ME & CFS
Myalgic Encephalopathy (ME) is the old term given to Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) The World Health Organisation recognised the illness in 2003 and standardised the terminology so that all nations now use the American term, CFS. The M.E Association and Action for M.E still use the old terminology but Myalgic Encephalopathy implies there is a virus on the brain and there is no evidence for this.
There is a great deal of dispute about the cause of ME CFS possibly because it has only been recently categorised as an illness and research is therefore in the early stages. Currently there are no definitive answers but there is a lot of evidence coming out that there is a Dysfunctional Stress Response ie the body is responding inappropriately. There is evidence that the Sympathetic Nervous System ( SNS) in the body, responsible for dealing with anything stressful or dangerous, is over sensitive, turning on dysfunctionally and regularly but as yet the researchers are not sure if this is a cause or an effect of the illness.
Whilst a lot of evidence shows that a virus may be the original stressor attacking the body, it is possible that the body was already being triggered inappropriately and " living on adrenaline" to survive and keep going. Typically people will have had a period of "pushing themselves to keep going" , whether in sports, work, being responsible for others, through emotional turmoil or a combination of all these factors. According to general Adaptive Syndrome all mammals exposed to stress, i.e. overload to the body, go through a period of resistance before the final stage of exhaustion and collapse- and the body certainly collapses with CFS
Complementary research also suggests that the Hypothalmus, the Master Control gland in the brain, has become dysfunctional and this directly controls the SNS as well as other autonomic responses (ones we don't consciously control) such as sleep patterns, digestion, thermostat, immune system and reproductive system. Hence people with ME will experience amongst other things; hyper sensitivity to their surroundings such as acute pain to light, sound, smell, or touch, sleep disruption, muscle ache, digestive problems, thermostat imbalance and sensitivity to viruses or chemicals/ food.
The Lightning Process teaches people to switch off the sensitive hypothalmus and Sympathetic Nervous System and return to a normal healthy state.
The Lightning Process gives people a powerful stratgey to deal with ME CFS