kettlethorpe7

I've had CFS since the Christmas-New Year holiday of 1989-1990 and I have tried everything that my insurance would pay for (and a few things the wouldn't -- like Cat's Claw and other exotic supplements).

. Some things worked for a while, some didn't work, and some made me worse. But what can you do when the pain, the misery, the sheer awfulness of this syndrome leaves you curled up on the bed whimpering and crying?

.Some things work for some people for a while some times. Something that helped at the very first (two Ibuprofin) became actually laughable later; then came Ultram, a drug of joy because it actually made the pain go away (for me); then came hydrocodone . . . all these, and with various SSRIs in varying quantities -- nothing helped much and not for long.

Somewhere around 2010 (after twenty years) I seemed to reach a plateau. I'm still in the woods of CFS but much of the time I can see the light through the trees. I am so grateful for this.

My suggestion (and this is MY stuff based on MY experiences) would be to try what there is, read up on it, keep a journal about it, and try it for ninety days and make a decision -- but feel free to stop it sooner than that if it is not improving your quality of life.

.CFS is such a horrible thing, and I feel so badly for anyone who suffers with it (including myself) -- but what can you do but (hopefully) find a doctor who understands that it is all too real, educate yourself (and others), and smile sweetly when everyone tells you, ". . . But you look so good!". . . ?

I would recommend it to those who need it and who can handle it properly. Your doctor needs to be involved.

This is my pill of last resort. I start with Tylenol and Ultram and walking. This is all I need most days. If this doesn't help my next step is Zanaflex, and this really does help (but I must be careful of falling). After an hour or so if the pain is still not bearable, then I take the oxycodone and go to bed.

I am never out of pain but I have learned to cope with a certain level (while taking the Tylenol and Ultram). I always wait too long before I take the Zanaflex and much too long before I take the oxycodone. I might take three 4mg tablets a day for two or three days -- and then take none for two or three weeks. I only take them when I absolutely, desperately need the relief they bring.

The need for medication varies so much from day to day -- I know the weather affects my pain level as does prior activity and pressure, and sometimes there seems to be no reason at all why the pain increases.

I am 77 years old and have had Fibromyalgia and Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (like Chronic Fatigue Syndrome) for twenty years. But I am a very lucky woman who has a cup that is half-full and who can still find much joy in my life. But I dread thinking of how unbearable my life would be without my pain medications.