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Serious illness creates stresses for most relationships. Frustrations for people with CFS and FM include:
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Feeling Not Understood: Other people may not believe you are ill or may not understand the seriousness of your condition.
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Loss of Relationships: Limitations and unpredictability of symptoms can make it difficult to maintain relationships. Some relationships may be lost, while others are redefined.
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Guilt: You may blame yourself for getting sick or for not contributing to family or society.
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Feeling Undependable: Unpredictability of symptoms often leads to cancelling out of commitments, creating misunderstanding and threatening some relationships.
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Isolation: You may feel a sense of isolation, either because of spending more time alone or because of feeling different from other people.
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Fears of Dependency & Abandonment: You may worry about losing your ability to care for yourself or fear that others upon whom you depend will leave you. |
This section describes general strategies for improving relationships, outlines options for families and couples, and shows how to build new sources of support.
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