Feeling Tired All the Time – A Comprehensive Guide to the Common Causes of Fatigue and How to Treat Them

Overcome Your Chronic Tiredness

Do you ever feel utterly exhausted? Perhaps you feel like falling asleep on your feet right now? If so, you are not alone! One in four people complains of feeling tired all the time, and finds it hard to maintain a normal lifestyle as a result.

‘Doctor, I feel tired all the time’ is the single most common complaint presented by patients to their doctors. In studies in the UK and the USA, up to twenty per cent of men, and thirty per cent of women identified themselves as having the complaint.

Unfortunately, because fatigue is such a common problem and is sometimes caused by psychological factors, the complaint may not be taken seriously and the patient seeking help may be too easily dismissed.

Feeling Tired All the Time has been written for the layperson. In it, Dr Fitzgibbon explains the common and treatable causes of fatigue. Using the most up-to-date research and information available, he aims primarily to help people identify the cause of their tiredness, and specifically to help them distinguish between ‘ME’ (Chronic Fatigue Syndrome) and other possible causes. Dr Fitzgibbon strongly refutes the notion that nothing can be done to help the fatigued.

Each section in the book provides checklists which help the reader to recognise the conditions that might apply to them, together with a sensible and practical approach to treatment. The text is generously complemented by real-life case histories taken from the author’s personal experience. A directory of support organisations is also included.

Feeling Tired All the Time: Table of Contents

3. SECTION 1. Putting Fatigue in Context
5. The Complex Problem of Fatigue
6. Normal Energy Levels
8. SECTION 2. The Most Common Causes of Fatigue
10. I. Psychological and Psychiatric Explanations of Fatigue
12. Social Attitudes to Psychological Distress
13. Stress
14. Depression
15. Anxiety Panic and Phobia
16. Hysteria and Hypochondriasis
18. II. Physical Explanations of Fatigue
20. Fatigue as a Symptom of Physical Disease
22. SECTION 3. Forgotten Causes of Fatigue
24. I. Fatigue and Sleep
26. Normal Sleep Pattern and Sleep Requirements
27. Chronic Sleep Deprivation
28. Sleep Disorders
30. II. Fatigue and Diet
32. Diet, Mood and Energy
33. Overweight and Obesity
34. Nutritional Deficiency
35. Food Allergy and Intolerance
36. Caffeine
37. Hypoglycaemia – Low Blood Sugar
39. III. Fatigue and germs
41. The Truth about Candida
42. Parasites, Bacteria and Viruses
44. IV. Fatigue and Chemicals
46. Multiple Chemical Sensitivity Syndrome
48. SECTION 4. Chronic Debilitating Fatigue
50. Fibromyalgia
51. Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME)
52. From Controversy to Consensus in CFS
53. Assessing the Impact of Chronic Fatigue
54. The Treatment of Chronic Fatigue