I had M.E. for nearly 3 years before doing the LP. I had all the usual symptoms brain fog, fatigue etc but in Dec 2011 I had my worst relapse and was confined to bed, very depressed and anxious about the future. Although things improved slightly once on antidepressants, I made the decision that I could not go on like this and signed up to the LP in early Feb. Now 5 weeks later my life has changed so much, I now walk my dog for 2 x 30min walks a day. Do all my housework, cooking and shopping. I have been able to observe lessons in a secondary school for a whole day, and attend my childrens concert in the evening without any ill effects. I have been on my bike, been bowling, help out at the church toddler group and youth group, the list is endless!! I have also started a distance learning course which I am enjoying. I have still got some changes I want to make, and I know that I am not completely there yet but I am getting there and I have the tools to do it. Thank you Kathy for being so supportive and always being available to help me through my wobbles. My children and husband have their Mum and Wife back.
Update:
Hi Kathy
Thought I would let you know how I am getting on. I have been volunteering at the primary school most days and really enjoying, as well as doing chores, shopping and walking the dog for about an hour each day. Both my girls birthdays were in the last 2 weeks and I managed to do 2 parties at home and make and decorate the cakes this year.
I went for a job interview for a teaching assistant at a primary school today and I got it so I will be starting that in Sept. Last month I went for an interview at university of Cambridge for Teacher Training! I did all the travelling on the train on my own, had to do a presentation, a written task and an interview, I did not get back home till 7pm and I was fine. As I am pursuing a life I love I actually withdrew my application after that as I did not like them!!
I still do doubt some of the time, but its getting less and less all the time, and I can see how well I am doing in comparison to this time last year. I just have to keep reminding my brain that my body is well, and it does not need to worry.
Our family have signed up to spend 2 weeks in August at Southwold running a holiday bible club, we will be camping on the common and I will be running groups with 5-7 year olds. We normally go to this with our kids but as visitors, and last year I could do nothing much and even found it hard to watch the kids doing stuff as it took too much concentration and now I am going to be actually organising things!
So as you know I do have a lot of high expectations of myself but I am reminding myself all the time of how much I have achieved. I spoke to my GP about me doing Teacher Training and she said that she would definitely support my application as I am doing so well- in fact she said I am her star patient! So I am going to apply for primary training to start Sept 2013, as I will then have had a year of experience in a school.
So thanks so much for your help Kathy, I still tell lots of people about the process, but I have had to stop Steve telling them every detail of how it works as it makes me over think things too much.
Please feel free to add this to my entry on your website.
Love
Michelle
After one year
A very quick update for you and the website.
Today is exactly one year after finishing the lightning process. Today I have just finished successfully my first assessed teaching block on the primary PGCE!
Every day for the last 2 months I have been up at 6.30am, taught a full days teaching, and still been lesson planning till 10pm every evening. I even had flu last weekend but only needed 2 days off school!!! The PGCE is well known for being a full on course, but I am duing well with it all and still managing a home with 3 kids, dog and a Husband who is also a busy teacher.
By the end of June I will be a fully qualified primary school teacher. None of this would have been possible without the process, so thank you once again.
Love
Michelle
After eithteen months
Hi Kathy,
By my estimations it is 18 months since I did the LP. Time has flown by as I am so busy and those 3 years I had the illness seem like they happened to someone else. Yesterday I received my official result of my PGCE in Primary Education and I passed with a merit! Next week I will start a full time job as a teacher in a unit with children with challenging behaviour, so many people think I am mad taking on this job as an NQT but I know I can do it because I can do anything!! We had had a fab summer, our first family holiday on an aeroplane and I did not even du anxiety which is something I did before I was ill. Plus we ran the bible holiday club again for 2 weeks- the rest of the family had a bug but I was fine. My main problem is that whenever I apply for a course of a job I have to go through the whole occupational health clearance because of the past- the plus side is that everyone I speak to is amazed I have no lingering symptoms and that I function completely well and of course more people hear about the LP.
If you are reading this update on the website and thinking should I do the LP- please go for it, I am a Christian and I truly believe that God healed me through this fantastic course and you can be well too. Thank you Kathy.