News from Aotearoa/New Zealand and the Pacific Islands

ANZMES statement on reports of:
significant abuse and online threats directed at Mel Abbott, as well as the negative treatment of some of her clients, after sharing their recovery stories or promoting The Switch programme.
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anzmes.org.nz

ANZMES Statement on Sharing Improvement and Recovery Stories

This statement addresses the sharing of improvement and recovery stories in general but also in relation to a New Zealand based private business, Empower Therapies, owned and operated by Mel Abbott…
anzmes.org.nz anzmes.org.nz
 
Utsikt said:
ANZMES statement on reports of:

anzmes.org.nz

ANZMES Statement on Sharing Improvement and Recovery Stories

This statement addresses the sharing of improvement and recovery stories in general but also in relation to a New Zealand based private business, Empower Therapies, owned and operated by Mel Abbott…
anzmes.org.nz anzmes.org.nz
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They are getting a lot of negative feedback on their statement on their Facebook page announcing this statement. They have thanked people for their comments and are going to revise their statement after further discussion with the executive committee.

I see they have also had to change their information a few months ago on The Switch saying Mel is no longer an LP practitioner. https://anzmes.org.nz/correction-of-information/

From various forums, it appears ANZMES has received a legal threat from Mel. Oddly, I have never seen threats or doxxing in the groups I frequent. Plenty of negative comment on her pseudoscientific made up "therapy" and cosy relations with professors of general practice.

I have never heard people say "that is ANZMES stance". (Though I have never bothered going on to her Facebook page and commenting so maybe someone has there?).

She also frequents ME and LC patient forums and has been known to DM people to endorse her "therapy" in a positive light.

As for ANZMES, I do not think anyone should be condemned for giving negative comment on a health provider in private Facebook ME support groups. There is plenty of rubbishing of various GP's and psychiatrists but I have never seen any of these doctors threaten patients with legal action. She is an alternative health provider as per the HDC. I don't believe there is anything in the Health and Disability Code that says patients can't talk to other patients/consumers about their experiences with a "provider".

edit: Thankfully they have just now taken this statement down off their website and their Facebook page, I forgot to copy it and post it's content here...I will try with version 2 if it is newsworthy.
 
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...significant abuse and online threats directed at Mel Abbott, as well as the negative treatment of some of her clients, after sharing their recovery stories or promoting The Switch programme.​

That claim that needs very robust scrutiny indeed. Evidence, please, and it had better be good. And if it is, then they should be taking it to the police, not chucking a tanty.

If Ms Abbott and her ilk are peddling reckless profiteering goo then those on the receiving end of it have a right to point that out, and ask they stop doing it.
 
Sean said:
...significant abuse and online threats directed at Mel Abbott, as well as the negative treatment of some of her clients, after sharing their recovery stories or promoting The Switch programme.​

That claim that needs very robust scrutiny indeed. Evidence, please, and it had better be good. And if it is, then they should be taking it to the police, not chucking a tanty.

If Ms Abbott and her ilk are peddling reckless profiteering goo then those on the receiving end of it have a right to point that out, and ask they stop doing it.
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Yes, I have communicated that to them and told them I think the members should be able to see the proof of this.

It is interesting that this has come up after the ME Support FB group (the only national online group for pwME) has recently banned discussion of LP, The Switch and Brain Retraining after a literature review of the scientific evidence and polling of it's members. If people search the group for her "course" they will come up with all the negative commentary on it and now people who have had the "therapy" are unable to promote it. So she has lost her ability to recruit clients via this FB group. How annoying for her!

The ANZMES page is back up so I have copied it, just to have a record of what they have up, in case it is deleted when they put up the revised statement.

ANZMES Statement on Sharing Improvement and Recovery Stories​

August 20, 2025 by anzmes01
This statement addresses the sharing of improvement and recovery stories in general but also in relation to a New Zealand based private business, Empower Therapies, owned and operated by Mel Abbott, from which she runs her programme: The Switch.

ANZMES has received reports of significant abuse and online threats directed at Mel Abbott, as well as the negative treatment of some of her clients, after sharing their recovery stories or promoting The Switch programme. We are aware that some of this behaviour is linked to certain groups stating they are “following ANZMES’ stance” in condemning The Switch, referring to it as the Lightning Process, and restricting members from sharing recovery experiences.

It is now time for ANZMES to speak out clearly and publicly against this behaviour, especially as it is being done in our name. We do not tolerate abuse of any kind, regardless of the strong opinions associated with some techniques.

It is also important that we correct the record regarding The Switch and our earlier messaging. Please see the below statement, which we ask you to share to ensure clarity and to promote respectful discussion across the community.

This is NOT an endorsement of any technique mentioned above, but rather, a response to reports of threats and abuse.

21st August 2025 – Statement:

ANZMES supports our members and community in sharing both their stories of improvement and recovery or the harmful effects, regardless of the type of treatment or approach that has helped or not helped them. We believe people should be able to share these experiences openly and without fear of retaliation or rejection.

As an organisation ANZMES recognises and follows the NICE October 2021 guidelines and does not rely on any methods that are not evidence-based. Whilst we do not make broad recommendations, we do however, respect the right of our members and community to seek out their own treatments and to share their personal stories.

We welcome hearing about improvement and recovery experiences. We do not support and we condemn any bullying, negative commentary, doxxing, spamming, or abuse directed towards individuals who choose to pursue these techniques, or towards the providers offering them.

We ask that respect be extended to those who have experienced recovery. Their journey is personal and valid, and their story deserves to be heard without judgment. At the same time, we encourage individuals sharing recovery experiences to do so with sensitivity, acknowledging that ME/CFS affects people in diverse and complex ways.

Choosing not to pursue a particular treatment or approach does not reflect a lack of desire to recover—it simply represents a personal decision based on individual circumstances, health status, lived experience, and the valuing of evidence-based methods and international standards.

We strongly reject gaslighting or dismissive comments such as “they must not have been sick” or “they must not have had ME/CFS” in response to someone’s recovery. These statements are harmful and ignore the heterogeneity of the condition. It is important to remember that ME/CFS includes multiple subgroups, and while a small percentage of individuals may recover to near pre-illness levels, many more do not, despite trying numerous interventions. We celebrate improvements where they occur, while holding space for those whose journey continues with ongoing challenges.

We also welcome feedback and experiences where the outcomes of any techniques or treatments produce a worsening of functional capacity. This is to ensure a scientific approach, where all experiences, regardless of outcome, are received, to produce a well-rounded understanding of subjective outcomes.

ANZMES also wishes to clarify that, in the past, we published that Mel Abbott is a Lightning Process practitioner. This is no longer the case. The Switch, run by Mel Abbott, through her private business: Empower Therapies, is not affiliated with the Lightning Process, according to Mel Abbott.

By sharing this statement, we aim to protect our community’s right to speak openly about their personal journeys, uphold respect across all discussions, and ensure that misinformation is corrected.

ANZMES is NOT endorsing any technique or treatment, but rather, is making it clear that we do not condone bullying, harassment, or threats.
 
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Ravn said:
Finally live, our national health authority’s updated public information on ME/CFS. Not perfect but quite passable overall (even though they ignored some feedback...)
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I agree on a quick read through it does look pretty good. What sort of feedback was ignored? I would like it to say something about severity levels, very severe ME/CFS and most pwME not being able to work or attend education.
 
Read this over a few times now and it is actually quite realistic and helpful. A bit anemic maybe here and there, but overall nothing I would seriously disagree with.

Symptom list is good.

This paragraph is excellent and important, particularly the last sentence:

Try to manage your activity and conserve your energy with rest and pacing to avoid triggering episodes of post-exertional malaise (PEM). This may mean you have to reduce what you are doing or stop doing some things altogether. Do not keep pushing yourself or try to exercise yourself back to health — exercise does not cure ME/CFS.​

The comments on recovery rates and possible improvement are good.

Good to see no mention of the boom-bust cycle nonsense, nor psycho-behavioural speculation or inappropriate recommendations/suggestions:

Talking to a psychologist or counsellor may help you to establish good coping mechanisms to deal with the challenges of living with a long-term illness.​

No issue with that. A reasonable suggestion, for those who wish to try it.

Main points of weakness are that
  • they headlined it as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome;
  • PEM is typically delayed, not "often" delayed (I would actually argue that the delayed component is a required feature of PEM);
  • there is some ambiguity in the distinction between immediate and delayed consequences of activity (I don't regard the former as part of PEM, they are two quite distinct things for me);
  • I have never been happy with advice based on 'managing energy', which is still relying too much on the unhelpful fatigue based model, the term to use should be something like 'minimising symptoms';
  • and I agree that the primary one is the lack of info about the more severe end of the spectrum (also could have used a mention of how even 'mild' ME/CFS has a major impact), along with adverse the consequences for work and education and social/personal life.
While it could use an extra detail and clarification or two, I particularly appreciate the brevity and plain language of it. Patients and carers are not swamped with pages of practically irrelevant and potentially misleading detail and prescriptive lists and management boxes to tick. A lesson in that for all involved in the field, I think.

Overall it looks like a big step forward for our Kiwi friends. Something good to work with and build on. Which is nice. :)

I will be happy if we here over on the western island can get something like this in play.

Thank you NZ Health, and ANZMES.

Compare this to the page on FND.
 
Sean said:
...significant abuse and online threats directed at Mel Abbott, as well as the negative treatment of some of her clients, after sharing their recovery stories or promoting The Switch programme.​

That claim that needs very robust scrutiny indeed. Evidence, please, and it had better be good. And if it is, then they should be taking it to the police, not chucking a tanty.

If Ms Abbott and her ilk are peddling reckless profiteering goo then those on the receiving end of it have a right to point that out, and ask they stop doing it.
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Claiming the right to punch someone in the face doesn't come with the right to claim that no one can object to being punched in the face, especially when they make it very clear they do not want, have had it happened, complained about it, and somehow some people are still going around claiming, and being granted, the right to continue doing this.

Of course the problem is with the initial action, but it seems we can't do much about the natural rights of some people to punch us in the face.
 
I don't even understand the point of asking for recovery or improvement stories. What is even the point here, other than in promoting quackery?

Because there are plenty of recovery stories out there. Thousands and thousands. Some of them genuine. Some of them were temporary improvements that relapsed. Some of them are fake. How more real would asking for new ones be compared to this? None at all. The attribution to any particular cause for a change in health is inappropriate, even biased trials can't even do anything but stretch statistics beyond its limits.

This is just promoting some quack's business. WTH are we even doing here when supposed allies do crap like this?
 
Trish said:
I agree on a quick read through it does look pretty good. What sort of feedback was ignored? I would like it to say something about severity levels, very severe ME/CFS and most pwME not being able to work or attend education.
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Can’t remember the details now, the last round of feedback was months ago, but it was definitely argued that the headline should include ME or ME/CFS. IIRC there were comments on some of the OI management suggestions (no evidence) and the lack of info about severity, and probably a few more points I’ve forgotten now

But credit where credit is due. I strongly suspect that the usual suspects applied their usual behind the scenes lobbying to turn back the clock on GET/CBT and to insert LP and derivatives – and if that was indeed the case the writers of this Health NZ update withstood this admirably
 
hibiscuswahine said:
The ANZMES page is back up so I have copied it, just to have a record of what they have up, in case it is deleted when they put up the revised statement.
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This thing is seriously odd. ANZMES, as usual, are keeping their cards close to their chest so no way of knowing what’s really going on

It’s fair enough that they would want to distance themselves from any incidents of harassment or trolling and remind people to behave civilly. But that could have been phrased much more simply and to the point

But all that other stuff, what’s that all about? It reads like it’s been written by multiple people with widely divergent views. Something smells off
 
Ravn said:
I strongly suspect that the usual suspects applied their usual behind the scenes lobbying to turn back the clock on GET/CBT and to insert LP and derivatives – and if that was indeed the case the writers of this Health NZ update withstood this admirably
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It's pretty fair to assume this is always the case. Far more than we'll ever know. Things like this don't happen without some people always pushing their agenda, leveraging power behind the scenes.
 
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