Chronic fatigue syndrome is a condition that causes extreme tiredness and fatigue that does not go away even after resting.

The causes of the condition are yet to be known. However, there are some theories indicate several factors which include:

• Viral infection
• Stress
• Or several factors in unison

Once the symptoms are identified and the condition is diagnosed, treatment can be taken to get relief from symptoms. Understanding all aspects of the condition, including its stages, diagnosis, symptoms, and prevention can help in managing it effectively.

Different stages and phases of chronic fatigue syndrome
The patients of chronic fatigue syndrome undergo four phases of the condition. Their response towards the treatment can also vary greatly depending on the phase that they are going through. These phases are:

• Phase I: Crisis or trauma
• Phase II: Stabilization
• Phase III: Resolution
• Phase IV: Integration

During all the phases, a chronic fatigue syndrome patient undergoes some physical, psychological, and social changes that are easily noticeable.

Diagnosis of chronic fatigue syndrome
No one test can diagnose a patient with chronic fatigue syndrome. This is because the symptoms of chronic fatigue syndrome resemble several other health conditions. Therefore, a lot of patience is required for the diagnosis of the condition.

To diagnose chronic fatigue syndrome, there a lot of other conditions that the doctor will have to rule out first. These conditions include the following:

• Medical conditions
  Fatigue and tiredness are symptoms associated with a lot of medical conditions. These can be anything ranging between deficiency of iron in the body to hypothyroidism. To rule these out, blood tests will be conducted first.
• Sleep disorders
  Sleep-related conditions can cause fatigue. Therefore, the patient might be asked to undergo a sleep study first. This study will help the doctors to rule out any sleep-related problems such as restless leg syndrome and sleep apnea.
• Lung and heart disorders
  If your heart and lungs are not healthy, fatigue will be one of the most common symptoms. Therefore, any such problem with the organs needs to be detected first before chronic fatigue syndrome can be diagnosed.
• Mental health problems
  There are several mental conditions that can cause fatigue. Depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety, and several other mental health conditions can affect the energy levels of the body. Therefore, these conditions need to be ruled out first.

Prevention of chronic fatigue syndrome
The patients of chronic fatigue syndrome always remain in a relapse and remission cycle. Therefore, it is important that when a person is in their remission stage, they do everything possible to prevent the relapse of symptoms. Here are some tips to prevent it:

• Do not exert your body
  When you are feeling fine, you might end up overexerting yourself. This becomes one of the most common causes of relapse in chronic fatigue syndrome patients. Therefore, to avoid the crash, do not do anything that overuses the energy levels of your body.
• Get enough sleep
  Getting quality sleep at night can keep the symptoms of chronic fatigue syndrome at bay and boost energy levels in the patients.
• Avoid stress
  Stressful conditions cannot be avoided. However, your mechanism to deal with stress should be strong enough to keep you away from draining all the energy.