Do people die from CFS?
Essentially, the answer is no. Little about how CFS works in our bodies would suggest that it could be fatal. The slowing of metabolism and the weakening of muscle function, possibly including heart function, might raise some possibilities. But as a general matter, by no means should CFS be considered to be a terminal illness. On another front, CFS in the more severe cases can be so disabling, and the public and medical understanding of the disease can be so minimal, that many people have seen their lives taken away through loss of job, loss of support from family and friends, and loss of ability to take care of oneself. In the face of these vast irrational and deeply painful changes, there are many CFS patients who have taken their own lives. And so in these cases, what was the cause of death?
