WHAT IS POST-VIRAL FATIGUE?

Like so many conditions that present themselves as some form of chronic exhaustion, post-viral fatigue syndrome (PVFS) is very hard to diagnose and harder still to treat.

It happens, unsurprisingly, after a particularly nasty viral infection. The symptoms can be debilitating, including a feeling of physical weakness, being constantly tired, weight loss, vomiting, a fever. Sufferers can experience chest pain, muscle aches, shortness of breath. In other words it can feel just as bad as the virus itself, but unlike flu, it can last for an indefinite amount of time.

Like ME (generally a much more long-term, debilitating form of fatigue), PVFS can also cause depression. Although most sufferers will experience PVFS after a viral infection such as glandular fever (hence why PVFS is particularly prevalent among young people) or some forms of flu, conditions such as anaemia, diabetes, thyroid problems, asthma and pneumonia, can also increase the chances of developing the syndrome.

Experts think some people may be predisposed to developing fatigue by virtue of genetics, and it can be exacerbated hugely by psychological stresses. Therapies like CBT are often recommended to treat forms of fatigue, but with the post-viral version of the syndrome, it is generally a case of waiting it out, resting, reducing your stress levels and practising good nutrition, as you would most viruses.