The Gloucestershire Gazette reports on a woman who is severely affected by ME/CFS following a Covid infection in December 2021. The background information was supplied by the ME Association.
Extract
A COURAGEOUS mum has spoken about out about a crippling disease which has turned her from a bubbly fun-loving person into a bedridden patient who is ‘clinging to life'.
Kelly Smith-May, who is 39 and lives in Chipping Sodbury, was diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome, also known as ME, after she caught Covid in December 2021.
Ms May – who lives with husband Stuart and her four children Kai, 21, Tawny, 15, Zayn, eight, and Jett, aged five – says the condition has made her life ‘unbearable' and taken away her outgoing personality.
She spoke to the Gazette ahead of ME Awareness Day on Friday, May 12.
The ME Association comment
The UK ME Association has been providing information and support to people with Long Covid dating back to May 2020 – when it became apparent that significant numbers of people were not recovering from COVID-19 and developing a post-covid syndrome that included symptoms that are the same as ME/CFS. And in some cases people with Long Covid were meeting diagnostic criteria for ME/CFS.
Since then we have continued to cover all aspects of Long Covid on our social media where we regularly report on research (including RECOVER) and treatment developments. We are very happy for people with Long Covid to join the ME patient community and take part in these discussions..
We have, however, been critical of the way in which huge amounts of money and research capacity has been directed at the cause and treatment of Long Covid when people with ME/CFS have faced a serious lack of government funded biomedical research on both sides of the Atlantic into the cause and treatment of ME/CFS.
We have also been critical of the way in which many clinicians and researchers have failed to acknowledge the important clinical and causative overlaps between Long Covid and ME/CFS and the failure to realise that what we know about the cause and management of of ME/CFS – especially activity and energy management – could help people with Long Covid.
We have a guide to the clinical and pathological overlaps between ME/CFS and Long Covid
This guide (which is currently being updated) also explains how we can help people with Long Covid who have ME/CFS like symptoms – debilitating fatigue and post exertional malaise, cognitive dysfunction, unrefreshing sleep, orthostatic intolerance, PoTS et
This is a free download from the MEA website:
Long Covid and ME/CFS – Are they the same?
Dr Charles Shepherd,
Trustee and Hon. Medical Adviser to the ME Association.
Member of the 2018-2021 NICE Guideline Committee.
Member of the 2002 Independent Working Group on ME/CFS.
