The Underappreciated Key to a Successful Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Program

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) is both challenging to deal with and devastating to experience. You know the experts are puzzled when a condition has 3 or more different names. According to the National Library of Medicine CFS is also known as:

  • Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME)
  • Systemic Exertion Intolerance Disease (SEI)

Medicine sure likes to make things more complicated than they need be. Regardless of the name we apply to it, Chronic Fatigue makes every aspect of life challenging. Let’s explore some different ways of approaching CFS that are safe and effective. 

When you find a condition with different names and a very long list of symptoms it’s often a sign that this is not necessarily the same condition in everyone labeled with it. It’s also an indication no matter how complicated the names that they don’t know what they’re dealing with. 

That’s easy to understand when you realize that medicine is looking for 2 things; 1-what caused the condition, and 2-what drug do they prescribe. As in most conditions their focus is solely on temporary symptom relief.

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Symptoms

Here are the more common symptoms of CFS, ME, and SEI:

  • Severe fatigue that is not improved by rest
  • Sleep problems
  • Post-exertional malaise (PEM), where your symptoms get worse after any physical or mental activity
  • Problems with thinking and concentrating
  • Pain
  • Dizziness

One of the reasons for the list of challenges is that medicine has no way of accurately diagnosing CFS. There is no specific diagnostic test to confirm CFS. In addition, other illnesses can result in the same or similar symptoms. 

According to the CDC up to 2.5 million Americans suffer from CFS/ME though the majority have not been diagnosed. How can you be diagnosed if there are no confirmatory tests? According to the famed Mayo Clinic there is no cure and treatment focuses on symptom relief. 

CFS/ME is Complicated

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome is complicated and in my experience everyone with it has a very different story and suffers to a different degree. My approach is to look at how the body works, how it is being interfered with, and what we can do to correct the interference and imbalances. 

All illness and disease is caused by or accompanied by some interference to the body’s ability to restore homeostasis and heal. From a chiropractic view the body is amazing and there are 3 critical functions of the body that help guide how we approach the body.

  • The human body is self-aware. It is continually monitoring thousands upon thousands of functions from enzymes to hormones to neurotransmitters to heart rate to blood pressure to immune status.
  • The human body is self-regulating. It is taking all the information from monitoring and striving to maintain balance or homeostasis. 
  • The human body is self-healing. All healing happens from within the body. Sometimes it needs some support but the healing happens from within. 

The Keys to a Successful CFS Treatment Program

Those 3 amazing qualities of the human body are performed by the nervous system. The nervous system is responsible for controlling and coordinating every body function. If something is not working it is always accompanied by some altered communication between the brain and the body or an imbalance in the nervous system.

The Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) is the branch of the nervous system responsible for maintaining balance. One type of severe imbalance of the ANS is called Dysautonomia. Interestingly some of the symptoms are eerily similar to CFS. Take a look:

  • Migraines or frequent headaches
  • Sleeping problems
  • Dizziness, lightheadedness, vertigo
  • Brain fog, forgetfulness, can’t focus
  • Ongoing tiredness

The list there is eerily similar to the previous list of the common symptoms of CFS. This offers a clue to the imbalance of the ANS that shows up in CFS. And, this is also an imbalance that shows up to some degree in every departure from health. When it is said that 90% of all illness and disease is stress related, it means that Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) imbalance as a consequence of stress is involved in every departure from health.

CFS, ME, and SEI are no different other than the fact that the imbalance is much more pronounced and severe. 

Autonomic Nervous System

The Autonomic Nervous System consists of two branches with opposite functions. Here’s a quick view into the Sympathetic Nervous System (SNS):

  • Increases heart rate and blood pressure
  • Increases breathing rate
  • Impairs digestion
  • Interferes with healing
  • Impairs quality sleep
  • Interferes with immune function
  • Increases muscle tension and pain
  • Increases systemic inflammation

Just taking the poor sleep, inflammation, and muscle tension and pain one can see a path from health toward CFS over time.

Now, let’s look at the Vagus Nerve of the Parasympathetic Nervous System:

  • Lowers heart rate and blood pressure
  • Promotes digestion
  • Promotes rest, recovery, and healing
  • Supports quality sleep
  • Supports human connection
  • Supports feeling of safety and ease
  • Lowers inflammation

The Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Program Key

It’s clear what medicine has to offer the sufferer of DFS. And, while medication might be needed it isn’t going to change the course of the condition for the better. The key in my experience is not trying to fix the Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. The key is in supporting the body in returning to a state of greater balance, specifically nervous system balance. 

Stress is the key in almost every departure from health. How does that work? Stress activates the Sympathetic Nervous System. When the stress is chronic enough the Sympathetic system takes over and becomes the dominant operating system.

With the sympathetic system overactive over a long time the combination of poor sleep, poor nutrition due to impaired digestion, inflammation and pain, and poor recovery sets the stage for the development of CFS. 

The KEY

The key to reversing the progression of CFS is a focus on the nervous system. The goal with the nervous system is:

  • Remove sources of tension and irritation driving Sympathetic activity
  • Remove sources of interference to the function of the Vagus Nerve
  • Implement practices to raise the tone and activity of the Vagus Nerve

There are a variety of ways to accomplish this but the overriding goal is to return the nervous system to a state of balance. The very existence of CFS and its many symptoms is confirmation of central nervous system imbalance. While the condition might have seemed to come on suddenly, it is the result of long term stress.

As a chiropractor my focus is on correcting sources of nervous system interference. I have a few areas of priority that I focus on:

  • Balancing the upper cervical spine which is often a source of interference to the Vagus Nerve.
  • Restoring motion and encouraging the cervical curve to take tension off the brainstem in the upper cervical spine
  • Balancing the pelvis which is another area tied to the Parasympathetic System.
  • Correcting any sources of irritation to the Sympathetic System in the mid and lower spine.

In addition to correcting sources of interference it is essential to activate the Vagus Nerve. In conditions like CFS the Vagus Nerve has been suppressed for a long time. Correcting this requires daily repetitive stimulation of the Vagus Nerve with a variety of approaches:

  • Diaphragmatic breathing
  • Nasal breathing
  • Conscious breathwork
  • Exposure to nature
  • Personalized movement and touch

By restoring balance to the ANS you can recover from CFS. This is a very chronic condition and recovery is a process that requires time and repetition. This is a journey that requires commitment. The imbalance in the nervous system is significant and it’s going to take regular and repeated activation of the Parasympathetic Nervous System to rebalance the nervous system. 

The positive is that this has no downside and is not in conflict with most anything else you might be doing. 

Make sure to subscribe to my social media channels where I regularly post tips, insights and practices to help you.

Facebook: Life Chiropractic Facebook
YouTube: Life Chiropractic YouTube
Instagram: Life Chiropractic Instagram

Schedule a Consultation, History and Exam here Life Chiropractic