Gary Burgess Despicable ME

[BurnA]

Gary Burgess
A journalist, employed as an on-screen and off-screen Content Editor for ITV News in Jersey & columnist

What a handsome chap!
That’s me, earlier this week, catching up with a friend. Looking (I think) reasonably healthy, with a beaming smile thanks to a cracking catch-up and a healthy dose of gossip.

An hour later, I was home, in pain, in bed, trying to find the least-worst position to rest my body which was a combination of sweats, burning limbs, sore joints and resembling something akin to a person who had just gone ten rounds in a boxing ring.

He talks about setting up a new website....

My first step has been to set up a little website called Zonked Club. It’s in its really early stages. I want it to be a platform where people with M.E. can share their experiences, good and bad, and create a community that understands each other and can learn from each other.

Maybe we should reach out to him, save him a bit of bother.

We can be happy that our name is at least better than zonked club

 

[JCB]

There are actually a zillion ME and CFS websites. Only a few reach critical mass. Some become popular blogs. I think a site that aims purely at relating good and bad experience won't get a lot of traffic. Little of the traffic on popular sites really fits into that category. Few of use want to spend long reading about these things, I think we prefer to give out snippets as we chat with people and learn to trust them. Maybe he has another USP? However if he has the right intent, I wish him well.

 

[Woolie]

Great to see another high profile person 'come out' though, isn't it? And one that is: a) male; and b) doesn't appear to be a fruitcake...

 

[Trish]

Great to see another high profile person 'come out' though, isn't it? And one that is: a) male; and b) doesn't appear to be a fruitcake...

Yes, so long as it actually is ME, no temporary burnout as seems to have been the case with some who then claim a miraculous recovery with some quack treatment. Note - I'm not questioning his diagnosis, just a little wary of celebrity diagnoses in general. Of course I wish him well.

 

[Valentijn]

Great to see another high profile person 'come out' though, isn't it? And one that is: a) male; and b) doesn't appear to be a fruitcake...

I'm still half expecting him to cure himself, write a book about it, and go on tour to inspire the masses No doubt his intentions are good, but if you've only been sick for a year, you're still at the stage where you need to be learning about the existing ME/CFS community, not trying to create a new one on your website.

 

[TiredSam]

if you've only been sick for a year, you're still at the stage where you need to be learning about the existing ME/CFS community, not trying to create a new one on your website.

I did wonder about his research abilities as a journalist, thinking he has to set something up which, with a little research, he would know already exists.

 

[adreno]

I did wonder about his research abilities as a journalist, thinking he has to set something up which, with a little research, he would know already exists.

Everybody wants their name on the billboard.

 

[Liv aka Mrs Sowester]

Everybody wants their name on the billboard.

Yah, an ME diagnosis is so hot right now.

 

[Invisible Woman]

No doubt his intentions are good, but if you've only been sick for a year, you're still at the stage where you need to be learning about the existing ME/CFS community, not trying to create a new one on your website.

Very true.

Also strikes me as one of the things that most of the healthy don't get and it takes the newbies a long time to come to terms with (understandably) - what's a year when you've started counting in decades?

I wish him well. That early on he's got a good chance of seeing some light at the end of the tunnel. Let's just hope that, as a journalist, he'll be curious enough to find out that most of us have been left to rot & used to to further some people's careers.