Anil van der Zee has been appointed a Knight of the Order of Orange-Nassau

dave30th said:
I had been asked to write a letter in support of the award. Here it is:

Trial By Error: Patient Advocate Anil van der Zee Receives Dutch Royal Distinction | Virology Blog

By David Tuller, DrPHLast month, I was delighted to hear that my friend Anil van der Zee, who has been bed bound with ME/CFS for years, had been selected to ...
virology.ws virology.ws
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Thanks David. It's a beautiful letter and a great document of the work we've done together and how we became friends along the way as well. Honored you wrote a letter of recommendation for me.
 
Robert 1973 said:
Congratulations @Grigor. I'm not a great fan of honours systems in general but if anyone deserves a medal it is you.
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I hope my comment didn't seem too curmudgeonly! Just to expand on my comment: I don't know anything about the system in the Netherlands, but in the UK it seems to reward mostly the wrong people – civil servants, politicians, celebrities, the wealthy and people like SW, most of whom have already been amply rewarded for whatever they have done – good or bad.

However, I think it is a great thing that Anil has been recognised by the state for what he has achieved in the face of extreme adversity. I also think it's a great achievement for those who nominated him, and a sign of the progress that has been made by ME/CFS advocates in raising awareness.

Congratulation, once again, Sir Anil! :emoji_military_medal:
 
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Honored to be interviewed by the amazing @dave30th who also wrote a letter of recommendation for my royal honor.

"The response from within the medical and scientific community has been overwhelmingly positive as well. Of course, scientists from the “BPS” [biopsychosocial] CBT/GET world may be rather displeased about the fact that I, as a fierce critic of their work, was awarded this honor.

Thus far it was often the other way around, where they were awarded for their “amazing” work in “CFS,” which in varying degrees has been very unhelpful and harmful. It has always been painful and traumatizing that patients are left to rot and die due to their work, yet they’re being praised for it.

So to now have a patient who criticizes these developments, the science and the professionals receive honors partly for these factors clearly shows times are changing. It’s part of the paradigm shift we’ve been in for a while now."

Thank you David.

Trial By Error: Newly Knighted Anil van der Zee Discusses his Royal Honor | Virology Blog

By David Tuller, DrPH A few days ago, I posted a blog about how Anil van der Zee, a bedbound Dutch ME/CFS patient, had been awarded a royal honor in recogni ...
virology.ws virology.ws
 



A Special Tribute to Anil van der Zee | 2026 Amsterdam ISLC-PAIS Conference​

A special moment during the 2026 Amsterdam ISLC-PAIS Conference Patient Recap Session.​
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Fred Verdult shares the news that Anil van der Zee has received a Royal Honour from the Mayor of Amsterdam, recognising his contributions and commitment. This fragment was recorded during the 2026 Amsterdam ISLC-PAIS Conference Patient Recap Session on 29 August 2026 at H'Art Museum, where patients, researchers and clinicians came together to reflect on key findings, developments and patient perspectives from the ISLC-PAIS Conference.​

 
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