Fatigue

[monkeybus]

I've written about fatigue plenty before. But I never tire of bleating away, moaning about my condition.

Fatigue, I hate it. Lunchtime, on Monday, I was in the elevator with a colleague.

Me - "Do you feel tired?"

Him - "No".

Only three hours into the day, but 15 years into daily, constant fatigue. Wake up tired, tired all day, go to sleep tired.

I've been easing off on the Modafinil lately. Just to give my brain a rest. I find that 4-AP-3-MeOH and Piracetam does a half-way decent job of keeping me functioning. It used to be that work was akin to a waking nightmare, I was so fatigued. Tired ain't the word.

I can battle through the day now. The only thing is when I get home and all the medication starts to wear off, I get short tempered. I just can't take loud noise, almost to the point where I have mild synesthesia. I can see sounds. I've been like this since I was a kid.

Is this just me?

I'm very interested in hearing how bad (or good) everyone else's fatigue levels are, how you deal with it, etc.

I've never had any neurologist take my fatigue seriously. Amantadine was the best they could do. I am writing this at the end of a 2 year, daily Modafinil binge. 2 years, every day. If anything, I am having a break from it just so I can restart in a couple of weeks time and feel the joy of being truly awake again.

[wilburlois15]

I am glad to say that mental fatigue is not something on my menu of AMN symptoms, or at least not in a way that affects my life. Until recently I worked long hours: 10-12 a day, sitting in a chair, which wasn't great for my legs at all, plus something like 2 and a half hours commuting per day, which was basically the only exercise I got. Frankly, tiredness or fatigue was probably the only problem I didn't have with that regime and getting up at 5 after 6 hours' sleep wasn't an issue, even when kids have meant that I could never catch-up at weekends.

I get tired in evenings, yes, but yearning at go to bed at 10 isn't far from what I've always experienced. And even now I don't commute, I am usually the earliest out of bed in the morning in the house.

I don't take any medication for AMN or anything else. Part of this is my dogmatism, part a fear of side effects / becoming reliant.

Angus

[monkeybus in reply to wilburlois15]

I used to be up, work, lunch then sleep, work, get home at 7pm, eat, straight to bed.

Usually fast asleep around 8pm.

Getting up early is no problem though.

What are your symptoms, Angus?

[wilburlois15 in reply to monkeybus]

legs and bladder. The latter came first but hasn't changed much in a decade or so. Legs have been progressively getting worse but I try to keep as active as possible, which seems to help. Or at least inactivity makes things worse...

[StevenMincey]

Smoothies! I have sustained energy throughout the day by consuming these. I use nutritional yeast, unsweetened almond milk, berries(straw, black, cran and/or blue), beets, carrots, and greens(spinach, kale, collards, etc). I usually switch up the ingredients from time to time but the yeast and milk always stay, and make sure you get all of your colors in there(greens, reds, oranges, etc.).

This drink is packed with B vitamins.

Stay away from sugar too! it's evil

I hope this helps

[monkeybus]

It does help, Steven. I'm reading the Wahls Protocol at the moment.

I'm looking at a complete overhaul of my diet/lifestyle. Though I did have a Big Mac today (no fries), first time in nearly a year.

"If it is not going to heal you, don't eat it."

I shouldn't have had the McDonalds.

[Catherine62]

I couldn't agree more about the sugar. Cutting it out of the diet led to measurable improvements in both mental and physical fatigue.

[Hidden]

Hi Monkeybus,

I have had years of experience with fatigue too until I finally figured it out. Not sure if mine would be relative to you. Basically for me adrenal fatigue and candida overgrowth went hand in hand.

May be worth a shot to take a look at the lists of symptoms regarding candida overgrowth. Note: some lists are more complete than others. I had so many symptoms that I didn't even think of as being symptoms. Common stuff like vaginal yeast and bacterial infections, itchy skin, constipation or diarrhea. Bad pms, mine actually developed into endometriosis. However since I have been healing that has improved incredibly.

You can have your doctor take a stool sample and test it, or there are home tests you can do. There is the spit test which costs you no money, also I believe there are home blood tests you can buy online too.

If you do have candida overgrowth take it seriously. I never knew how dangerous candida is until I went through what I went through. I just posted a summary of my experience in hopes I can help others avoid going through what I did.

Good luck to you!

Best regards, Seraphim

[julie_]

Hi monkeybus,

I don't experience fatigue the way you have been experiencing it, but I do have bouts of fatigue that last for short periods. Usually, I am tired because I've walked too long - half hour or, say, a mile. At the point of tiredness, my muscles lose any coordination, my joints weaken, and then I need to sit down for half an hour. At this point, I will be tired of sitting and I need to move again. It's a vicious cycle.

Noise will also make me tired. Unfortunately, i live and work in NYC (native), so I will run for solitude whenever I can. I am awake by 6:30 am and I sleep by midnight.

As far as diet goes, I have read The Wahl Protocol. I was already on a paleo-type diet for the last year, which is very helpful. It is possible it helps me with fatigue because I eat much less gluten and sugar and much less processed foods. I prepare many of my own meals, using paleo compliant ingredients. Since being on the diet, I notice that when I veer off the diet with the wrong foods, I do feel weighed down and lethargic and generally tired.

Exercise and movement give me energy. I go to the gym 3 times a week and now I'm considering adding another day to the routine. If only I could have someone carry my gear for me! The office makes everything worse, but I need my job.