This November I’ve called upon four of the best blokes in my life, who have all been an enormous support to me during the last 6 years, to join my Movember Squad as we brave the tash to help Action for M.E support even more people with M.E., campaign for change, and invest in biomedical research.

 In November 2014 I became unwell with M.E/CFS, just one week after my 20th Birthday which turned my world upside down. Ever since, I’ve been a shadow of the person I once was. 

When I first became ill I suffered debilitating levels of fatigue to the point where walking and talking became a challenge. I spent over a year completely housebound. This all started because I picked up a virus that my body has never been able to recover from. 

Fortunately in 2017/2018 I began to see some improvement in my condition, but I still only regained a small percentage of my health. That was until May 2019 when I was rushed into hospital for an emergency appendectomy, and developed an infection, which caused my M.E to relapse. Ever since my health has proved to be a significant challenge, though I am grateful to have not declined to the same severity experienced when I first became ill (but for avoidance of doubt I can confirm it is bad enough!)

Luckily (I guess) M.E is a fluctuating condition, but that means I have to live life one day at a time, and upon waking in a morning I find out what dooming level of severity I am presented with on a given day. 

On a reasonable day I manage to operate at about 50% of a healthy person and utilise this opportunity to try see friends, and try get out and do things I enjoy, but I have to rest and pace throughout the day and rely on support from others. If I spend time with a friend, I wouldn’t have the energy or strength to later cook my tea; it’s a constant case of give and take. The impact on independent daily life is colossal. 

However, on a severe day you won’t see me, my body completely shuts down to reserve energy for essential bodily functions (e.g organ function). On a severe day I am often unable to even tolerate the TV being on, as all my body’s senses feel overwhelmed by the most minuscule of stimulation – I cannot even think let alone concentrate, and moving around the house becomes challenging. I spend the vast majority of the day laid with my eyes closed resting or sleeping. I spend more than half my life towards the severe end of the spectrum. 

If I exert my body more than it is capable of I crash, which means I end up in the severe category, because the tiny levels of energy I do have are all spent and have to replenish. But this is by no means reflective of the intensity of the activity I had done. It could be simply the case of talking with friends, visiting a shop, cooking a meal, or something even less ‘demanding’ that causes me to crash – there’s no formula sometimes you can do something with no consequence, other times you can’t. I cannot exercise, or walk far, and I cannot be mentally stimulated for very long because I begin to experience debilitating symptoms. 

That’s why I want to raise money for Action for M.E, because they have been a huge support to me and people like me need them to invest in more biomedical research to find a cure because currently treatment options are non-existent. They are a small charity, but I am hopeful that with enough support, one day, hopefully in my lifetime, they will find at least a treatment/relief or hopefully a cure that the 250,000 people like me suffering with M.E/CFS in the UK will be able to benefit from. 

Any amount you can donate, big or small all adds up and will make a huge difference to this charity who have been there for me at the most challenging time in my life. 

Thank you for taking the time to visit our JustGiving page and to all those who have donated, and a special thanks to my four fellow Movember Squad members who are braving a tash this November!