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Fatigue

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I find a regular routine, including regular waking and sleeping times helps. But it still hits me every so often. For long stretches I seemed to need something like 14 hours of sleep a day, but I'm now down to 8, so at least in my experience it does get better.
 
My big achievement at one time was that I opened the blinds. My nuero-psych actually commended me on the accomplishment. I cried at how pitiable that was.

Dave,

Crying now at this. Had a similar experience when I told my doc that I'd mustered the strength to clean the toilet one week. Just so my wife didn't have to. So I could feel I contributed again.

When my doc congratulated me, I felt stupid and began to cry. In a dissociative moment, I thought I looked like a five year old getting positive reinforcement from his mother for not piddling with the toilet seat down.

Though just crying a moment ago, I'm smiling knowing I'm not the only one.
 
Hey Blues, you gave me a lift just now too. It's nice to know we've all had our lows and survived somehow. Man, can I relate to your story. Where do you find your self-respect hiding away on you at those moments, eh? ;P

But it gets better, and we're worth it, man. "I'm a good guy, and I'm doing my best with this thing" is my mantra for today.

take care dude, hang in there,
Dave
 
It's comforting to see that this problem with fatigue is quite common for people with PTSD. The hardest thing I've been adjusting to is the lack of quality sleep. I used to sleep like a log, nothing short of an air horn could wake me in the middle of the night. Now I wake up to the smallest disturbances, and in quite a panic. Also, I'll get a full 8-10 hours sleep and find that it takes me a good hour to ground myself and stop the anxiety. Waking up in a panic is the most irritating thing ever.
 
I'm was really interested to read these posts. Following a viral infection a year ago I was diagnosed with Chronic Fatigue syndrome(CFS) two months later diagnosed with PTSD. I find now that although I don't get the extreme fatigue that lasted for days I do have days when my energy levels are low but I can generally recover after a few hours rest, as well as this i have days when I'm extremly cold & nothing warms me, does anyone else experience this?

Cat,
Hi,
I kept having my lymph nodes swell in my neck and under my arms with fatigue, like arms made of lead, no energy to get up. After a few rounds of antibiotics we did a blood test and I was diagnsosed with Epstein Barr/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. I don't get cold per se, but it is hard for me concerning my temp, it isn't regular, hot, cold, hot, cold...not sure why. Not much can be done about CF/EB but rest. I've had PTSD since age 8 and am now 41.

Disenchanted (I usually sign my posts as Cat....now there's two of us, nice to meetcha! :smile:)
 
Hi Lisa,

You hit the nail on the head with this one. Add poor sleep, dissociation, med side effects and by afternoon I'm a zombie. It always feels like going up hill. At first I had an ADD diagnoses but latter it was decided that my concentration/focus issues are related to anxieties and resulting mental fatigue.

The only tip I have is to be kind to ourselves. There's a reason for the fatigue (as you correctly said --our anxiety never shuts off). The fight/flight/freeze response uses a lot of energy. This is hard, however, when others have expectations of us.

All the best

cec
 
Cold.

I too feel a lot cold. My solution is a "rice blanket" that I sewed and warm up in the microwave so that I can have something warm to help me. It is very comforting when I am feeling this kind of cold.

This blanket is basically a cotton fabric were I sewed stripes up and down then filled with rice and sewed side to side many times forming squares.
 
Wow...I thought it was only me that got cold for no apparent reason. When my anxiety kicks up not only do I get fatiuged even quicker but I feel cold and achy, too.

Sometimes I'll put a heating pad on my back and lay under blanket just to warm myself up to 'normal'.

Those insensitive idiots that tell us this is all in our heads really need to take a tour through PTSD land.

Lisa
 
Lisa

Now that is an interesting little tidbit of info---one I can not identify with at all. When my anxiety kicks in even slightly I sweat like a whore in church! Sorry but that is how I have always described it. Sweat POURS form my body which of course contributes to my fatigue.

I can't imagine what it would be like to be cold like that. All I do is sweat--A LOT and often. YUCK! ! It is the one thing about this that I absolutely loathe. I sweat like a day laborer working in 100 degree weather.

Good Lord, no wonder I'm *fatigued* LOL
 
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