Copyright, Claire Williams, 2004-2005. All Rights Reserved.


I'm writing this article because I would have appreciated someone warning me about unknowingly pushing myself into a severe relapse of PVFS (ME/CFS) a few years ago (when I was struggling to keep my full-time job).

Most working ME/ Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) and Fibromyalgia (FM) sufferers face the same kind of problems at some point during their illness:

Should they continue work? Should they cut down? Or should they stop completely? And if they stop where will the money come from?

Unless you're on your way to full recovery, ME/CFS and FM and full-time jobs (especially demanding or stressful ones) can be a recipe for disaster. So if you feel that you're 'running faster than your legs can carry you' (so to speak) then please LISTEN to your body.

Be VERY careful because you walk a VERY fine line when you push yourself as a ME/CFS or FM sufferer. It's all too easy to get worse, but soooo difficult to get better.

I remember when I worked full-time and commuted into central London during my brief remission a few years ago. Three pitiful months was all I could manage! By the end of it I was on my knees and heading into a massive relapse that ended up being more severe than before. And this time I was much worse... because this time...I became housebound.

But while I was working I tried my best to ignore the 'warning signals'. I kept thinking 'I'll be ok - everyone gets tired'.

But inside I knew - it was a different kind of *tired*. And it was not 'just' the unrelenting fatigue and exhaustion either. As you know, when you have ME/CFS or FM, you get a heap of other debilitating and uncomfortable symptoms too.

My advice to anyone suffering from ME/CFS or FM is to take a VERY serious look at how your health is going. What is your body telling (or sometimes screaming at) you? If it feels like you're on a 'downward spiral' then maybe it's time to stop and take stock of the situation. How much can you cope with? How much longer do you think you'll last? Deep inside you know.

The decisions that we make - about how much our bodies can and cannot take, are not to be taken lightly. Remember that ignoring the state of your health and just 'hoping for the best' is a decision in itself, and this decision to 'carry on regardless' can have very severe consequences.

And since it's often extremely difficult for sufferers to get better, the last thing you want to do is to actively *worsen* your condition and make it even more difficult for yourself to recover. Worst case scenario - you could push yourself into a severe relapse where you can't work at all, so prevention is better here.

Click here to read more tips about how to manage and deal with ME/ Chronic Fatigue Syndrome !

And for friendly online support click here...

This article will be concluded in part II, where we will look at two alternative income options you may have if you are indeed faced with quitting your job due to ill health.


Copyright, Claire Williams, 2004-2005. All Rights Reserved.