How it went
Did it last?
- 4 of 18 said the benefit wore off (including the 1 who relapsed).
- 1 of 18 needed to keep doing it to stay well.
Read from what people wrote. A story that ends without a follow-up counts as lasting, so treat these as minimums.
| Outcome described | Accounts | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Full recovery | 5 | 28% |
| Near-full | 3 | 17% |
| Substantial | 6 | 33% |
| Partial | 3 | 17% |
| Relapsed | 1 | 6% |
| No benefit | 0 | 0% |
By how ill people were
| Severity at worst | How it went | n | Recovered |
|---|---|---|---|
| Moderate | 3 | 33% | |
| Severe | 8 | 50% | |
| Very severe | 5 | 40% |
2 accounts don’t say how ill the person was.
Specific treatments in these accounts
- TreatmentHow it wentRecoveredFaded
- Graded exercise / graded activity18 accounts
44% 22%
- Pacing and the energy envelope7 accounts
43% 14%
- CBT and psychotherapy5 accounts
80% 20%
- Meditation, yoga, breathwork4 accounts
75% 25%
- Brain retraining programs (DNRS, Gupta, ANS Rewire, Primal Trust)3 accounts
100% 33%
Within the accounts on this page. Grey numbers rest on fewer than 10 accounts.
All 18 accounts
-
A Recovery Story: From Life-Altering Chronic Symptoms to Living a Full Life
Credits trauma and somatic work, JournalSpeak, brain retraining and graded exercise. Steph was ill 2y with very-severe ME/CFS and is described as fully recovered. 90% bedbound; Sarno/JournalSpeak trauma journaling.
-
Losing a whole year - my Long COVID story
D.C. Elton tried a series of psychiatric medications for sleep and mood — Lexapro starting at 1 mg, trazodone escalated from 10 mg to 150 mg nightly (ineffective at any dose), sublingual Ambien, Remeron 10-15 mg (caused daytime sedation), and Wellbutrin 75…
-
My ME/CFS Recovery, Part II: GET, CBT, and Brain Retraining
Credits graded exercise, CBT or psychological work and brain retraining. Jay was ill 10y with moderate ME/CFS and is described as almost fully recovered. GET worsened him; DNRS gave temporary gains; ~90% recovered.
-
Has anyone recovered from CFS or been able to radically improve? (riotlady)
Treatment was non-pharmaceutical: an initial period of extended rest, followed by graded exercise therapy done very gently under a physiotherapist's guidance, plus vitamin D tablets, with riotlady saying no single measure was a magic bullet. The post does…
-
Robyn Dale
Robyn's treatment combined short courses of propranolol, zopiclone and diazepam early on with medium-term amitriptyline for insomnia, mood and muscle spasms, alongside daily walking, yoga, meditation and graded activity. She crashed severely in December 2021…
-
Dr. Thomas Levy -- How COVID Helped Me Regain Good Health
Took low-dose hydrocortisone at 20mg/day for over 20 years of ME/CFS, raising it to 30-35mg/day during a COVID infection, and added liposome-encapsulated vitamin C at 3-10g/day after reading a book pairing the two. Describes moving from roughly 4% function…
-
World Physiotherapy Day
Credits pacing. Darren was ill 18mo with severe long COVID and reports a partial improvement. Advocates pacing over graded exercise; still ill.
-
Does anyone with CFS get back to 100% ever?
Credits graded exercise. ScottTriGuy had ME/CFS, improved, then relapsed. Two full remissions returning to triathlon training; relapsed.
-
The Man and the Map: Dan Moricoli on His Continuing Recovery
A Phoenix Rising member (fT3g0) highlighted Dan Moricoli's published recovery story crediting a personal exercise-and-yoga approach distinct from standard graded exercise therapy. The underlying Health Rising article was not separately fetched, so duration…
-
From the Bedside to the Outdoors: Green Girl Goes Green Again
An outdoorsy environmental scientist who blogs as Green Girl contracted Ross River virus in 2009 and relapsed severely in 2010, becoming mostly bedbound with fatigue and brain fog so severe she could only read small amounts. She used pacing, graded exercise,…
-
what has worked for you
Over several years of self-experimentation starting from very severe illness (Bell's disability score about 10, housebound 3+ years), he found graded exercise, the Myhill protocol, the Martin Pall protocol and various detox regimens made him worse, but…
-
Tips and techniques of how I completely recovered from CFS / ME!
Credits pacing, graded exercise and CBT or psychological work. Emily was ill 2y with severe ME/CFS and is described as fully recovered. Full-time gym plus strict pacing; called it mind-over-matter.
-
Heart Rate Monitor Based Exercise Program Improves Heart Functioning in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS)
A 28-year-old woman with ME/CFS, caught in a push-crash cycle and no longer able to work, used a heart-rate monitor set to beep whenever she exceeded her anaerobic threshold as a cue to sit or lie down, combined with gentle flexibility work, lying-down…
-
Recovery from CFS: 50 Personal Stories
Credits graded exercise. Anna Hemmings had ME/CFS and is described as fully recovered. Olympic canoeist won world championship gold 9 months after recovery.
-
Starting Running After Covid Pneumonia
Credits pacing, graded exercise and physiotherapy. natswright was ill 4.5mo with very-severe long COVID and reports a partial improvement. Hospitalised a month, relearned to walk.
-
Running and Long Covid
Credits pacing, graded exercise and physiotherapy. Gthants was ill 2.5y with severe long COVID and reports a partial improvement. Couch-to-5K thread; a replier reports full recovery.
-
Graded Exercise Therapy for CFS ME and FMS: Friend or Foe
Credits brain retraining, graded exercise and diet. Dan was ill 6y with severe ME/CFS and is described as fully recovered. Argues GET only works paired with nervous-system retraining.
-
Lynn Shares Her Thoughts on How to Recover from Fibromyalgia
Credits CBT or psychological work, diet, graded exercise and meditation. Lynn had severe ME/CFS and is described as fully recovered. Hit rock bottom first; 3-5hr daily meditation.