Characterized by debilitating fatigue that doesn't improve with bed rest, chronic fatigue syndrome usually is accompanied by a number of other symptoms, including muscle pain, weakness, memory impairment, joint pain and insomnia, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The illness is thought to affect 500,000 to 800,000 Americans, according to health officials, though some advocates say the number of sufferers is much higher.

RESOURCES • CFIDS Association of America  • National CFIDS Foundation  • From Fatigued to Fantastic

Whatever its prevalence, the condition is poorly understood and difficult to diagnose.

Unlike other diseases, a blood test can't determine definitively if a patient has the condition, Teitelbaum says. Moreover, many symptoms are common to other diseases so doctors first must rule out other explanations for the illness.

But Teitelbaum says many doctors don't recognize the condition when they see it. He likens treatment to the early days of multiple sclerosis and polio. Those diseases were not immediately recognized as serious medical conditions, he says, but dismissed as the effects of psychological problems.

As many as 90 percent of patients who have the disease have not been diagnosed and are not being treated, according to the Chronic Fatigue and Immune Dysfunction Syndrome (CFIDS) Association of America, an advocacy group.

The group recently surveyed 8,100 medical professionals across the United States and found that 77 percent of them said the amount of education doctors receive about the condition is inadequate.

"Unfortunately for most patients, the standard treatment is to be told, 'There's nothing wrong with you,' " Teitelbaum says.

Other advocates agree problems exist.

"There are seriously ill patients out there who are being dismissed as malingerers or hypochondriacs," says Jill McLaughlin, executive director of the National CFIDS Foundation, a grass-roots organization that works to raise awareness and promote research of chronic fatigue syndrome.    

Complements of National CFIDS Foundation

General Benefits of Massage

• There is evidence of physical, psychological and physiological benefits of massage.
• Physical contact with skin and muscle and fascia can loosen and soften stiff muscles.
• Massage may improve the immune system.
• Massage can assist the body to release certain chemicals to help with relaxation, improve blood circulation and get rid of toxic substances which build up in our bodies and muscles as they work.
• Many people who receive massage feel better taken care of because of the touch and nurturing involved in respectful massage.

Massage and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Massage can assist with this condition by:

• Stimulating the relaxation response
• Cleansing tissue
• Stimulating circulation when exercise is too much to handle.
• Relieving muscle tension and joint pain ~ Improving sleep ~ Studies have shown a decrease in anxiety, & better sleep, in people with CFS who receive massage. (Werner R, 2005, p 365)