Chronic Fatigue Syndrome impairs the lifestlyes of roughly one million US adults.  Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (commonly known as CFS) is largely described by its name, but it takes a bit more than this to diagnose CFS. If you have found that you are unusually tired for reasons not related to exertion or lack of sleep, use this handy guide to discern whether you might be suffering from CFS.

If you are consistently feeling tired or fatigued for no specific reason, this is one of the first signs of CFS. Your regular activity levels would be decreased by this fatigue if you have CFS. If this is the case for you, it is probably time for you to start looking for the additional signs of CFS.

The following are among the additional signs of CFS: decreased levels of memory or concentration; muscle pain for no discernable reason; headaches that have increased in regularity or severity from what you are used to; a persistent and recurring soar throat; joint pain; and sleep that hardly refreshes you at all. If you find that a combination of these symptoms is persisting for around six months or longer, you should plan to see a physician so they can test you for CFS. A diagnosis from a doctor is likely to come from process of elimination, as CFS is defined and diagnosed a lot of different ways. If you visit a physician and they are unable to find any other causes for your symptoms, you just might be classified as having CFS.

While CFS has a number of “cures,” none of them have been proven to work across the board. The severity of CFS comes into play here, as does the instigating factor. For instance, if you are deemed to be experiencing CFS as a result of depression, this might be solved by taking antidepressants. Furthermore, dietary adjustments and regular exercise can help some people combat their bouts with CFS. If you discover that you have CFS yourself, you would be prudent to try and find a doctor who has dealt with CFS before. Such a doctor will be better-equipped to help you with the nuances of this terrible affliction.

Hopefully, if you find yourself feeling tired all the time for no reason that you can put your finger on, you can wait it out and it will go away. If, however, it does not simply go away, you might have CFS, and you will certainly want to begin fighting it as quickly as you can.