All contents

UK Reg charity

No 1108986

terms and conditions

Helpline

Tel 01233 334 879

E-mail enquiries

Website Maker

Serif

WEBPLUSX2

You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs.

Proventus.org.uk

Improving Life - Increasing Hope

“The body is a complex dance between stimuli and response.”

Multiple Sclerosis & Fatigue

Fatigue within MS - is not experienced as an ordinary tiredness, the type that occurs after vigorous exercise or a day of hard work.

It is more like an unexplained - overwhelming sense of tiredness that appears without reason and sweeps through the body.

There are other factors that affect an MS person and their sense of tiredness. It is important to address these issues as part of managing the fatigue patterns in Multiple Sclerosis.

Fatigue is a common symptom experienced by MS people (it is a common symptom experienced in nearly every disease and disorder).

The first effort to be made is self-management - understanding the problem.

There is no set pattern of fatigue that assists in developing guidelines for MS people to follow.

Every individual is different to the next.

Because every person is different it becomes important for the individual to encompass responsibility for their own disease.

There are others who assist in the management of disease:

Health professionals

Social care professionals

Clinicians (medication ~ drugs) Physiotherapists

Rehabilitation centres

Complementary therapy (not to be confused with alternative therapies, such therapies cannot present cure for serious diseases).

None of the available help that assists in the management of disease will benefit the individual unless they themselves grasp the issue of self-management.

Depression - anxiety, stress and tension will contribute to your fatigue pattern 1.

It is common for people to experience anxiety or depression when diagnosed with MS, for some, these feelings may become easier to manage as they come to terms with what is happening to them.

You are responsible for

your own health - others are there to support you.

Denial: Others may initially go into denial when they are first diagnosed with MS, it is not uncommon – this may cause them, and others to be unable to understand the problems surrounding their fatigue patterns.

MS symptoms will contribute to the fatigue patterns.

Muscle weakness

Pain

Tremors

Muscle spasms. Ref P2/7

To enable the MS person to have a greater understanding and ability to manage their fatigue and at the same time enabling others to understand their fatigue problems a record of how and what symptoms they are experiencing and the level of intensity, (scale 1-10), during fatigue periods may be of help.

Bladder Control

Bowel Control

Muscle Weakness

Heat Intolerance

Cold Intolerance

Balance / Falling

Coordination

Foot Drop

Use of Legs

Use of Hands

Speech

Swallowing / Choking