ME/CFS (Myalgic encephalomyelitis or chronic fatigue syndrome) is a chronic condition which lasts for longer than 6 months and leaves the individual with an multitude of potential symptoms; including but not limited to extreme fatigue, long lasting post exertional fatigue, the inability to be upright for long periods, unrefreshing sleep, and cognitive impairment. ME/CFS can effect anybody but is more common to arise within individuals with another chronic condition, major health complications as a trigger, are older in age, and/or simply because an individual is female. Past reports state that there are currently confirmed 20,000+ individuals in NZ with ME/CFS with a potential increase to 100,000+ after the wave of Long Covid. Multiple Scientists worldwide and here in New Zealand agree that majority of individuals with long covid develop symptoms which are identical to ME/CFS. 

ME/CFS is an often misunderstood topic for doctors in New Zealand. Some still believe it to be a psychological disease and will organize treatment and therapies that do not work to improve the patients symptoms. These include CBT (cognitive behavioral therapy), standard GET (graded exercise therapy), as well as the use of psychological drugs. It is now understood within some of the latest research that these forms of treatment are ineffective and can be harmful to the overall health of the individual, not to mention a great cost to individuals who go through these treatments. I have great quote about this from an expert I have heard talk about this: "Doctors have a notion that somehow with your mind you can get better (for ME/CFS). It's like asking a diabetic to recover without insulin."

Doctors are currently taught in medical schools to not look for a ME/CFS diagnosis early and to believe other conditions are more probable ("when you hear hoof beats think horses, not zebras"). It should also be noted that a diagnosis for ME/CFS is typically only given once an individual experiences symptoms for a required 6 months. This will leave many individuals lacking the diagnosis and proper care they require for months and for some others it can take years if they are misdiagnosed. This lack of early care and proper symptom management can result in symptoms worsening over time, pushing individuals from a mild state to more moderate and serious states of symptom experience. This is not good enough, and the excuse of the lack of a biomarker is no longer an expectable one.

Other improvements that can be made are:

- Checking for comorbid issues early which can include: POTS, Dysautonomia, MCAS, Joint Hypermobility, Small Fiber Neuropathy

- Improving the way doctors test for orthostatic intolerance tests with the use of the NASA Lean test or the Tilt-Table test

It is time to review the current methods of diagnosis and treatment, incorporate the new literature and proof that ME/CFS is a physiological disease and not a psychological one, and that it requires a careful and considered method of symptom management. The time to diagnosis should also be shortened rather than keeping it at the 6 month of symptom experience requirement. These education reforms are more important now than ever due to covid, the number of people living with ME/CFS in New Zealand has potentially quadrupled, living with the form of ME/CFS due to Long Covid.