Neurotic Fatigue Syndrome
A public relations man for a well-known corporation began appearing at the office in a more or less haggard or distraught condition. He claimed to his associates that he was not sleeping well at night. It was obvious that he as less alert during the daytime than he had been previously. Several times during the day he would sit back in his chair to rest or he would even to the lounge for a short nap. When he also complained about slight nausea and lack of appetite, others in the company encouraged him to get medical and then psychiatric assistance.
While undergoing psychotherapy. he reviewed his enthusiastic aproach to the public relations field some twenty years earlier. He felt he had all the qualifications to move quickly toward one of the top public relations posts in the nation. To reach this goal, he had traveled extensive and worked long hours both in the office and at home. He had known all along that he was sacrificing family welfare for his own vocational inspirations. It was only when he passed his fiftieth birthday that he became dimly aware that he was never going to be the success in his field that he had dreamed of being. This dimly sensed tealization was apparentesponsible for the insomnia. Both the insomnia and the anxiety over not reaching a top position were responsible for the generalized fatigue reaction. Gradually, the fatigue syndrome subsided as his individual goals ere reevaluated.
Individuals with fatigue complaints which last over a long "enod of time talk freely about their troubles and frequently demand attention and sympathy. College students often complain of fatigue, and quite justifiably. Most students work hard, and under different s of stress related to various motivations for achievemellt.individually, most of us learn that top achievement is a nice thing to e, but is not absolutely essential for feelings of self-worth. Trying hard can make anyone-student, laborer, or executive-anxious and chronically tired.
In some measure, the neurotic fatigue syndrome helps the person reduce some problems to a size where he or she can better cope with them. Prolonged tension and the aches and pains that accompany it can be very fatiguing. They can interfere with sleep and leave the individual prone to rest a good bit in the daytime. This in turn increases the chance that one will not sleep well at night. Excessive tiredness is difficult to diagnose because the symptoms run down and because fatigue also occurs in normal states. One starting point is a good medical examination. Only in severe cases is psychiatric attention called for.
