Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

attacks mind

and

body

"YUPPIE DISEASE’ CAN HIT ANYONE

WHEN JANET Cook wakes up in the morning and says, ‘1
can’t get out of bed this morning,’ she means it literally.

Cook is one of a_ growing
number of people learning to live
with a disease called Myalgia
Encephalomyelitis (ME). It’s a
debilitating disease that starts with
flu-like symptoms which come on,
then recede and then come again.

Also known as Chronic Fatigue
Syndrome or the Yuppie Flu, the
symptoms -~ swolien  giands,
headaches, intense muscle pain,
fever, sensitivity to light, as well as
cognitive dysfunctions such as
forgetfulness and inability to con-
centrate — can last for years.

ME sufferers can lose their jobs,
their friends, be forced to aban-
danon their education. The disease
brings about a total lack of energy.

Dr. Marlene Hunter, a West
Vancouver physician, says she per-
sists in calling the disease CFS (its
former name), because that is what
patients complain of most.

“The main symptoms arc this
incredible fatigue. And [I don’t
mean just tired — I mean can-
not-move fatigue, just can’t get
out of bed. The muscles won't
work,’’ Hunter says.

Cook, 37, is typical of the type
of person who is hit by ME.

“*T used to be very active — river
rafting, skiing. I'm not able to do
that any more. I’m good for about
15 minutes and that’s it,** Cook
says.

But she could be considered one
of the lucky ones. Whereas many
ME sufferers don’t work for years,
Cook has managed to work as a
freelance design draftswoman,
determined not to go on welfare.

“*F have times when I can barely
function. I work four or five hours
a day. Some can’t.”

So far there is no practical test
for ME, nor a cure.

“*You can do some very
sophisticated testing with regard to
the immune system, and in the
laboratories, where the research is
going on, they’re developing those,
but in fact it’s very difficult to find
a practical diagnostic test at the
present time. That's part of the
frustration."’

With no cure, doctors can only
treat the symptoms, which often
require anti-depressants for pa-

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tients who must adjust to having
theirs lives halted by the disease.

“Because it is young people,
very active people, it adds to the
frustration. They begin to wonder
what’s - wrong with them. Their
friends begin to say, ‘‘Why don’t
you just pull yourself together?’
which is again compounding the
problem,’’ Hunter says.

“They do their best to find a
physician who understands it and
who will believe them — that’s the
first step. And then it becomes a
matter of coping with the symp-
toms because you can’t cure what
you don’t know the cause of.

“It is reasonable to give anti-
depressants to someone who has a
strong depressive component but
that doesn’t cure the situation.
Anti-depressants also, interestingly
enough, sometimes relieve the
muscle pain that goes along with it
and improve the sleep pattern

See CFS
Page 43

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NEWS photo Neil Lucente
PEOPLE SUFFERING from chronic fatigue sydrome (CFS) know the
real meaning of the phrase ‘‘burnt out.’’ Contrary to its ‘“‘yuppy flu” tag,
CFS is a disease which can hit either sex, any age and any socio-economic

group.

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