job of your healthcare professional to rule out every other possible cause of fatigue, before diagnosing CFS. This should involve physical examinations and tests, which determine that everything is within normal range, thus excluding other diagnoses. Whilst it can be reassuring to be told your test results are “normal”, this often leads to feelings of frustration and despondency, especially for those who are not informed or do not know where to go next.
Regardless of what your test results say, it’s important to know that your experiences are real and your struggles are valid. You need a management plan and multi-disciplinary support to help you find your way through the fog.
So how can Chinese Medicine help?
Treatment with Chinese Medicine can support you by managing symptoms and early detection of possible flare ups. Throughout the consultation process, we aim to understand your unique presentation and how we can best support you with acupuncture, massage, heat therapies and herbal medicine.
Acupuncture restores the flow of qi within the meridians to reduce pain and taps into your body’s parasympathetic nervous system, the rest and digest state, which helps to “recharge your batteries”. Massage is also beneficial in the management of pain, along with warming therapies such as moxibustion, which generates a deep radiant warmth and stimulates deep healing. These hands-on treatments are often supported by herbal medicine, which is tailored to you and prescribed in different combinations and forms.
In Chinese Medicine the common symptoms of CFS fall under the category of the Kidney and Spleen dynamic. The Kidneys are the source of your vital life force, the fire under the cooking pot is a common analogy. This fire provides the warmth and energy for the Spleen (the pot) to transform food into vital substances that nourish your entire body from the inside out.
It’s easy to imagine that if the cooking fire is too low, the food will take a long time to cook and will end up resembling sludge. In this way, CFS sufferers will often experience “damp” afflictions such as feelings of fatigue accompanied by heaviness in the four limbs, brain fog, swollen lymph nodes and sluggish digestion. Seemingly contradictory to the insufficient fire analogy, patients often report feelings of “inflammation” and heat in the body. This is a manifestation of chronic damp accumulation, a sign that fluids are congealing and creating heat, instead of being steamed up and nourishing the body. With this understanding, Chinese Medicine treatment aims to restore the Spleen and Kidney dynamic, stoke the essential fire, resolve dampness and clear pathological heat.
Chinese Medicine also acknowledges the presence of latent pathogens causing disharmony in the body, called “Gu Syndrome” or possession disease. In this way, patterns of disease appear complicated and patients have a difficult time explaining their many, seemingly unrelated issues. There is no question that dormant viruses reside in the body, waiting for the opportunity to flourish. Unfortunately for you, the host, those times are when you are feeling run down, stressed, lacking sleep or fighting off another infection. People who suffer from CFS often report viral infection prior, as seen recently with the novel Coronavirus and Long-Haulers Syndrome.
Patients and patience.
My experience treating patients with CFS has taught me a lesson in patience, as progress can be subtle and easily overlooked. I meet people at their point of need, prioritizing and taking one step at a time, as everyone’s experience is unique and there are many ways to approach change. An integral component of understanding how to treat CFS with Chinese Medicine is the management of expectations. Given that the “chronic” part is right there in the title, it comes as no surprise that we’re in this for the long haul and progress is not linear. That’s why it’s important to feel empowered as a patient. To have the body literacy to listen to what your body is telling you and have the confidence and know how to respond through healing practices.
A stepping stone.
Chinese Medicine acknowledges a few basic principles for health and longevity. When it comes to complex conditions, it’s best to go back to basics. So here are 4 C’s for CFS.
- Cook your food. In a cold city like Melbourne, raw cold foods are simply poison ...just kidding. But they are an incredible burden on your digestive system. Take the hard work out of digestion and cook your food before you eat it. Foods that are already cooked are more easily broken down so that your body can assimilate nutrients without all the hard yakka!
- Cover up! Yes, do what your grandmother told you and keep warm. That vital life force that we spoke about earlier, it’s easily lost through evaporation in the form of sweat and not wearing enough clothes. Permission to buy a new scarf, granted.
- Conserve your energy. Like a mother hen guarding the egg beneath her feathers, protect your precious self. Treatment of CFS revolves around “pacing.” Pace your energy expenditure and prioritize where it goes. Replenish your energy reserves with grounding practices such as acupuncture, meditation, yin yoga, gentle walks or time in nature.
- Calm your spirit. This may include getting a therapist on your side to declutter your mind. Find the thing that warms your soul, there may even be more than one. Is it crochet? Or pottery? Or puzzles? If you can do them with a trusted friend by your side or a pet on your lap, you’ll reap the benefits of their energy too.
With Kindness, Courtney.
