Embedded Files
Complete the evaluation feedback form once you have finished using the website.
Activity
Use the link on the left to add to the padlet what makes you feel tired or fatigued.
Click on the purple plus button to add a comment.
Now look at the resources below and come back to the padlet afterwards.
Make a note of the differences between what makes you tired and what might make a patient with fatigue tired.
What is fatigue?
What is fatigue?
Fatigue is a clinical symptom beyond being tired or sleepy. With fatigue, you have no energy, to the point that it affects your daily living, and your mental and emotional state. It does not get better after sleeping or resting.
Fatigue is a very common complaint. Physical or psychological conditions, and sometimes a combination of the two, can cause fatigue.
What might fatigue look like?
What might fatigue look like?
Feeling extremely tired
Growing tired quickly after you start an activity
Lacking motivation
Problems with concentration and memory
Slower reaction times
Low mood
Problems focusing
Problems with hand-eye coordination
Increased chance of taking risks or making errors
What can cause fatigue?
Fatigue can be caused by a number of conditions. Some of these need medical treatment, others need appropriate strategies, education and rehabilitation.
Some conditions which can cause fatigue include:
Viral infections
Iron deficiency anaemia
Diabetes
Under / over active thyroid
Head injury or stroke
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome / Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (CFS / ME)
Cancer
Mental health conditions like depression
Managing Fatigue
The above video shows an educational group session delivered by an Occupational Therapist to a group of patients. The specific condition causing fatigue for this group is cancer, however the strategies can apply to any fatigue-inducing condition.
Important Note
If your patient presents with fatigue which does not correlate to a recent condition and has not been assessed by a GP, this needs to be done prior to any interventions to ensure you are treating the appropriate condition in an appropriate way.
The role of occupational therapists
Throughout this website, you will find videos of and resources used by real life occupational therapists to treat patients with fatigue.
Occupational Therapy is helpful in enabling patients with fatigue to manage their condition and lessen its impact on their everyday lives.
An Occupational Therapist will...
Complete assessments and gather information about the patient, their occupations and the impact fatigue has on these.
Carry out standardised or non-standardised assessments of the patient's fatigue levels and compare these throughout any intervention.
Educate patients who live with fatigue develop new skills and encourage them to find activities that give them a sense of purpose and satisfaction.
The following pages contain interventions which may be used by Occupational Therapists to educate, rehabilitate or enable patients to adapt in order to maintain quality of life while living with fatigue.
Page updated
Report abuse