What should you do if you think you have ME?
Moderator: talkhealth
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craigmorris
- Posts: 7
- Joined: Tue Aug 06, 2013 7:37 am
What should you do if you think you have ME?
I believe I have severe ME because I had to fight so hard for my ME diagnosis and because of a wall of indifference and ignorance by the medical professionals I went to for help. What is best practice for those who fear they have ME? I would recommend rest, learning more about pacing, meditation, access to a specialist ME team and definitely not graded exercise unless you have the support of an occupational therapist. Your GP should run various tests and I believe the booklet by the ME association sums up the tests a Dr should run but this may be difficult to access as quickly as a sufferer might want. I'm also currently trying omega-3 and omega-6 with EPA and the occasional massage but believe that research on these last 2 suggestions wouldn't warrant a prescription.
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Dr Charles Shepherd
- Posts: 215
- Joined: Wed Aug 07, 2013 11:30 am
Re: What should you do if you think you have ME?
The best policy for anyone who thinks they might have ME/CFS is:
1 Go and discuss this with your GP - who should then take a detailed history, examine you and carry out a number of routine blood tests to help exclude other causes of an ME/CFS-like illness, as well as arranging other investigations if appropriate
2 If the history is typical of ME/CFS, the tests results are normal, and there are no 'red flag' symptoms (eg weight loss) or unsual symptoms a diagnosis of ME/CFS could normally then be made
3 If there is any doubt you could be referred to a specialist hospital based service for an opinion
4 Management then consists of self-help advice, along with medication where appropriate, aimed at activity management (balancing activity with rest), pain relief, sleep disturbance, cognitive dysfunction etc.
5 Help and support in relation to benefits, disability aids, education and employment and (where necessary) any mental health problems is also very important
As with diagnosis a GP should have the option for referral to a specialist hospital service for multidisciplinary management
Children and adolescents should always be referred to a paediatrician for at least one visit
The MEA website has a full list of hospital based services around the UK:
http://www.meassociation.org.uk
1 Go and discuss this with your GP - who should then take a detailed history, examine you and carry out a number of routine blood tests to help exclude other causes of an ME/CFS-like illness, as well as arranging other investigations if appropriate
2 If the history is typical of ME/CFS, the tests results are normal, and there are no 'red flag' symptoms (eg weight loss) or unsual symptoms a diagnosis of ME/CFS could normally then be made
3 If there is any doubt you could be referred to a specialist hospital based service for an opinion
4 Management then consists of self-help advice, along with medication where appropriate, aimed at activity management (balancing activity with rest), pain relief, sleep disturbance, cognitive dysfunction etc.
5 Help and support in relation to benefits, disability aids, education and employment and (where necessary) any mental health problems is also very important
As with diagnosis a GP should have the option for referral to a specialist hospital service for multidisciplinary management
Children and adolescents should always be referred to a paediatrician for at least one visit
The MEA website has a full list of hospital based services around the UK:
http://www.meassociation.org.uk
Dr Charles Shepherd
MB BS, Honorary Medical Adviser, ME Association
MB BS, Honorary Medical Adviser, ME Association
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