I first fell ill in 2001 at the age of 16. I had a nasty bout of tonsillitis which antibiotics wouldn’t shift and some nasty stress in my personal life (which I won’t go into).
After 6 months of not doing much other than staying in bed, I was sent to see a specialist in Tilbury, he gave me the diagnosis of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS), otherwise known as Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (M.E.)
By this point, I had been thrown out of college due to my not being able to attend and didn’t have any structure in my life (unless you count watching Neighbours).
I was advised to create a routine, and do everything in 15minute chunks. For example, I could read a book for 15 mins, but then my next activity could not be a mental one (TV, computer, etc).
I followed the rules as best I could, bearing in mind I was a teenager! I built on what I could do slowly and by the time I was 21, I would say I was fully well and in my mind would never be ill again!
I lived a normal life for the next 7 years. I worked, I passed my motorcycle licence and enjoyed a few summers of riding, I got married, had 2 kids, relocated and then bam…