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Feeling tired or lacking energy can be perfectly normal—for short periods. But if it's severe or longstanding, it can be a sign of a serious problem such as biological depression, or stress co-opting the biochemical routes used by your immune system. Complicating the problem, sluggishness can be either mental or physical. Chronic fatigue, combined with muscle weakness, can be a symptom of several developing disorders, including arthritis.

How serious is your fatigue? The following test is designed to help you pinpoint both the type and severity of your tiredness. But be warned: no simple test is conclusive. So if you are in any doubt, please consult a physician right away.

Enter a score after each question according to the following scale:

0-I seldom feel this way.

1-I sometimes (once every month or so) feel this way.

2-I often (more than once a month) feel this way.

3-I almost always feel this way.

Add up your total score and use the guidelines at the end to interpret the results.

____1. Do you feel moody and have difficulty getting up in the morning?

____2. Do you experience slight fevers, signs of the flu, sore throat, or tender lymph nodes?

____3. Is the morning your worst time of the day, with the evenings being better?

____4. Do you fall asleep easily but wake early without being able to fall asleep again?

____5. Have you ever found yourself staring at a computer monitor, keyboard, or book, barely able to keep your head from dropping ("microsleeps")?

____6. Do you feel mentally sluggish, confused, and unresponsive?

____7. Has your short-term memory declined, and do you have trouble concentrating?

____8. Has your daily activity dropped below 50 percent of what it was before?

____9. Are your emotions relatively blunted and apathetic?

____10. Does your body ache all over and feel as if it is weaker than it used to be?

____11. Whenever you exercise, do you feel debilitated for more than 12 hours afterwards?

____12. Does your work stress you out to the point that you want to escape from it?

____13. Do you experience headaches?

____14. Do you find yourself desperately wanting to avoid being with people?

____15. Are you more impatient, irritable, nervous, angry, or anxious than before?

Total score =

A score below 12: your fatigue is within normal limits. Cut back on unnecessary stress wherever you can and improve your sleeping habits.

A score between 12 and 22: you may have type-1 fatigue. Fatigue is temporary and not serious. You can reverse it by lowering your stress level, taking a vacation, a sabbatical, or increasing your rest and sleep time. If these responses don't help, consult a professional.

A score between 23 and 32: you may have type-2 fatigue. Fatigue is longstanding and serious. A break won't relieve it. You are suffering from chronic stress, depletion of adrenaline, immune system deficiency, or reduced brain neurotransmitters. You can only relieve this form of fatigue by making major lifestyle changes, including possibly finding a new work situation. You could possibly benefit from professional help.

A score of 33 or above: you may have type-3 fatigue. Fatigue is in a "disease state." It requires urgent diagnostic evaluation to exclude endogenous depression, hormonal imbalances, viral infection, and physical disease including Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. The fatigue may be primarily mental (due to extreme stress or over-extension) but is more likely a severe physical problem. You need to see a physician and/or psychiatrist.

—Archibald D. Hart, Ph.D., FPPR.
author of Adrenaline and Stress (Word, 1995).

1998 by the author or Christianity Today International/Leadership Journal. For reprint information call 630-260-6200 or e-mail ljeditor@leadershipjournal.net.

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