Stop Trying to Get Back to Your Old Life

In Fall 2014, I finally got the diagnosis of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. Our family moved to the South Side of Chicago, and I started going to the Northwestern Medicine Osher Center for Integrative Health. I was a full year into being radically disabled by fatigue, post-exertional malaise, and cognitive fog that no clinical or laboratory test explained. Since there was no other explanation, my doctor confirmed that I had ME/CFS.

He explained a very basic challenge of having a chronic illness. You were living your life before the illness. We call this point “A”--your healthy self. When you get sick, you move to point “B”--your sick self– where you spend lots of time, energy, and resources, trying to get back to “A”.