Tired Boy

I had noticed how since getting CFS (7 years ago, now) I had never had a single cold, when prior to getting the illness I used to have them regularly each winter, sometimes several in one winter. I thought this was odd, paradoxical, although very welcome.

Someone I knew a few years ago gave an interesting perspective on this: she explained that this was likely to be because my immune system was not up to scratch, and therefore was not fighting off these viruses effectively. Apparently it is the body’s act of fighting a virus which produces the symptoms of a viral illness rather than the presence of the virus itself.

When I reflected on this, I realised that I did have periods, often when there was a bug going around, in which I felt unaccountably rubbish for weeks, sometimes months, on end. So it does seem that in my case, viral illness would present in this way, rather than with the classic symptoms. This was the first evidence I had that my immune system was not working properly, which is considered by many to be a part of the CFS spectrum.

Since moving to the countryside in November, I have been extremely well. The only blips have been on two occasions when I caught bugs from my young niece and nephew (one of the hazards of living closer to family!). The first time, in the new year, I was laid out for just over a month in the way described above – no real symptoms, just feeling utterly spent. The second time, last month, I actually got the classic cold symptoms – sore throat, streaming nose, cough, etc. I was delighted to have caught a cold! It suggests that my immune system is currently in better health than it has been for years. Apart from the wooziness brought on to anyone by a cold, I didn’t feel particularly bad. And the symptoms cleared up in about a week and a half – far better than the month plus I would have expected to have been laid low beforehand.