post viral fatigue syndrome advice needed

[tjacksonpfc]

hi ive just been told ive got pvfs after having glandular fever 12 months ago. im feel really tired a lot of the time and have got really bad jonint pain in my hands, shoulders, fingers. the rhematology specalist is checking for rheuamtoid athritis but has said that it is pyfs hes given me some tablets to take for the pain and said come back in 2 months as the tablets will take about 4 weeks to kick in. the thing is ive got a 2 yr old ds and a 4 yr old dd and i work part time cleaning in a school for 2 hours a day does anyone know if i will still be able to keep this up or if i will be forced to give it up if so is there benifits available to cover the loss of earnings. many thanks

My DP had pvfs about 8 years ago.

I just asked him and he says you probably won't be able to do your cleaning, at least for a couple of months, followed by a few months of light duties. You'll probably feel completely drained for most of the day at first, so try to get as much rest as possible (not easy with two small nippers, I know). Homeopathy helped, if you can afford it.

He got statutory sick pay, which at the time was around £80 per week, so you should talk to your employer.

Please try not to get too down about it, remember the tiredness won't last forever, look after yourself and allow your body to recover.

I had this about 10 years ago after glandular fever. I was off work completely for almost 1 year.

I was only in my early twenties and didn't have kids. I also got full sick pay for the entire time I was off, so can't answer those questions for you I'm afraid.

I went back to work gradually after having the tablets in my system for 3 months. Started with 2 hours a day (desk job) working back to full time over a 6 month period. Never had a problem since!

All I know is it effects everybody differently and the MOST important thing if you want to recover is that you listen to your body!

Rest and look after yourself - you may think 'that's easier said than done with kids' but really it is so important.
Get as much support for the physical aspects of having the kids as you can.

Be kind to yourself

Good luck x