I heard about the Lightning Process from various radio programmes & magazine articles. I hadn’t thought much about it, ‘just another thing ME sufferers do.’ When Kathy came into the local ME support group and did a talk in Autumn 2007 she really rung some bells for me & I could relate to her own experience of ME as well.

I had ME since March 1998, after a bad virus the Christmas before. I attended school part time and eventually, over the years, built up to a full-time job. Although I was able to work a ‘normal’ job I didn’t really have a social life & felt as though I just ticked over in life, watching continuously what I was doing so that I didn’t overdo it. I had learnt to adapt my life around ME so I could do the majority of things. I didn’t let ME hold me back I tried to do what I wanted (e.g. I have travelled throughout Africa & SE Asia) but it just had to be done in an adapted way. I am a determined person and worked hard to get myself as well as possible but I was not completely well and never had a day when I did not feel tired or the other symptoms that had become part of my life.

Since doing the Lightning Process it feels as though all that was in an old book that has been put away on the shelf and now I have stepped into different one. I did the LP at the end of November 2007, with Kathy, over 3 days. I was open minded to the process and was ‘cautiously optimistic.’ It felt a bit like a leap of faith as you don’t know a huge amount about what will happen when you walk into that room on the first day, but you just want to leave feeling well. I thought that even if I felt 50% improved it would be worth it.

Because I was not wheelchair or bed bound there wasn’t the dramatic effect of being able to walk around again. After the first session I felt 50% better and went to bed at 11pm compared to my normal 9.30pm. Although I did some struggling actually getting up in the morning, I didn’t particularly feel tired or my brain foggy like it had been before. Getting used to the LP technique took some time. Kathy was wonderful and helped me get to grips with it during our 3 days and afterwards so that I could use the process effectively. I don’t just use it for ME; it has helped me in so many other ways- in particular gaining confidence and allowing me to do public speaking in a relatively relaxed manner.

Three months on I would say 99% of the ME symptoms have gone. I don’t need to do the process as often but always make sure I do in the morning and before I go to bed. One thing I have noticed is I have a lot more time. I think this is partly because I need less sleep but also because I prioritise & organise better now. I have started playing badminton, going to exercise classes & taken up trampolining. I wake up looking forward to the day rather than working out how long it will be until I go back to bed. Understandably other people have noticed a huge difference in me; the LP has allowed who I really am to shine through rather than the ME suppressed version.

I would definitely recommend the LP and have done to numerous people. When people try & put up barriers and say ’Well it’s too expensive’ I have said to them ‘If you think about how much you will earn in your lifetime when you are well the fee is a tiny percentage of that.