Article Independent IE: Doctors urged to look out for chronic fatigue syndrome in long Covid patients (#Physios4ME)

Sly Saint

Sly Saint

Senior Member (Voting Rights)
Irish doctors are being urged to look out for ME – chronic fatigue syndrome – in patients who have long Covid .

Dr Nicola Clague-Baker of Leicester University, who will speak in Dublin this week, said there appears to be a link between long Covid and ME, or myalgic encephalomyelitis.

She said: “ME patients are often called the ‘missing millions’ with an estimated 24 million (sufferers) worldwide.”

People who have ME struggle with everyday activities, and cannot raise their collective voice very loud, said Dr Clague Baker who is an Associate Professor in Physiotherapy.

Traditionally they have been called ‘malingerers’ or people with ‘yuppy flu’ as ME was often misunderstood.

Dr Clague-Baker will speak on the issue when she delivers the Paul Wagstaff Commemorative Lecture in Dublin’s Trinity College on Wednesday. It is organised by the Irish Society of Chartered Physiotherapists (ISCP).

She said: “There seems to be a link between long Covid and ME with potential there for long Covid patients to develop ME.”

She is “calling on the medical community – especially in long Covid clinics and GP surgeries – to be more observant and conscious of looking for ME in long Covid patients”.

“They can’t exercise their way out of this. The cardinal sign of ME is post-exertional symptom exacerbation – exercise can greatly increase symptoms.”

She pointed out that: “ME patients have been harmed by exercise.”
Click to expand...
https://www.independent.ie/world-ne...syndrome-in-long-covid-patients-40891359.html
 
"Traditionally they have been called ‘malingerers’ or people with ‘yuppy flu’ as ME was often misunderstood." a tradition is not created by a couple of headline made by shoddy journalism .but by the widespread disinformation of vested interests in denying peoples illness so they can profit .
 
Paraphrased from the article: breathing exercises can have a positive effect on the autonomic nervous system.

Has anyone heard of this, tried this, know what these exercises are?

As to this article, and the presentation to come, it's a very welcome contrast to the article I just viewed in another thread.
 
alktipping said:
"Traditionally they have been called ‘malingerers’ or people with ‘yuppy flu’ as ME was often misunderstood." a tradition is not created by a couple of headline made by shoddy journalism .but by the widespread disinformation of vested interests in denying peoples illness so they can profit .
Click to expand...

Exactly. We don't regularly repeat the derogatory names people use for other disadvantaged groups, so why ME?
 
Snow Leopard said:
Exactly. We don't regularly repeat the derogatory names people use for other disadvantaged groups, so why ME?
Click to expand...

Good point. This name calling has been an anti-PR campaign for decades. It is somehow acceptable to overtly smear the reputation of millions of disabled people - the ME community. However, and rightly so, these same, and their fellow believers don't campaign against other groups.
 
DokaGirl said:
Good point. This name calling has been an anti-PR campaign for decades. It is somehow acceptable to overtly smear the reputation of millions of disabled people - the ME community. However, and rightly so, these same, and their fellow believers don't campaign against other groups.
Click to expand...
Exactly. Name calling is a deliberate part of smear campaigning strategies. e.g. As soon as you label a group of people "militants", much of the target audience will just accept the label as valid, and thereon assume any arguments the so-called militants make as being spurious. The strategy abounds.
 
DokaGirl said:
Paraphrased from the article: breathing exercises can have a positive effect on the autonomic nervous system.

Has anyone heard of this, tried this, know what these exercises are?
Click to expand...

That sounds like quasi-physiological theorising to me.
I am not sure what a positive effect on the autonomic nervous system would be.
I don't want to sound picky all the time but it would be good to sweep the cupboard clean when it comes to such theorising and move on to a genuinely evidence-driven approach.
 
DokaGirl said:
Paraphrased from the article: breathing exercises can have a positive effect on the autonomic nervous system.

Has anyone heard of this, tried this, know what these exercises are?

As to this article, and the presentation to come, it's a very welcome contrast to the article I just viewed in another thread.
Click to expand...

As part of the whole CBT/GET experiment they gave us breathing/relaxing exercises. The worse I got the harder these got to do for me. It's been about 10 years since I last did any I think, maybe more.
 
Solstice said:
As part of the whole CBT/GET experiment they gave us breathing/relaxing exercises. The worse I got the harder these got to do for me. It's been about 10 years since I last did any I think, maybe more.
Click to expand...
There's a lot of this breathing around. Look at YouTube, TED talks etc. Cures everything , apparently. My favourite proponent is The Hof, another big beast is Dr Weir.
I know pwME who do it everyday. I guess it gives them something to do and a sense of agency.
As I am severe deep breathing exercises give me pem. Harmless enough if you can do them, but "healing"? Nfw
 
I have no idea what they are referring to, but I do alternate nostril breathing yoga which helps calm my nervous system. It's quite effective for me when my brain and body are on 'overdrive', or when I have to got out somewhere and feeling nervous.

I do the 'exercise' lying down.
 
Last edited:
Remain in Light said:


Britain's 2019 Eurovision song contest entry, featuring. Wim Hof and 2 popular
"treatments" for ME, cold water and breathing.
Take a break and marvel at its weirdness
Click to expand...


Thanks for the laugh ---- don't try this at home! If I tried this in my local (public) park then I'd get a lift in one of those vehicle with flashing lights ---

"Keep the faith"
 
Jonathan Edwards said:
That sounds like quasi-physiological theorising to me.
I am not sure what a positive effect on the autonomic nervous system would be.
I don't want to sound picky all the time but it would be good to sweep the cupboard clean when it comes to such theorising and move on to a genuinely evidence-driven approach.
Click to expand...

Thank you @Jonathan Edwards for your analysis.

This breathing info hit my "oh oh, why haven't I heard of this and tried it button".

Very sick people see this stuff and want to try it as soon as possible, to get any level of relief.

I've had ME for over 35 years; read copious amounts on the subject, but was rather dismayed to read about a possible treatment I had missed. One that supposedly doesn't entail shelling out large sums of money to quacks.

Thanks very much again for your comments on this theoretical breathing therapy.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom