Paul Garner’s Story

“People in the communities were telling I would be ill for the rest of my life.”

• Summary of Story

  Early Life and Background

  • Professor of Infectious Diseases and Public Health.

  • Lived a high-pressure lifestyle, particularly during the pandemic.

  Onset of Illness

  • Developed COVID-19 in March 2020 with unusual symptoms: no fever, sore throat, or cough, but a general sense of feeling unwell.

  • Symptoms fluctuated over the next nine months, including extreme fatigue, chest tightness, tachycardia, brain fog, tinnitus, and joint pain.

  • Gentle exercise or walking worsened symptoms, leading to a cycle of boom and bust.

  Searching for Answers

  • Despite being a medical professional, found NHS guidance inadequate for prolonged symptoms.

  • Turned to the ME/CFS community, receiving both helpful advice and discouraging messages suggesting lifelong illness.

  • Was referred to an ME/CFS clinic and diagnosed with the condition based on Canadian Criteria.

  Understanding the Condition

  • Realised symptoms were linked to complex interactions between the brain, body, and nervous system.

  • Discovered that the body's protective mechanisms could become dysregulated, leading to persistent symptoms.

  • Recognised that the mind and conscious thought could influence physical symptoms.

  Path to Recovery

  • Adopted a mind-body approach through conscious thought, behaviour, and emotional regulation.

  • Focused on reducing symptom monitoring, avoiding negative illness narratives, and engaging in activities that brought joy.

  • Gradually resumed physical activities, starting with gentle exercise and progressing to military fitness training.

  Challenges and Setbacks

  • Contracted dengue fever during a holiday, which temporarily worsened fatigue and symptoms.

  • Experienced a relapse, but applied recovery principles to overcome the setback.

  Current Status

  • Reports being well, with occasional fatigue similar to that experienced by healthy individuals.

  • Emphasises that recovery is possible and that the mind-body connection is crucial in healing.

  Message to Others

  • Advocates for a holistic understanding of post-viral syndromes, incorporating psychological and behavioural factors in recovery.

  • Challenges the purely biomedical model of ME/CFS and long COVID.

  • Encourages others to explore mind-body approaches and seek support from positive, empowering communities.

• Key Illness Themes

  • Excessive self-imposed performance expectations at work with a relentless load

  • Driven personality with a strict fitness regimen

  • Parents who both experienced considerable mental trauma when young

  • Infection with Coronavirus-19

• Comorbidities

  • None

• Key Recovery Therapies

  • I thought the symptoms were caused by the direct effects of the COVID-19 virus. When I realised they were the result of a stress response and I should reinterpret them as such, everything changed

  • Demonstration of how simple relaxation approaches relieved symptoms

  • Having a helper who knew her stuff and I trusted

  • Understanding central sensitisation: While recovery can be rapid, you have to be aware that side steps (in my case, headaches) could result from a variety of triggers

  • That life before wasn’t some idyll where you are deliriously happy and feel 100% all the time! We all get tired, ache a bit sometimes, and have the occasional headache-and that happened before Covid-19

• Length of Illness

  • Substantially cognitively and physically impaired for 10 months

• Resources & Links

  • Paul’s blog posts:

    • BMJ May 5 2020

    • BMJ May 19 2020

    • BMJ June 21 2020

    • BMJ Sept 4 2020

    • BMJ Jan 25 2021

  • Paul’s articles:

    • Recovery norway

    • Manchester evening news

“I am a Professor of Infectious Diseases and Public Health. I was driving myself hard at the time of the pandemic....”

Introduction

My full story is contained in the BMJ blogs and Recovery Norway - see Resources and Links above.

I am a Professor of Infectious Diseases and Public Health. I was driving myself hard at the time of the pandemic. The illness completely floored me. I could not explain the symptoms and got caught up in the medical hype of this unknown virus-that in itself probably added to a nocebo effect. Online materials from the NHS were hopeless. 

The ME/CFS charities seemed to understand the condition. I initially related to them; they seemed to know more. But then I found the extraordinarily negative. People in the communities were telling I would be ill for the rest of my life. I found this to be presumptive, insulting, and invasive of me as a person. When I responded in this way, someone said, “oh dear. I think we have spoken too early”. 

I fulfilled the Canadian Criteria for ME/CFS and I was referred by my doctor to an ME/CFS clinic.

“I am angry that the ME/CFS charities spread false message that people never recover...”

Recovery

I found a path to recovery with someone who had themselves recovered from ME/CFS. This person asked if I was open to my mind and brain being involved: I was. She gave me an explanation, some different techniques, and completely changed my outlook. I recovered rapidly.

I had a few set backs, and understanding central sensitisation helped. I am now back to normal. I am angry that the ME/CFS charities spread false message that people never recover, and this is a biomedical condition. I am fighting the grossly misleading NICE NHS ME/CFS guidance in this regard. I want everyone to know there is a way out, and it’s wonderful on the other side.