As a family of four, three of us have been diagnosed with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) and Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME). Myself, my mother and my younger sister. My mother and I were diagnosed in 1991 when I was aged 12 and she was 39. My sister became ill when she was 15/16 years old in 1998.

Obviously this is has been a tragedy of indescribable proportions for us as a family. My sister and I have (so far) had our youths and young adulthood stolen and our mum was not only struck down in the prime of her life but has had to watch both of her children suffer horribly, directly as a result of CFS and also due to society's attitude towards it. That we are certainly not the only family to be in this horrible situation is certainly no comfort. I would not wish this illness on anyone. According to recent research you are almost three times as likely to develop CFS yourself if a first degree relative is a sufferer; even a third degree relative with CFS in this study meant being twice as likely to be a victim than if there was no family history of the condition¹.

So it is becoming clear that there is a genetic or heritable component to CFS and it is common for multiple family members to be affected.

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Sleep problems are common among the general population but particularly so among those suffering from 'environmental', or 'invisible', illnesses such as chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), fibromyalgia (FMS) and multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS). Everyone will be familiar with common causes of insomnia and poor sleep quality such as consumption of stimulants like caffeine (coffee, tea, soda/fizzy drinks) and psychological factors such as work or relationship stresses. For those suffering from environmental illnesses there may be other less obvious contributors to sleep problems, however.

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