Success Stories

Living with Fibromyalgia: What Helps Me

FM patient Kathy Gamble describes the many strategies she uses to create a good life with fibromyalgia.

How I Lessen Stress

Controlling stress was a central part of one person's improvement from 30% to 60%.

Lessons from a Recovery Story

A review of Martha Kilcoyne's book "Defeat Chronic Fatigue Syndrome"

Third Time's a Charm: How I Learned to Pace Myself

It took three tries, but Rosemary Rowlands learned to use pacing to gain stability, reduce her symptoms and expand her activity level.

From Defiance to Discipline: How I Found Freedom Through Acceptance and Adaptation

How Bianca Veness learned to manage her CFS by listening to her body.

From Hare to Tortoise: How I Found Freedom (and Improved My Life) by Accepting My Limits

How Bianca Veness gained control of her life by living within her limits.

My Energy Bank Account

How a simple pacing strategy allowed Vicki Lockwood to reduce her symptoms and gain control of her life.

How I Gained Hope and Control: Pacing for the Bedbound Patient

Geraldine Blackman describes how her use of pacing brought structure and purpose to her life.

25 Reasons Why I've Improved

CFS/FM patient Bobbie Brown used many coping techniques to increase her functional level.

Physical and Psychological Recovery from CFS

How CFS patient Margaret Fergusson increased her functional level from 15% to 70%.

From Doing to Being: My Journey to Healing

Yvonne Bond's account of how her decision to stop working led to a new and better life.

Using CBT: A Success Story

Read how James Thomas used Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to treat Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

Adapting to Fibromyalgia

By focusing on the many practical things she could do to feel better, fibromyalgia patient Jana Murrell-Maxfield made a successful adaptation to long-term illness.

How I Created a Good Life with Fibromyalgia

Joan Buchman's account of how lifestyle changes and mental adjustments led to a fulfilling life with chronic illness.

What Recovery Means to Me

For JoWynn Johns, recovery meant creating a different kind of life than she had before becoming ill.

Living Within My Envelope: A How-To Story

JoWynn Johns describes how she reduced her symptoms and brought stability to her life by finding and honoring her body's limits.

Learning to Manage Fibromyalgia

Getting a diagnosis of FM after more than two decades of suffering triggered a process of change in Denise Le Clair that produced a greatly improved quality of life.

Expanding My Envelope: How I Balanced Work and CFIDS

Kristin Scherger describes how she was able to expand her energy envelope by changing careers.

Using Self-Help to Recover from CFIDS

Bruce Campbell's story, reprinted from the CFIDS Chronicle.

The Healing Power of Gratitude

Can gratitude be life-transforming? Read FMS patient Joan Buchman's account of the impact of gratitude on her life.

Acceptance, Discipline & Hope: A Story of Recovery from CFIDS

Dean Anderson's account of how he used self-help in his successful eight-year struggle to recover from CFIDS.

Coming to Terms with a Life I Didn't Plan

Patti Schmidt explains how she worked through grief to learn how to live with her illness.