Illness Duration and Coping Style in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

A sample of patients with chronic fatigue syndrome was recruited to assess coping strategies and illness duration. It was hypothesized that adaptive coping strategies would be higher among those with longer illness duration. Those in the longer illness duration group reported higher use of active coping, positive reframing, planning, and acceptance, and lower use of behavioral disengagement than those in the shorter illness duration group. No significant differences were found between the two illness duration groups for physical impairment or symptom severity, but the long duration group revealed a lower percentage of participants who were working than the short duration group. These findings suggest that individuals with longer or shorter duration of the illness have differences in coping styles but not differences in physical impairment or symptom severity.