Cecile van Woensel has had plenty of support from her friends and family, including her husband Richard. This support helps motivate her to jump in the icey waters every morning. (Cecile van Woensel)

By Jordan Davidson

just keep swimming

‘Your world gets a little small:’ chronic fatigue driving Nanaimo woman into frigid ocean water

Feb 9, 2022 | 6:13 AM

NANAIMO — One woman’s daily dip in the frosty ocean water is helping raise awareness toward an underdiagnosed condition.

Cecile van Woensel suffers from chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), a complicated disorder where someone is extremely fatigued while they are awake with no amount of sleep allowing the person to feel well-rested.

She told NanaimoNewsNOW the dips are not only helping her manage symptoms, but also raise money and awareness.

“I would never have dreamt I would do this, but because of this illness…the cold ocean water is giving me a bit of a shock to my system. It gets me out of that lethargic state, out of that hibernation.”

With support from her husband and friends, van Woensel has been able to raise over $2,300 through her daily swims which began on New Years Day and will continue through to her birthday on March 10.

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The money is being donated to the Open Medicine Foundation, who work to research complex chronic diseases.

Normally a very active person, 47-year-old van Woensel, who works as a lab tech with the biology department at VIU, said her issues started about a year ago when she was unable to feel rested even though she was sleeping 10-11 hours a night.

“A lot of it is not well understood, a lot of doctors would just say ‘oh you’re just a little bit overworked’ or it’s all a mental thing, but it’s not. It feels like having a flu but not with a fever. You just feel very lethargic.”

After consulting with specialists and receiving multiple negative COVID-19 tests, van Woensel’s family doctor finally said the words chronic fatigue syndrome and the pieces began to fall into place.

“You want to do so much in life and you’re not able to. Your limits are so fragile, it’s hard to know when you are overstepping your limits and then you have to pay it back. That’s called the post-exertion malaise.”

She said it took her about six weeks to get back to normal the last time she over-exerted herself.

“Your world gets a little small when you can only walk 100 metres and you feel empty. It’s like being a battery that’s in orange and sometimes it’s in the red. It’s really hard to get recharged.”

No treatments, specific testing or cure exists for chronic fatigue syndrome so sufferers turn to awareness to help others.

van Woensel said more attention is being brought to the condition as it has similar symptoms to those suffering from the long-term effects of COVID-19.

Around 77,000 people in B.C. and 500,000 people nation wide are diagnosed with the syndrome.

To read more about van Woensel you can go to her donation or Facebook page.

Join the conversation. Submit your letter to NanaimoNewsNOW and be included on The Water Cooler, our letters to the editor feature.

jordan@nanaimonewsnow.com

On Twitter: @JordanDHeyNow