Hi
My husband has SPMS and is complaining of fatigue +++. He has been off work since before Christmas as says too fatigued to move, even to get out of bed. He returned to work yesterday but today is unable to get out of bed, walk etc. I’m at my wits end. Does anyone have any advice for managing this. I too work full time.
Thank you
I’ve no experience of them myself, but there are some drugs like amantidine and modafinil to help combat fatigue though not everybody responds to them. It’s probably worth him giving his MS team a ring to see if there’s something they recommend, and whether his GP is able to prescribe it or whether it has to be his consultant.
Don’t forget that ms is covered by the equality act, so his employers have to ensure reasonable adjustments are made in work. Is retirement a possibility? I was retired when I was 43, having pushed for as long as I could to stay in work. I wish I’d retired sooner though, because it didn’t take long for my MS to get so bad I couldn’t really enjoy being retired.
Hi trothy001, I too have SPMS and along with other symptoms, chronic nerve pain and I’m a wheelchair user, bowel, bladder issues, I too suffer with chronic fatigue, there’s never a day when I don’t feel tired and sometimes to the point were I can’t function, can’t even speak, so I sympathise, it’s difficult to explain to someone who has never had this, it’s not just tiredness, it’s so over whelming. I explain to family and friends in the only way I can, it’s like I’m brain dead, it’s like your computer, if you don’t get the right WIFI connection, it won’t work and that’s how it makes me feel. So sadly the only thing to do is rest, rest and more rest. There’s is a med named Modifinal for fatigue, has he tried this ? I did but sadly for me it didn’t work, but you never know.
Sorry I haven’t been much help, but I just wanted to try and explain from someone else who get’s this and by the way I’m certainly not the only one, good luck.
Jean
I’m wondering if you have looked at the main sections of the MS Society web site where there is a lot on fatigue - including some online sessions which, from a brief look, include sessions on how to manage your fatigue ? See if you can get your husband to explore these?
I get periods of fatigue but, mercifully, nothing too bad and I’m sort of able to deal with them by completely ‘switching off’. I find that mindfulness/ meditation can help a bit - i suppose it’s basically like switching off all brain activity other than essential things and giving it time to recover/ recharge.
I’m no expert but my understanding of fatigue is that the brain itself requires an awful lot of energy ( even in fit and fully healthy folk) and MS results in an even greater amount of energy just to send signals around damaged nerve fibres etc, or to re-route them. The brain might also demand a lot of energy as it attempts to repair damage caused by MS ( that’s just my way of thinking about it).
As usual, the normal advice about healthy diet and exercise is advised ( not quite sure how one is supposed to exercise when fatigued but there you are).