UK: LBC phone in on ME 8pm, 24th August 2024

John communicated all that so perfectly.. just heartbreaking to hear of his loneliness and to identify with it.

 

https://twitter.com/user/status/1827629841794953310

 

https://twitter.com/user/status/1827630024272286028

 

I just want to say that when I first became severe and learned about Wessely/BPS at the beginning of 2021, it was pretty much unthinkable that a mainstream radio program would challenge the BPS narrative in such a prolonged and direct way.

Very grateful to the host, producers and everyone who shared their stories.

 

Tremendous segment. Thanks to everyone who phoned in. You can really feel the culture shift. When I first came down with this 30 years ago, there was no positive mainstream coverage. Now, the BPSers are on the back foot.

 

And so many people spoke so powerfully about living death and loneliness and disbelief from so-called medical professionals. Wow.

 

@JohnTheJack That was fantastic contribution

 

What is this LBC? Nicely done to the presenter for grasping things much faster than normal!

Callers did very well

 

Agy.... whoever you are you were absolutely fantastic!

Edited, spelled her name wrong

 

To be fair I prefer it when they're honest rather than giving us the old "We're not saying the symptoms aren't real", at least you know where they stand upon the issue.

 

This is Agy
https://twitter.com/user/status/1821952612473680284

 

The comments about the types of 'personality' that get ME & the 'perfectionist' thing were unfortunate, but other than that i thought it was really good.

Edited to add: just wanting to clarify as I'm concerned this post could be read as a complaint/criticism of the caller who made the comments - it wasnt... the caller did very well & it takes a lot of courage to phone in, I'm grateful to them. And I think it was possibly said more as a counter to the oft-thought nonsense around people with ME being lazy etc.

I meant more that in an overall way that psychologists/whatever have spouted erroneous nonsense that certain personality types suffer with it, & its unfortunate that this gets repeated. But NO criticism of the caller whatsoever, they did incredibly well! I'd never trust myself to call in even if i were well enough, I'd make some huge gaffe!

 

completely agree

 

Yeah, I think that came from a twisted framing of normal experience. People often don't like doing things badly or leaving them half done, but it doesn't mean they're perfectionists. It's self respect, not wanting to let others down, taking pride in achievements, fulfilling their potential, experiencing the whole of something, being competitive. There's nothing pathological about any of that, and it was gaslighting on the part of the psych lobby to suggest it is.

 

From the Instagram account of Natasha Devon, the LBC presenter - "massive scandal"; "every caller was powerful and articulate"; references George Monbiot's excellent coverage in the Guardian. It seems the callers made quite an impression on her.

 

Yeah I hate the perfectionist thing. I try to do my best because experience has taught me that is what expected of me! Whether school or work, if anything is below-par you’ll get a dressing down for it. I never lived in a “show home” but I like it to be clean and neat and tidy (I’m a default slob but also hate mess and dirt) that’s just regular level adulting, it’s not perfectionism.

 

It's very unfortunate that there seems to be a general misconception that striving for excellence (the man who was a personal trainer for example) is the same as neurotic perfectionism. I imagine the comments have fed into this confusion among patients and listeners alike.

Apart from that, I thought it was extremely good and I hope they do another one.

 

"LBC (originally the London Broadcasting Company) is a British phone-in and talk radio station owned and operated by Global and based in its headquarters in London. It was the UK's first licensed commercial radio station, and began to broadcast on Monday 8 October 1973,[1] a week ahead of Capital Radio.

The launch of LBC also saw the beginning of Independent Radio News broadcasting, as LBC provided the service to independent local radio stations nationwide. LBC broadcast only to London until 2006, at which time it became available, via digital radio, in some other parts of the country. It has been available nationwide since 2014, with the letters now standing for Leading Britain's Conversation. LBC has a like-branded sister station, LBC News, dedicated to rolling news, travel and weather."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LBC

 

It wasn't accidental, though. It was part of the BPS spiel back in the 80s and 90s, one of their patient-blaming tactics.

Things like that can be picked up on years later by folk who may not even have been alive then, sometimes without realising where they came from. Being very fit is part of a personal trainer's job, being highly competitive is part of an athlete's; whilst they're well, no one would even think of trying to psychologise it. Same would apply if they were ill with a 'proper' disease.

 

Yes I have said this before but it bears repeating. Doctors who said the former I dismissed out of hand. Doctors who bamboozled me with the latter ruined my life and functioning.