Article : What’s the Difference Between Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Fibromyalgia?

I am not impressed by this. I dont consider ME is a central sensitization condition and I think it is used as a way to dismiss the condition and its underlying causes in the same way BPS was.

I replied to the feedback box citing my reason as inaccuracy. Warning: clicking the reason type sends the feedback so enter any text before that.

I wrote as follows.

 

I've read this article too and it also recommend treatments such as GET, yoga, hypnotherapy, improving sleep habits, mindfulness etc. I wasn't impressed at all either, so good job giving feedback, @boolybooly

 

Thanks @Wyva , just having my afternoon rant !


The author is citing CDC as a source. I have not been able to find anything on the CDC website saying that ME is due to central sensitization. Am I missing something?

If the CDC is saying it is central sensitization I think we should be looking seriously at this and its implications.

https://www.cdc.gov/me-cfs/about/possible-causes.html

 

The author is a patient (not sure which predominantly) and has been writing for at least 10 years. She is not necessarily accurate and may use her personal opinion rather than hard science.

 

This is a marketing magazine for private health care as far as I can see - not an academic article.

 

the authors name is familiar. She has been writing these for years on various internet sites. Wish she would stop.

 

If she is a patient then I am sorry for her difficulty but invoking central sensitization is an own goal imho and I have seen no evidence for this in ME nor does my own experience suggest it.

There is sensory hypersensitivity due to neurological changes which causes hyperacusis and sensitivity to light and odour for many patients myself included but as I understand it, correct me if I am wrong anyone, these are not equivalent to central sensitization which is specifically about pain reception which is not what is going on in ME which is a different class of neurological phenomenon.

 

Is the problem that increasingly research is being undertaken on the basis of questionnaires devised to supposedly show the presence of central sensitivity, then claiming that it exists in various conditions on the evidence of these questionnaires without ever attempting any independent verification of them or acknowledging that the questions used were chosen because they relate to the symptoms of conditions that had previously been assumed to reflect central sensitivity without any evidence?

So some people believe that there are a range of disorders that involve central sensitivity and that there is evidence indicating certain syndromes such as ME are the result of central sensitivity. However this is based on totally circular logic: ie based on the belief that ME involves central sensitisation, the presence of ME symptoms becomes proof that ME is the result of central sensitisation.

 

I had, and still occasionally have, what seems to be neuropathic pains due to my ME. I consider that a symptom of ME that some but not all PWME have. I certainly don't believe that neuropathic pain is the cause of ME. Besides, I don't think they understand central sensitization either, so relabelling ME by some other meaningless name doesn't offer useful options for diagnosis or treatment. It sounds like it would only benefit some useless psychologists or psychiatrists and medical system administrators.

 

I was disappointed to see the "You + ME Registry" twitter account (run by Solve ME?) retweet this article.

Code:

https://twitter.com/YouMeRegistry/status/1486021325328109572

 

I saw it too, but at least some parts of the article have been corrected. Not the central sensitization part, but now there is an explanation added that says CBT and GET are outdated. (Although I had to admit there are still some issues even with that explanation.)

 

Central sensitization = inconsequential so bad news for ME patients.