Gwyn's M. E.
Information for M.E. Sufferers - How I recovered fom M.E.
I suffered from M.E. from Sept. 1998 to October 2003.
In November I was rushed into hospital with what was diagnosed as a mini stroke. I was kept in for a month under going endless tests and scans. In the end by a process of elimination they diagnosed M.E. It was useful having an early diagnosis but they wanted to keep me in hospital because I was so weak, In the end I had to beg to go home.
The trouble was, that to do the tests they were injecting me with differant chemical substances and eventually they were injecting me, in the stomach twice a day with something to thin the blood because I had become bedridden and they were worried that I'd suffer from blood clots.
I didn't realise it at the time but now know I'd been getting weaker as a result of even more overload on my body caused by foreign substances (injections) on my already overloaded immune system.
The first year was spent suffering from multiple symptoms and pains and on an average day , I spent 5 minutes out of every hour out of bed, usually just enough to wash or go to the loo.
In the first few months I had magnesium injections on the suggestion of my G.P. and they helped a lot with the muscle pain. I also tried Amitriptyline to help with the lack of sleep. I did sleep a bit longer when I eventually got to sleep but I took myself off it because of the side affects and took Bach Flower Remedies instead.
By the second year I could spend about 15 minutes out of bed in an hour. I could sometimes manage a walk in the garden. I had a reclining wheelchair at first because I couldn't hold my head up for more than a few minutes, then I progressed to an ordinary wheelchair. By the third year I hardly ever went in a wheelchair, except sometimes on outings. I could occasionally manage to walk 1/2 mile. I still found standing still and lifting difficult. I made gradual improvement with a few short relapses until after 5 years I was completely recovered.
In March 2004 I flew to Tasmania to stay with my daughter, the trip took abot 36 hours door to door. I managed the journey okay travelling alone and suffered minimum jet lag. We did a lot of walking in the hills when I was there, usually from 2 - 5 hours.
For my 53rd birthday , June 2004, I walked up Cadair Idris a mountain in Wales of over 3,000 feet, without any after effects. I consider this a complete recovery.
I was lucky to have a District Nurse come to see me during my illness to give me iron injections for my anaemia. She also gave me Reiki, a form of hands on healing. This helped calm me and reduce the stress and the pain and in adapting to the fact that I was so ill and felt totally useless. She also advised me to have Vega testing because she thought I had food intollerances. She was right, candida was also found and an appropriate diet and food supplement program was advised which helped a lot.
I tried acupuncture, which balanced my body thermostat and stopped me from feeling permanently freezing cold.
I was then lucky to hear of a very good Master Herbalist. He detoxed my colon, liver and kidneys. It involved taking all sorts of unpleasant mixtures, which made me feel worse while I was taking them because of the healing reaction. I felt a lot better afterwards. I was treated for bacterial infection, organo-phosphate poisoning, rediation, heavy metal poisoning, viral infections, Geopathic stress and other things, mainly by my herbalist but also by some other really good complementary therapists. I was advised to eat a vegan diet and drink 2 litres of filtered or bottled water daily, I'd already given up caffeine, alcohol, sugar and most processed foods. These treatments were ongoing and sometimes expensive but worth every penny because they worked and the therapists were always very supportive and understanding.
I wanted to reduce the chemical overload on my body, which meant not only giving up chemicals in food where ever possible but also stopping the use of chemicals in the home. I use Eco-friendly products to replace sink and toilet cleaner, to wash clothes, wash up the dishes and floors etc. instead of ones without all the harmful chemicals in them. It was pointed out to me that we absorb about 60% of the chemicals we rub into our skins which is even more worrying when you think of what's in hair dyes etc. that we can easily absorb into the brain damaging our nervous system. I use Green People products which seem expensive to buy but they last a long time. I also changed to buying my make up from a firm called Neways.
I use non-toxic paints for decorating from a company called Ecos. Crown paints also have a Breath Easy range, that is supposed to be low in toxins.
I have replaced perfumes with aroma therapy oils, they not only smell nice but they have theraputic uses as well.
I haven't had a chemical drug since 1999 except for iron injections that I had a course of twice a year until Sept. 2002. They have since been taken off the market ! If my iron levels drop at all my herbalist treats me.
In December 2001 I had my amalgam fillings out by a top Harley Street Specialist because I was told it would help with my mercury overload. Within days my brain function returned to almost normal. All my concentration levels, bad memory and fussy heads improved dramatically within days. Removal of fillings must be done by an expert, otherwise you could swallow or inhale more mercury.
I also found it was no good treating just physical symptoms, that we need to treat the emotional side at the same time.
I think we get M.E. because in the first instance stress, caused by every day things like pressures of work, exams, bereavement, divorce, abuse or physical injury can lower our immune system which is probably already under functioning. It is often done gradually over years. Once the immune system is low we become more vulnerable to picking up viruses and our body filters, like our liver and kidneys become weaker and less able to eliminate substances like organo-phosphates and other chemicals. Once the body is out of balance we can develop other problems like candida.
I found it necessary to go back over any emotional problems in life and release them either with the help of complenentary therapies, or by discussing them with a knowledgeable friend, in my case the District Nurse, to help release any feelings of resentment, grief, guilt or anger etc. I believe that we hold emotions on a cellular level and until we have dealt with and released them they can cause us physical problems.
I also found reading books on Inner Child work and Psychotherapy helped me to understand how we hold onto and how to release emotions. Reiki, Bach Flower Remedies and Em-Power Therapy helped a great deal on balancing and releasing emotional trauma.
There isn't only the past trauma to deal with, there are all the stresses of living with a serious illness that still isn't understood by, or in some cases believed by, the general public.
2005 I was so impressed with Complementary Therapies that I went on to train in the ones that I feel played a big part in my recovery. I am now a Reiki Practitioner and Master/Teacher. A Bach Floer Remedy Practitioner and Em-Power Therapist.
It's nice to be in a position to help others after all the help I recieved during my illness. This is just a brief account of how I recovered, it was hard work and I was lucky to have had the support of my family and an excellent District Nurse. I believe that some of the methods I used could help most M.E. sufferes but we are all individuals and must take responsibility for our own health and seek out what feels right for us. If you would like to discuss this with me, call me on 01594 836989 or email gwyn@gwynhopkins.co.uk
I learnt a lot about complimentary medicine, healthy diet and lifestyle during my illness. It took me years to collect my information and I'm still searching to find ways I can help people to improve their health and reach there positve potential in life.
Recommended reading:
“Your Body’s Many Cries for Water” by Dr.Batmanghelidj
“The Healing Power of illness” by Thorwald Dethlefsen and Rudiger Dahlke MD.
“Light up your life” by Diana Cooper
“Celestine Prophecy” by James Redfield
“The Road Less Travelled” by M. Scott Peck.
“The Undefended Self” by Susan Thesenga
Reading these books may well bring up old traumas, that haven’t been properly dealt with in the past and it’s very useful to have someone you trust to talk things over with as you go along.
By the end of the first year I had experienced all the following symptoms:
Fatigue sometimes so bad I couldn’t chew food.
Falls where I would suffer temporary paralysis.
Sore throat and swollen glands
Headaches and sinusitis
Muscle pain and tingling in the arms and legs mainly on my right side
Feeling freezing cold for months
IBS
Gritty eyes
Sore face
Lack of concentration
Unable to co-ordinate brain and hand to write properly.
Short-term memory loss
Often sore to touch & sometimes-itchy skin
Mood swings
Found it hard to get to sleep even though I’d feel exhausted.
Suffered vivid dreams and nightmares
See Therapy page for more current information on my healing work.
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