There are lots of Anonymous's out there, and one of them wrote -
You still haven't said what it was that got you better, Ciara! Why are people who claim to have been healed by these various techniques so unable to simply say what it was that cured them. I just don't get this reluctance. NLP/Lightning/CBT/Mickel are all like some weird religion such as Scientology who are completely secretive about the ways they behave. I just don't get it!
Okey dokey, Anon. I was like you, I just didn't get it....and the irony is, I'm not sure I really get it, even now. Yes, it seems freakishly unbelievable and improbable that anyone with serious illness could benefit from signing up to a bunch of nebulous concepts and behaviour changes. I know.
It was Mickel therapy I tried, but I guess it could have been any of the above. At first I railed against the recommendation that you don't discuss treatment while undergoing it. How ridiculous and self-limiting, I thought. How unhelpful to other sufferers. And yet, after a while I realise that repeatedly analysing the ongoing process got in the way of the 'flow' of trying to recover. It would be like trying to practise snooker/ yoga / tennis, and stopping to calculate the angle of every move, while debating the pros and cons of your game with others in the room/audience. Better to wait till the game is finished and discuss it then...
And yet - here's another twist - if it works and you do get better, miracle of miracles (!) some of us still don't fully understand how it happened. I was almost embarrassed. How could a behavioural therapy reverse a profoundly physical illness? Joe Public will reassure themselves that, yes, (it's as they thought!) you can't have been that ill in the first place. You just milked it for a couple of decades.
Of course some Recover-ees may feel cautious about what they choose to say. We face scepticism from all sides and we're not quite sure how to explain it to ourselves.
However, I am now more intrigued by the role of the psyche in all illnesses. What's the new field of research called? Psycho-neuro-immunology? There might be some answers in there.
I'm not even sure that I buy into the entire overview of these therapies - there are subtle variations down each path of MT/RT/ LP/ NLP etc. The single most important factor for me was having a therapist (is that even the right word?) who had overcome serious ME/CFS herself. (I think Recover-ees training as therapists is reasonably common in these treatments). Her experience kept me believing, or suspending disbelief, against the odds.
I think there are books and websites explaining the various 'plans for recovery', but in my experience, it would be quite hard to try it on your own. I think most people would benefit from a 'therapist' to guide them and keep them on track. I know it's expensive, and many people find that off-putting. I don't know any way round that, other than taking a gamble. It's up to every individual. I'll say again: I'm not trying to sell any thing or any one crede, I'm only speaking of my experience. I don't know if this helps or perplexes.
As they say at the end of Tele-tubbies, 'Time for Tubby Bye Byes'. Time for bed. My kids could be up at 6am. Still feels far too early. Drastic and draconian, even.
-C
