Any suggestions for fighting fatigue?

[SLEEPY101]

I know many of us have days where we are so tired and fatiqued and we have a hard time doing certain things.

Today is one of those days where I did to much. Helped at my son's school,went grocery shopping,picked up kids from school then helped with homework. Now it is time for me to cook dinner then I have to take one son to soccor pratice and the others to church. And at the moment I am so achy and I don't think I can get out of bed.

What do you do to get yourself moving? Eat or drink anything special that gives you energy?

[Epson]

Have you talked to your doctor about Providgil or a similar drug?  Unfortunately I can't take it, because I'm on a drug to slow my heart down and Providgil would do the opposite, you could also go to a sleep study lab and see if there is something physiological that is causing sleep disturbances.

I have tried all kinds of treatments and nothing has worked so far and have now been dx with CFS, which I think is a way of saying, we give up.

[Jozee]

I just had a sleep study done and found out I have Sleep Apnea. Hopefully once my insurance approves the breathing machine I will have more energy. My wonderful new doctor said many patients with Sjogrens have Apnea as well. Might be worth looking in to.

[Calli66]

Make sure your thyroid is working properly. Thyroid (hypo) problems often occur with Sjogren's and are frequently un-diagnosed and/or under treated. Many doctors just don't pay attention to the devastating effect low thyroid hormones can have on our energy levels. I don't know about being achy---whether thyroid hormones have anything to do with that.

I've been lurking on some of the thyroid forums and have learned a lot. They talk about adrenals and cortisol levels too, which I don't understand very well, but basically all the stress in our lives, plus coffee-drinking/no breakfast, rushing around getting kids to school, getting to work, etc., just drains our energy resources.

So maybe it's not all Sjogren's. I know for me, the fatigue is a combination of SjS and hypothyroid problems.

C

[Scottietottie]

Hi 

Lots of thyroid symptoms and SjS symptoms overlap. Fatigue is one - so is aching all over. When my thyroid kicked off I kept feeling like I was coming down with flu which never quite happened.
There are many other symptoms that overlap. Carpal tunnel is more common in people who are hypo and digestive problems happen too.

At one point I was a member of a thyroid forum, a menopause forum and here and many of the posts were interchangeable. I decided against HRT to let one set of symptoms run their course and go. Unfortunately - they never did. Maybe I had an easy menopause because I'm certainly through it now. Symptoms now have to be put down to AI diseases!!

Take care - Scottie 

[Shani]

I still haven't found anything that helps with the fatigue, I just rest when my body tells me to.As my Rheumy told me on my latest appointment, he cannot guarantee that the fatigue will ever decreasea or go away.I guess this is another thing we will have to try and accept.Just like we need to listen to our body and the signals it gives us.
I do get my Thyroid levels checked often though.
Hugs!

[ttdub]

People say l-carnatine is good. There are people who live by it.

[tmarie0183]

Accupuncture

[SLEEPY101]

I have Hashimoto's and per the ultrasound my Thyroid looks completey damaged but it doesn't show in my blood work. My Dr said my case is highly unusal and because my blood levels are normal he doesn't have me on Thyroid meds.

This week I started a stronger dose of effexor and gapupentin I am even more tired. Can't wait till my body get used to them.

[Calli66]

When a doctor says your thyroid levels are normal, that may not be true. Just like with SjS, blood test results don't always show the problem. Depends on what tests you've had and whether the doc really wants to explain WHY your thyroid looks completely damaged.

Just sayin'.

C

[Joe S.]

I find that when I get pain relief, my fatigue lifts. The doctors refuse to provide pain relief.

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[bloodless]

Coffee, Coffee, Coffee. That's the only thing that helps me. I do have hypothyroid and take synthroid for it. I do have sleep apnea and use CPAP. Soooo, the fatigue is just SJS or Lupus. The worse the flare. The worse the fatigue. Good thing I adore coffee!

[bonnieblee]

On the sleep apnea aspect, my PCP has me on O2 at night.  Didn't do a whole sleep study, but an overnight pulse/Ox ( that little thingy that is put on your finger to measure the O2 saturation) showed my O2 saturation would drop to 84% . During the day my O2 sats are 98%-100%.  I haven't decided if I sleep any better than before, because I now wrestle with the tubing, and having "air" blowing up your nose ever so slightly still dryes out the nose and throat, but I seem to have more stamina and the "brain fog" has eased up somewhat.

[meow]

Low vitamin D is associated with fatigue, too. My rheumy tested mine, especially since I am a member of the Pink Tribe, and must use sunscreen religiously. It was low, and since I've started taking 5000 mg, I have  had a noticeable improvement. Not miraculous, but much much better than before!