Health Conditions Archives - Chronic Living Therapy

Lilianna Mint – Young Women with POTS

Can you share a little about the onset and how you came to get a diagnosis? I started noticing symptoms in my final year at school while studying for A-levels. … Read More

Supporting Clients Through Medical Gaslighting

Supporting Clients Through Medical Gaslighting Since the post-pandemic explosion in post-viral and related diseases, the burden of this crisis has expanded far beyond patients and their immediate family members, many … Read More

Insights into text-based therapy

It’s Severe ME Awareness Week now, in early August, and sharing this article seems particularly relevant. People who are most severely affected may find it hardest of all to access … Read More

Women looking at camera in consternation

“Brain Retraining” Merry-Go-Round

In July 2026 the UKs ‘i newspaper’ published an article about a still-to-be-peer-reviewed study of 75 people who claim to be ‘recovered’ from post-viral type conditions. Several organisations and patients … Read More

steep mountain slope in the middle of the picture, with a path going along it into the distance, sea at the bottom of the mountain on the right

Lena – on how hope changes

Lena is in her early forties and has experienced chronic ill health since she was 15. She shares her thoughts with us about the usefulness and sometimes also the difficulties … Read More

LED pillar candle, white, on a wooden table with some white roses and foliage lying next to them

Christine Sweeney – Grieving The Life Unlived

Setting up a ‘Grieving the Life Unlived’ meeting Christine Sweeney created a ‘Grieving the Life Unlived’ meetup for (and with) members of Cambridge ME Group (UK). She shares her inspiration … Read More

fernlike plant, bright green, tenaciously pushing through a crack in some concrete

Hope v Acceptance in Chronic Illness – Kirsty

Kirsty lives in the UK and has had ME for 30 years or so. She writes about ‘hope’ – whether it helps, how it can be misused, and what ‘real’ … Read More

Rows of chairs on desks in a seemingly closed classroom, no people (teachers or pupils) in image at all

Empty Classes? NHS Training on MECFS

A recent request under the UK’s Freedom of Information Act has exposed an extremely low take up by doctors and other health care workers of free NHS training on ME/CFS. … Read More

a grey stone/concrete surface, with cracks in it, and a small green plant growing in a narrow crack

Keeping Hope Alive – Dan Wyke

People with difficult to diagnose and ‘psychologised’ illnesses such as ME/CFS understandably struggle to keep their hope (of recovery, of quality research, of support) alive. It’s particularly hard to do … Read More

red post box on a 'typical' UK street of red brick terraces, sunny day

Emma Hampson – Letter to the Editor

Emma Hampson is a former therapist and a person with Severe M.E. who has had to retire due to ill health. She’s written a letter to the Editor of Therapy … Read More

Dark-skinned woman looking down and reading from a screen, background suggests she's resting in bed. She's smiling.

‘Brigitte’ Special Edition – MECFS

Brigitte, a widely read mainstream magazine with a large circulation in German-speaking countries, has just published a special edition about ME/CFS. It’s great! The researchers and journalists have interviewed doctors, … Read More

Head shot of Bita Nezamdoust gently smiling towards the camera

Bita Nezamdoust: marginalization and neglect in Severe ME

What motivated you to get involved in this work? This was a project born very much organically… I was on Twitter one night reading some emotionally moving Tweets by people … Read More

Natalie Hilliard, a white woman with short hair and glasses, smiling, on a blue and pink background

Natalie Hilliard Physiotherapist (Part 1)

Tell us a little about your professional background… how did you become interested in this area of work as a Physiotherapist? I am chartered Physiotherapist, qualified in 2005, and have … Read More

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Creativity and Chronic Illness

Art, and creativity in general, is something that brings meaning to the lives of many people. It can be hard to take part in or get access to when you’re … Read More

Books on a shelf marked with a sign 'Psychology', in a library

British Psychological Society MECFS Guidelines Update

The M.E. Association and Action for M.E. have published updates on work by a group of psychologists who are creating new guidelines on M.E. for the British Psychological Society. The … Read More

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Personal Wish List for Psychological Research

The German Government recently announced a ‘Decade against Post-Infectious Disease’ and committed half a billion Euros of research funding. A huge boost for research into ME/CFS and Long Covid – … Read More

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#5 – Elsewhere on the web October 2025

Articles and useful links from around the web during October 2025. From a critical look at Gabor Mate’s work through to some morale-boosting celebrations via pacing tips and much more. … Read More

blue intersecting/web like lines on a dark background, abstract but intended to depict a computer network, in this case

#4 – Elsewhere on the web Aug/Sept 2025

Articles and useful links from around the web during August and September 2025. Covering Gulf War Illness, Functional Neurological Disorder, Lyme Disease and more… Gulf War Illness – solid science … Read More

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Open Letter to BACP magazine, Therapy Today

A recent article in the magazine for members of the British Association of Counselling & Psychotherapy (BACP) has highlighted again the need for research, factual investigation and informed debate about … Read More

Pipette hovering over a tray full of tiny bottles, about to drop some fluid in as part of a science experiment

Misdiagnosis in patients with Hypermobility/EDS

Recent research by Chanbin Lee and Pradeep Chopra from the USA shows a shocking misdiagnosis rate for people who have Ehler’s-Danlos Syndrome and related Hypermobility Spectrum Disorders (known as hEDS). … Read More

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Resources for Carers (M.E.)

Chronically ill people often rely on carers for support with daily life – from a prepared meal now and again, through to full-time support with washing, appointments and advocacy. Those … Read More

looking up skywards, at rolllercoaster swooping overhead, people on it looking excited and waving arms in air

A married couple talks about the impact of M.E.

Can you share a little background about how you met and how M.E. started to impact your lives? Michelle When Ian and I got together, we travelled a lot, including … Read More

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From Scepticism to Understanding – the hard way…

An anonymous person with M.E. explains her journey from sceptic to ‘really getting it’. She shares how she found community online, and how she approached therapy. She takes us through … Read More

Photo from NASA of the world from space with towns /cities lit up at night

#3 – Elsewhere on the web June/July 2025

Round up of articles spotted online in June and July 2025 that focus on the experiences of people with ‘psychologised’ or hard to diagnose health conditions. Helen Goss’ Long Covid … Read More

Head shot of Katharine Cheston on a blue and pink background. Pale skinned women with dark hair, smiling at the camera

Katharine Cheston: exploring stigma, shame and illness

Thanks very much for writing in to the British Medical Journal (BMJ) when they published an article arguing that beliefs about MECFS substantially shape the course of the illness and … Read More

nurse in blue scrubs, holding a stethoscope

Nurses create Long Covid guide

Nursing Times published an update of work being undertaken in the UK to create a practical guide for nurses on how to support people with Long Covid. It includes a … Read More

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#2 – Elsewhere on the web May 2025

Round up of articles spotted online in May 2025 that focus on the experiences of people with ‘psychologised’ or hard to diagnose health conditions. Keith Geraghty on O’Sullivan Writing in … Read More

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Hope against ‘Hopium’…

The BMJ (British Medical Journal) commissioned an article by a small group of authors who rehashed the ‘dysregulation’ argument and many other classic talking points of what has become known … Read More

black and white shot of hand placed on window, rain on window, looking out on part of a building - gives a lonely, 'stuck indoors' feeling.

Past experiences of therapy

In this post we hear from two people, Taylor* and J.E. Barnard, who have searched for support from therapists as they faced chronic ill health and the consequent impact on … Read More

Dan Wyke, head shot on pink and blue background. White man, with glasses and greyish hair.

Therapist Perspective: Dan Wyke

What prompted your interest in counselling or therapy with people who have long-term health conditions? Before I became a counsellor I worked for Age UK where I regularly came into … Read More

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#1 – Elsewhere on the web Mar/Apr ’25

Round up of articles spotted online in March/April 2025 that focus on the experiences of people with ‘psychologised’ or hard to diagnose health conditions. For Some Women With Serious Physical … Read More

Lyme Disease guide for therapists

Lyme Disease is caused by tick bites, sometimes so small that their significance is not realised at the time by patients or medical staff. Patients face denial and doubt of … Read More

The Ripple Effects of Stigma

This post looks at the effects of ‘psychologisation’ and stigma – in particular as it relates to M.E. (or ME/CFS or Chronic Fatigue Syndrome). The effects are far-reaching and have … Read More

Harm caused by incorrect ‘psychosomatic’ diagnoses

Research published this week outlines and investigates the harm caused to patients by vague ‘psychosomatic’ diagnoses and failure to investigate serious symptoms. The research was funded by LUPUS UK and … Read More

Why a directory for therapists working with chronically ill clients?

Many people with long term health conditions require and deserve support with specific problems such as grieving for lost (or drastically affected) life plans and adjusting to being ill. As … Read More

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The Tangled Story of ME/CFS – videos

This video series, part of a project led by Natalie Boulton, working with cameraman and editor Josh Biggs, is one of the best educational tools for understanding the illness of … Read More

NICE and M.E.

For decades patients with Myalgic encephalomyelitis (also known as M.E. or Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, often abbreviated to M.E. or ME/CFS) have experienced disbelief and stigma when accessing medical support as … Read More

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