James Walton was aiming for the world championships when he was suddenly struck down by chronic fatigue syndrome. He is now calling for more research into ME.
By Julieanne Corr, Sunday Times
Summary
- Promising Triathlete, James Walton, who was training for the World Championships alongside the Brownlee Brothers prior to his illness, speaks of his dramatic change in lifestyle since he developed ME (Myalgic Encephalomyelitis) 5 years ago.
- Now mostly housebound, and spending 18 hours a day in bed, Walton speaks of his gratefulness for girlfriend Emily Zeller, who has since become his full-time carer.
- Zeller and her family are running a relay marathon to raise funds for Action for ME.
Extracts
“I woke up on September 2, 2020, feeling horribly ill with flu-like symptoms and like I’d been hit by a bus. I could barely get out of bed and I have been sick ever since. I spend roughly 18 hours a day in bed and when out of bed I spend it sitting on the sofa. I can watch a little bit of TV during the day, read for a maximum of ten minutes per day, and [spend] a small amount of time on my phone. I struggle with even basic conversations and I need all my meals prepared for me.”
“[I’m appealing for] significant and sustained investment into high-quality biomedical research investigating biomarkers, pathophysiology and potential pharmaceutical treatments.”
Comment from James
Thanks to Julieanne Corr for this excellent piece, to Sarah Swain (Press Officer) from the ME Association for setting it up and special shout-out to Emily for conducting the interview on my behalf, as I'm too ill now to have these conversations.
The entire ME community was shocked by the British governments announcement last week, that they don't intend to allocate any additional funding to the ME action plan. A horrendous decision that will leave millions of us suffering for years to come.
Hopefully this article helps raise a bit more awareness about this debilitating disease and we see some positive action taken in the near future.
James Walton