Myalgic Encephalopathy, or Chronic Fatigue syndrome as it’s more commonly known, affects more than 250,000 people in Britain alone. The neurological disorder causes severe and debilitating fatigue, disordered sleep, painful muscles and memory loss.

For some sufferers the effects may be minimal – but in a large number lives are changed drastically, with social lives being severely restricted and employment often becoming impossible. Sufferers can be housebound for months, sometimes years, and tend to follow a fluctuating pattern of good and bad periods of health. Relapses or exacerbations can be a regular occurrence, often precipitated by infections or stressful events.

There is currently no accepted cure and no universally effective treatment, and although there has been some research pointing to genetic susceptibility, what causes the disorder remains unclear. ME is officially recognised as a neurological disease, so why are so many doctors failing to treat it accordingly?

For many years, there was a debate as to whether it was actually an illness at all. Despite many influential bodies such as the Department of Health and the Royal College of Physicians now being in agreement that the condition is ‘real’, many GPs remain unsympathetic to patients, failing to respond to ME as a serious illness. Research published in the British Medical Journal claims that many General Practitoners still view ME patients as workshy and lazy, failing to make the effort to recover quickly. Dr Charles Shepherd, medical adviser to the charity ME Association, says GPs’ attitudes are rooted in the “deeply conservative character” of the health profession, and that more needs to be done to challenge existing prejudices around the illness: “In my training I was told that ME was nonsense, a figment of patients’ imagination, and unfortunately this attitude still prevails”. But with such large numbers of adults and children being affected by this debilitating disorder, there is no doubt that things need to change.

I spoke to Rachel Marshall, a graduate from East Anglia undertaking an MA in Culture & Literature, who suffered from ME for five years. From the age of fourteen to nineteen, Rachel was unable to go to school or even take a short walk into town, and at times had to sleep for up to twenty hours a day.

“What people don’t understand,” she says, “is that it’s not just a case of being tired. It’s physical pain that affects the muscles and nerves, it’s like constantly having the worst bits of flu.” Being stuck at home 24/7 meant Rachel missed out on her teenage years, and found it difficult to make friends.

Due to the fact that she was unable to attend school, Rachel inevitably fell behind and was only able to take four GCSEs and two A-levels, for which she had to work incredibly hard whilst battling with ME. Even now this causes problems, because she has to explain to any potential employer why her CV looks bare in comparison to those unaffected.

When asked how she felt about people who are still ignorant enough to deem ME the ‘yuppie flu’, she told me: “It makes me so angry. No one would miss out on the opportunity to go out, make friends and live a normal life if they had the choice.” Indeed, when talking with her we both agreed that a change in attitude towards ME is long overdue.

Luckily, Rachel is now much better and can participate in most regular activities so long as she is careful: “If I go out one evening, I’ll get tired and have to leave much earlier than everyone else, and it will take it out of me for the rest of the week, but I’m so grateful to be able to do normal things now.”

It’s time that we became more aware of this disorder because effectively we are all susceptible to it, and as it most commonly affects people age 20-40, us students are in the risk category. Moreover, an eradication of prejudice surrounding ME is vital. It is recognised as a neurological disorder, and it’s time we started treating it accordingly.

If you are concerned that you may have ME, visit your GP. Remember that you are entitled to a second opinion if you feel you are not being listened to.

For more information, visi$1$3ww.meassociation.org.uk,

or www.tymestrust.org