r/chronicfatigue

Tired, heart palpitations, dizziness and I feel like I'm going through the menopause again with terrible swings in temperatures.

I have this feeling that my SO doesn't believe me. I showered yesterday and was so breathless, but he wanted me to go outside 😩

I walked around a small shop, came home and slept 😴 How can I be this tired all the time

Posting this here cus I know most of you are probably In the same boat and I’m desperate for a remedy. I drink energy drinks at work and eat caffeine cubes, I sleep a lot, I even did the b12 shots for a while but found that they made 0 difference. Has anything really worked for anyone to not feel like a zombie??

EDIT: please stop suggesting medical amphetamines lol I do not live in America

Who should I see about severe fatigue? My rheumatologist has done absolutely nothing for me in this aspect of things. I've been in the care of my rheumatologist for about two years and have brought up my worsening fatigue every time. I've already seen a sleep specialist and had a sleep study to rule out sleep apnea and other disorders. It's gotten to the point where I'm worried about losing my job because of how much I call out due to fatigue alone. I just don't know what to do.

I’ve been dealing with chronic stress and depression for a long time. About eight months ago, I started developing severe physical and mental fatigue, and since then I’ve become increasingly dysfunctional in my daily life.

My main symptoms are:

- Severe physical fatigue

- Mental fatigue and brain fog

- Difficulty concentrating and focusing

- Struggling to maintain my normal day-to-day routine

- Feeling exhausted most of the time

I’ve seen a general physician and had multiple tests done. Eventually, I was referred to a psychiatrist. For the past 7–8 months, I’ve been taking antidepressants, and I’ve tried multiple medications, but unfortunately, they haven’t resolved the fatigue or brain fog.

I don’t currently feel depressed or anxious, and I’m not experiencing migraines, epilepsy, or seizures. The most significant symptoms are simply the physical fatigue and mental fatigue/brain fog.

Could this be ME/CFS (chronic fatigue syndrome), or could there be another explanation for these symptoms?

Also tell me, what should I do next?

Which blood tests should I get done to rule out actual cause?

Hi everyone,

Has anyone experienced extreme, debilitating fatigue with no obvious explanation, and found anything that genuinely helped?

I’m at the point where I’m so exhausted that I can’t function normally. I can’t work, keep up with my university course, attend classes or even meet friends. I’m normally an extremely social and positive person, which makes this feel even more unlike me. I’m sleeping throughout the day and night, sometimes only managing a few hours awake, and I’m cancelling almost everything.

I’ve explored whether this could be my depression or anxiety, but it genuinely doesn’t feel like either I know what depression and anxiety exhaustion is like. I’ve had extensive blood tests and medical investigations, but so far there hasn’t been an explanation. The exhaustion is debilitating enough that I’ve been signed off work.

Someone suggested that it could be a form of spiritual/emotional exhaustion after dealing with trauma and difficult experiences for years. I find that interesting because I’ve always considered myself very resilient and adaptable. Things have happened that my friends say they wouldn’t know how to cope with, but to me dealing with difficult situations has almost become normal.

I’m spiritual and have considered Reiki, but I’m also sceptical about whether it would actually help and whether the cost is justified. Has anyone with severe fatigue tried it and noticed a genuine difference?

I’m also in therapy, but that hasn’t improved the physical exhaustion.I know ME/CFS is another possibility, although obviously I’m not trying to diagnose myself through Reddit. I’m really just looking for experiences from anyone who has dealt with this level of exhaustion. What helped you function again? Was there anything you wish you’d known earlier?

Medical, practical, psychological or spiritual suggestions are all welcome. I realise this is quite vague, but at this point I’d genuinely appreciate hearing what has helped other people.

Do you know if there is such a person as a health journey detective? Someone who is able to help a chronically ill person with their complex history and translate that into data, graphics, etc that can be taken to a doctor more easily than a pile of records? Would someone in a role like this need to be in the medical field if they’re just presenting data?

I’m just curious if this community has come across any websites, people, ore resources who do this?

How does one tell the difference and is the treatment different depending on the cause?

TLDR at the bottom

hi i know a lot of people post here when things are bad and everyone here is in a similar boat, but i dont really know where else to turn and i trust people with lived experiences. hopefully someone reads this but i understand if not.

i have spent my life overcoming health issues. growing up i was always pretty sickly but things became rapidly severe when i was 11 and i was pulled out of school, couldn’t get up most days, couldn’t keep anything down etc. eventually with a WIDE variety of treatments i was pretty healed by the age of 15 but always had low body weight, fatigue, low appetite etc. anyway, fast forward to when im 19 i start getting rapidly sick again.

this time, im diagnosed with GERD and gastritis (now on esomeprazole), gastroparesis (3 procedures and now on domperidone), endometriosis and adenomyosis (excision surgery incl. tumour removal, and yasmin). i was feeling a lot better for a while with all the medication. i got back to a healthy body weight, gained muscle, was outside all the time, exercising a lot, back at uni, socialising etc.

but i have been struck with horrific fatigue. i have always been super driven, disciplined and hard working; despite a lot of early life struggle i got into the top university in the southern hemisphere and sit around the top 3-5% of my cohort (BSci). but i am literally at the point where i feel like i can barely function because of this fatigue and i don’t know what to do. im trying to do everything right.

everything has been investigated; mris, CTs, X-rays, extensive blood work (iron, B12, nutrients, thyroid etc. all normal) and it doesn’t seem to have a cause. i’m dreading that it could be me/cfs. however i am awaiting an EEG for potential epilepsy have i have idiopathic myoclonus and since i have a family history of epilepsy, they’re wondering if it could be that.

TLDR: i want a way to achieve all of my goals, work hard, live a fulfilling life despite this debilitating fatigue. i desperately want to be healthy and will do anything. please give me any advice you have. thank you for your time.

Diagnosed with chronic fatigue symptoms, doctors looking into CFS or fibro at the moment. Hair is just under my shoulder blades and probably 1c or 2a.

Does anyone else struggle with hair washing? I can barely brush it due to muscle weakness from another condition, but it’s really bad. If I scratch my scalp I literally get grease residue under my fingernails. Washing it is a whole ordeal, often have to get my mom’s help, and it leaves me exhausted for at least the rest of the day and usually multiple days after. How do people do this multiple times a month? Feels like a Herculean task. Would love to know if anyone has tips on making it easier.

hi,

so I was referred to the PCASS (persistent conditions assessment and support service) as they state on their website they do cover suspected ME/CFS. So my doctor referred me and then about 10 days later we get a response telling me my referral was "rejected" because they didn't see how the PCASS could provide support to me and suggested it was "fatigue"...which I of course know xD

They suggested a referral to the "CFS service". But then I've heard nothing and I can't seem to find this service online. The PCASS site for my area literally states it is appropriate for ME/CFS?

Has anyone experienced this? Have you been referred to this mystery "CFS service"? I'm really confused. I'll be phoning GP on monday but trying to get as much information as possible too.

Edit: I’m a male. 33yo

Since I was a teenager in high school, no matter how much I slept, I was always brutally exhausted. I would fall asleep in math class and get sent to detention, but I literally could not help it. I would come home from school, dragging my feet and all of those things still happen today. A little bit of background, I had a rough childhood and still struggle from stress, anxiety, and depression. I also have some pretty bad ADD. I had a sleep study done years ago and they said they think I’m narcoleptic and tried a few medicines, and ended up using the one that they said is in the “date rape drug “. With that medicine, I would often wake up while on it and feel extremely funky, and I hated it. And it didn’t help.
Fast-forward a few years, I saw a new doctor and I had an additional sleep study done. Both doctors said I fall to an REM sleep within like seven minutes. She, after everything was set and done, said she believes it’s from anxiety and stress, depression, and diagnosed me with chronic fatigue syndrome.
With a family, two kids, and one on the way, I’m struggling. Some days I feel like all I can do is lay in bed and when I get up, I have absolutely zero energy. I also suffer from brain fog, and my memory sucks. When something awesome happens that makes me very happy, I sometimes feel totally energized. But that is rare. Today, I feel like I have nothing in me and I’m fighting with everything I have not to lay back down. I don’t have sleep attacks or cataplexy. But I’m miserable and I desperately need Answers.
Is anyone else going through similar? Does anyone have any advice? I do take Vybriid for anxiety and depression, but it doesn’t do much for me.

Due to some stuff with my family, i’ll need to be awake for a couple of hours on monday at a time where im normally asleep. It’s extremely difficult for me to just deal with being tired, as im sure you all know too well. Does anyone have any tips or tricks? I can go back to sleep after the 2 hours luckily. I’m just feeling extra frustrated today with my chronic fatigue. I envy the people who can step up when they’re needed even if they’ve barely slept.

I’m 19, about to turn 20. This started when I was around 18 and has gradually gotten worse. I’m very active/fit, around 11% body fat, and usually sleep about 9 hours a night. I don’t normally nap.
It’s hard to remember exactly what I felt like when this first started, but initially I described it almost like dissociation / constantly feeling out of it. More recently, the biggest thing I notice is that I am sleepy and mentally foggy all the time, even after sleeping plenty.

My main symptoms are:
Constant tiredness/daytime sleepiness
Zoning out very easily
Bad memory and recall
can’t bring myself to do things
Forgetfulness
Doing things on “autopilot”
Getting lost in my thoughts while doing something and then suddenly realizing I’ve continued doing the action without really paying attention
Generally feeling mentally “out of it”
(examples for context:
I walked into the locker room specifically to weigh myself. While I was standing on the scale I got a phone call, stepped off, and started walking away. A few seconds later I realized I never even looked at the number.
Another time I was washing my face and repeatedly scooping water and splashing it on my face. I started thinking about a show I had watched earlier and then suddenly realized I was still washing my face. I couldn’t tell how long I had been doing it.)

What I’ve had checked
I first went to a doctor and had bloodwork done. I was told everything looked normal and was diagnosed with ADHD. I tried short-acting Adderall. It didn’t make me suddenly feel amazing or euphoric — the best way I can describe it is I felt like myself, but on Adderall. It helped me function, but it didn’t answer why I feel so bad normally. I also don’t want the solution to just be taking a stimulant every school/work day while feeling terrible whenever I don’t take it.
A few months later I saw another doctor took bupropion for 30 days, felt no difference, and had another pretty extensive set of labs done. Again, nothing obvious showed up.
Recent results included:
TSH: 1.63
Free T4: 1.4
Vitamin D: 42
B12: 983
Folate: 16.5
Ferritin: 81
Iron: 95
Iron saturation: 29%
Hemoglobin: 15.5
A1c: 5.6%
Fasting glucose: 86
Total testosterone: 390 ng/dL
Free testosterone: 63.4 pg/mL
CBC/CMP were basically normal as well.
I also did a home sleep study, which diagnosed mild obstructive sleep apnea. My AHI was 5.3, RDI 9.6, average oxygen saturation 94%, and minimum oxygen was 89%.
I went to an ENT afterward and was told my airway/anatomy looked fine.

I tried CPAP for about two weeks. I didn’t notice any improvement in how I felt during the day. If anything my actual sleep felt worse because the mask/CPAP kept waking me up, so I eventually stopped using it.

Please Any help or ideas are appreciated, thank you very much 🙏

Prelude: All due respect to those who are lucky to take even one step out of bed. I see you!

Question: If before you developed ME/CFS you were a fast walker ( everywhere!), did you train yourself to walk slower so to conserve energy? It finally dawned on me that my normal habit of being a fast walker ( probably because I have short legs) is probably making my fatigue worse. So not only have I had to learn to pace all activities during the day, but now when I do them I have to resist the urge to zip around the house because I get a burst of energy. I keep forgetting that I have a small tank of energy at that moment and going faster doesn’t use less of that energy.

F 29, gym 2-3 times a week. I work a 9-5. I am exhausted ALL THE TIME. I eat healthy, do not smoke, rarely drink. I do not sleep well- I wake up at night a lot (either pee or bf snoring) but I’ve always woken up at night several times (at least since i started to work at a bank 8 years ago. I take vitamin D daily and all my blood analysis including iron always come out fine. Why am I tired all the time?

I am a 23 year old male and for about a year and a half between 2024-2025 I dealt with chronic fatigue. Compared to the horror stories I’ve heard on this sub I’d say it was relatively minor considering I could still work and go to school but it did greatly diminish my standard of living. Symptoms included obviously fatigue, weakness in the muscles, and my body being inadequate in regulating heat. About July of last year I started a new medication regimen that included low dose naltrexone, nadh, nad+, vitamin d+k3, and a men’s complete multivitamin which I believe is what helped and after a while I started to feel normal again. A few months in completely fatigue free I thought I was completely in the clear but about a week and half ago, it came back out of nowhere. Pretty much since the first day it came back I’ve been back on the medication I was on but it hasn’t been much help. I’m hoping it’ll just take some time to kick in but at the end of the day I really have no idea even if the medication I was on helped or if it was a complete coincidence. No doctor was ever able to find what was wrong with me and I was pretty much just shooting in the dark with choosing medication. Has this happened to anyone before? Were you able to find out what caused your fatigue to come back and what made it go away? I am grateful I know my fatigue can go away given the right circumstances but I’m still scared that I won’t be able to recreate them.

I’m hoping to hear from people who have experienced something similar because this level of fatigue is very different from anything I’ve experienced before.
I’ve been dealing with significant fatigue. It started randomly in January and has been pretty persistent. Sometimes my eyes feel extremely heavy, I feel like I’m walking around like a zombie, and my energy can feel completely depleted What’s confusing is how much it fluctuates. There are days when I feel like I’ll be able to mildly function , and other days where I feel overwhelmingly exhausted and literally want to sleep in the bathroom at work. I’m desperate to get this figured out I’ve been to the er 3 times now, my primary doctor, currently being evaluated by a neurologist, a therapist and even joined allara hoping someone can help me figure it out. The only thing blood results have flagged are low normal iron and low normal vitamin D and B1. I’ve been taking supplements for the D and B1 for about 4 months and the iron for about and month and nothing has changed. I just had a brain MRI 2 days ago and it’s getting the point of me thinking it’s cancer or something very serious because it’s been persistent for 8 months. I had a stretch between may and June where It did let up a bit and I was out shopping again ect but my energy reserve is so low I come home everyday and immediately find the couch. I come home during my lunch break too everyday and also lay down on the couch. Has anyone experienced anything like this?

i’m 21f, i have had chronic fatigue since i was 15.

i’m diagnosed with hashimotos, hypothyroidism and likely have POTS as well (not officially in my chart)

i’ve seen 3 primary cares, a rheumatologist, an endocrinologist and a cardiologist. NONE of these doctors have been able to help me, and most don’t care beyond looking at my labs and saying i’m fine. this weekend i slept 15 hours and i could’ve 100% slept more. i work full time and i cannot be sleeping my life away, im sick of it.

i most recently went to my endocrinologist for my thyroid issues, i discussed the fatigue with him and he disregarded the issue because my “thyroid levels are good”.

i have low ferritin and know that is part of the issue, my PCP will not refer me to hematology to get an infusion due to my ferritin being technically in range.

where do i try next? a neurologist? i have lots of other symptoms in addition to the fatigue, but thats what is really ruling my life atm. how do i find a doctor who will actually listen to me?