has anyone really benefited ie cured by exercise?
- Condition
- ME/CFS
- At worst
- Severe (mostly bedbound)
- Ill before improving
- 20 years
- Published
- May 2014
In their words
- Condition: ME/CFS
I am getting better from ME/CFS
In context ↗ - At worst: Severe
putting me at a 2-3 on the functioning scale
In context ↗ - Now: Much better
I am at a 7 and working, but struggle with keeping it all together and avoiding another crash.
In context ↗
The story comes from their 7 posts in 2 threads
Summary
She had been ill for about 24 years when she wrote, with crashes that at worst left her at 2-3 on a functioning scale. She credits pacing, energy medicine and a slow walk built up to two miles, and now works at about 7, though she says it is not a cure. Overdoing it still triggers push-crash cycles, and stress can halt the walks for months. Earlier attempts at a normal exercise routine caused lots of PEM.
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What they tried
What they credit
Also tried
Their words about each treatment
- amalgam filling removal · Helped
I had almost all amalgam fillings removed back a couple of years ago
In context ↗ - slow graded walking to a two-mile walk · Helped
if I walked SLOWLY and nothing else, I could build up very, very gradually - two to five minutes more a week - to a two-mile walk
In context ↗ - normal-level exercise routine (earlier attempts) · Worse
It meant a lot of PEM and false starts
In context ↗ - pacing · Helped
that ability to pace and the miracle that allows me to work a physical job all stem from successful application of laws of health and movement
In context ↗ - energy medicine · Helped a lot
It helps a lot, and I do believe it has contributed much to my well-being.
In context ↗ - handfuls of supplements · Helped
My "marathon" is normal function, and it takes a similar path of mental focus and discipline on a constant basis, not to mention handfuls of supplements, a strict diet
In context ↗
Approaches: Alternative therapies · Pacing · Physiotherapy and rehab
Their path
How ill they were on the ME/CFS severity scale, estimated from what they describe at each point, in the order they describe; they don’t give enough times to place each step. Hover or tap a point. 2 steps say too little to place on the scale and are only in the table. What the levels mean.
Show as a table
| When | What happened | Where they were |
|---|---|---|
| around 1990 | ME/CFS began; tried a normal exercise routine early onIf exercise fixed this, I would have been fixed inside two years, around 1992.In context ↗ | Not stated |
| — | Recurring ME crashes, down to 2-3 on the functioning scaleMy story is punctuated by classic episodes of ME crashes, putting me at a 2-3 on the functioning scale.In context ↗ | Severe |
| 2011-2012 | Best progress in the past year, which she links to detoxing after amalgam fillings were removedI am getting better from ME/CFS, and the best progress has been made in the last year.In context ↗ | Not stated |
| 2014 | At 7 and working as a massage therapist; still pacing, resting a lot and avoiding crashesI am at a 7 and working, but struggle with keeping it all together and avoiding another crash.In context ↗ | Mild |
Adverse events
- “It meant a lot of PEM and false starts” In context ↗ Made symptoms worse
- Graded rehab and self-made programmes“More than that and I would crash again.” In context ↗ Made symptoms worse
- “overdoing puts me back in a push-crash cycle” In context ↗ Made symptoms worse
Symptoms mentioned
Their words about their symptoms
- Post-exertional malaise
overdoing puts me back in a push-crash cycle
In context ↗
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