It is no secret that my rare blood disorder can often give me fatigue. Many chronic illnesses have the same effect. Reason being is the body is working overtime to help combat the illness that is going on inside the body therefore leaves the tank running on empty for everything else.
So what does fatigue feel like?
Fatigue feels like a constant feeling of drowsiness. Some days it can completely overcome you and your body literally feels weighed down. Your arms do not want to move, your legs feel unsteady and your eyes struggle to stay open.
The best way to explain it is - you know that feeling you get after taking a nap where you are awake but not awake, you feel confused, delirious, maybe a little sore and mentally not to your full capacity. That is what fatigue feels like but instead of waking up out of that slumber your stuck. You do your best to wake up, get out of bed, have a coffee and shower but your best efforts cannot shake the feeling.
You feel lazy, unmotivated and worthless. In your head you know that you should be doing more but the body is struggling to do the simpliest of tasks.
Now I'm one of the lucky ones where fatigue only strikes every now and then. Many people suffering a chronic illness may have many days living in a fatigued state.
Other physical, emotional and mental symptoms of fatigue include;
Sore muscles
Headache
Chronic tiredness
Weakness of muscles
Dizziness
Irritability
Slowed response time/ reflexes
Impaired judgment/ decision making
Blurry vision
Poor concentration
Hallucinations
Low motivation
This is just a glimpse of what fatigue feels like. Fatigue is not tired! Fatigue is not lazy! Fatigue is not worthless!