Me Association

Helping to make the UK a better place for people with ME /CFS

We want to give everyone involved with ME /CFS the opportunity to exchange views, meet friends and learn from the experience of others.

We know that many people have heartfelt views about the illness. This is not surprising with so much uncertainty as to cause, diagnosis, research and treatment.

Yet there are some people who believe that only they know the correct way to look at all of those problems and have immense certainty in their belief. Indeed, when that belief is challenged in any way, they respond vehemently, criticising those with other opinions.

We must remember that different people make different judgements on the same facts. This may be because they have different objectives. But often it is because they see different options, select different information and assess that information differently.

So can I please ask everyone who uses this site to respect the views of others. You may not accept them. They may be the opposite of what you believe. But personal attacks on others are a desperate resort. They add nothing to a reasoned argument, indeed they portray the writer in a poor light.

These Facebook pages are for those of us at home, too ill to meet and make friends in the outside world. They give us an opportunity that our illness denies us. We can swap stories, tell how we have been treated, pass on practical solutions. We can debate the science while remembering that the science behind ME /CFS is still unfolding. We can listen and sympathise, support and encourage each other.

This is what a social network, like Facebook, is for. The future for all of us with this devastating illness does not lie with personal criticism. It lies in good research, mutual aid, information and support. And, as a contributor to those aims, Facebook has a huge role to play.

Neil Riley, Chairman, The ME Association.