Edit: THIS "POSITIVE" POST DID NOT AGE WELL.....
"I won’t be returning to hard exercise for a good while yet, tho. This was my worst/most serious relapse for 18 years" - sadly, turning into my worst relapse for 22+ years. 2022 became a catastrophe.
>>
Phew. I’m well again. A lucky escape. I was “only” sick for six
weeks. Having been in remission from PVFS/ME for 14 years, it was frightening.
I’ve been v lucky but also – sensible.
I’m writing this here not for attention, as it’s trivial, but
as a small example of #StopRestPace for an initial, “mild”, postviral reaction.
If you’re not interested, please scroll past, no hate please.
It started with a nasty gastro virus, (mid-October), which I thought initially
was merely “indigestion” (the “power” of positive thinking!); within 3 days I
had diarrhoea & a nasty “woozy”, “wrong” head. Worrying. But not acute. No worries.
I pulled out of a race that w/e (I’m a competitive veteran
athlete) and rested - for one day. The next day, I decided I was “OK” again (“You’ll
be fine mate!”), & ran 9km off-road in 45 minutes (a standard session). I felt
ghastly afterwards.
The next day I had to pull an afternoon sickie from work – a
first. My brain was fogged & “wrong”, & I was exhausted. I rested all
week (apart from work - which was a struggle), & just about got thru the
WFH 4-day week desk job.
On the w/e, I walked 5km Saturday, then on Sunday, jogged
2.5km “to prove I’m OK now”. On Monday, I was so fogged and unwell I could not
read or watch TV, & was in bed, distressed, dosed up; that week was bad, I
rested all weekend, but …
Then things got worse, & I could not even do my job.
After a 1 hour Zoom, I was in bed with eye flaps on and earplugs in. This was
the biggest reality check of all. My
pulse was high, and I felt dizzy/woozy. I was nearly 3 weeks in. This is
serious now.
I called in sick & saw my GP. All tests were “normal”.
BUT he was very attentive/good, & signed me off all week, told to REST
(which I knew already). So I rested, and only did what I had to, and rested *before*
I felt “awful” (“tired” is not the right word).
A week later (always stopping anything well BEFORE I felt
unwell), I realised my brain was no longer “woozy” all the time; I gently
resumed my desk WFH job, & in the next few days, being careful, I was lucky
in that things improved. There were no guarantees of course.
I went on holiday to Mallorca, where “the change of
scene/sunshine will do you good”. Unlike certain Garner-like people, I did no
scuba diving nor 5k runs, but instead found I was getting woozy symptoms most
days, and overdid it – a 2hr v gentle walk. The weather was a bit crap.
Even on the final day of my trip, I was having “wrong” head.
I headed home and things picked up despite freezing temps & Storm Arwen.
Maybe things had run their course. I was tired but my brain was clear as a
bell. OMG.
By a week later, my brain was fine, I was 100% engaged with work
again. Caution over the next 2 weeks saw no bad days or symptoms. So what does this say? It was
only a “mild” postviral. I fully believe that had I “pushed on” with sport,
work, etc, I would now be in a terrible, terrible state. Unthinkable. Shudder.
Mild? Yes. ME/cfs symptoms were: Brain fog, proper fatigue
not relieved by rest, no mental stamina, food intolerances. Those that did NOT
appear were: Myalgia, racing heart at rest, orthostatic int., sleep disturb,
booze intol, dry eyes, sensitivity to light /noise. Amusingly, I barely make Sharpe's weak 1994 "CFS" criteria. For that, I'm glad.
Moral? Stop. Rest. Pace. #StopRestPace. #DoLessFeelBetter. There is no sense in
pushing on through. It just does not work for postviral autoimmune flares. Do not
try to “think” yourself better. Don’t say “I’ll be fine!”. Positive thinking can actively damage.
Would this have stopped my ME/cfs acute postviral onset in 1997? No. Then, I went down 20 times worse & with many more symptoms; this was MILD. It may have lessened my severity, but no – sadly *that* was unavoidable….
Lessons learned? No. None. (OK - that cycle ride & run, but come on.....) (I don't feel 100% every day of the year - who does? - but I do sport regularly). I couldn’t have predicted it,
& I did everything I could - fast. Glad
I was only off work sick one week (my job is really important to me & the
project). But my 6-week ghastly “blip” does lend itself to the twin theories
that:
1) Catch it early & you’ll do better, and 2) The more mild the onset, the more likely the outcome will be better / faster. I held these two things close during the bad times & the crashing / bad days. I won’t be returning to hard exercise for a good while yet, tho. This was my worst/most serious relapse for 18 years.
x
