Trial By Error, by David Tuller
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CFS “Recovery” Findings Might Be “Suppressed,” Says Report
In the late 1980s, the UK and international health establishments began promoting a recovery narrative regarding what was then called chronic fatigue syndrome. Recovery was attainable, they asserted, through interventions like cognitive behavior therapy and graded exercise therapy. This approach quickly became the standard of care, in the UK and elsewhere. Patients believed this hopeful…
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CFS “Recovery” Findings Might Be “Suppressed,” Says Report
In the late 1980s, the UK and international health establishments began promoting a recovery narrative regarding what was then called chronic fatigue syndrome. Recovery was attainable, they asserted, through interventions like cognitive behavior therapy and graded exercise therapy. This approach quickly became the standard of care, in the UK and elsewhere. Patients believed this hopeful…
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No Benefits for Multidisciplinary Rehabilitation in New ME/CFS Study
It is refreshing to read a study about a rehabilitative intervention for ME/CFS or Long Covid or so-called “medically unexplained symptoms” that acknowledges the lack of meaningful benefits. This is a rare event. In multiple cases, the trialed interventions produce marginally positive results in subjective measures, which are then touted as evidence in favor of…
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Yet Another CBT Trial for Long Covid with Poor Results
The Journal of Psychosomatic Research has often served as a house organ of sorts for the “biopsychosocial” ideological brigades. That’s to be expected, given that folks like Per Fink, Michael Sharpe, and Jon Stone are all members of the journal’s editorial board. It should therefore not be surprising that the journal would publish crap like…
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Can “Cognitive Rehabilitation” for Long Covid “Reverse” Brain Fog?
Cognitive dysfunction, also known as “brain fog,” is among the most disabling aspects of Long Covid—and investigators have struggled to figure out what causes it and how to treat it. Last fall, a study from the National Institutes of Health’s RECOVER initiative, which focuses on Long Covid, found no benefits in cognitive symptoms from three…
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The BMJ Review on Long Covid Interventions Cited in Wired Article
I am reposting below a blog about a “living systematic review” of interventions for Long Covid, which was published by The BMJ in late 2024. This systematic review figured prominently in the opening of the recent Wired piece about mind-body interventions for Long Covid. (I’ve posted about the Wired piece here, here and here.) The…
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Furor Over Wired’s “Mind-Body” Article Continues
The furor over the Wired epic about mind-body treatments for Long Covid simmers on. “The Truth About Long Covid,” published on June 1st, proposed that these sorts of interventions might cure people, but that angry patient have censored science and blocked research progress. The piece generated fierce pushback—not least from popular New York Times columnist…
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Some Things I’ve Read Recently–FAIR on Wired; German Psychiatrists on LC and ME/CFS; UK’s ME/CFS Delivery Plan at One Year
Media watchdog covers how major news articles have psychologized Long Covid The organization Fairness & Accuracy in Reporting (FAIR), based in New York City, is a progressive news watchdog focused on exposing bias and censorship. FAIR recently published an article called “Media Won’t Stop Psychologizing Long Covid,” by writer and investigative journalist Justine Barron, who…
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The “Wired” Account of Cancelled Exercise Study for Long Covid at University of Virginia
On June 1st, Wired published a 7,600-word lollapalooza about mind-body interventions for Long Covid. The article, written by Alan Levinovitz, a professor of religion at James Madison University, posited that angry patients were derailing important research into these and other psychological and behavioral treatments. For balance, Levinovitz quoted multiple critics of these approaches (including me), but…
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The Truth According to Wired (and Alan Levinovitz)
Much has already been written about Alan Levinovitz’ 7,600-word love poem to the potential healing powers of so-called “mind-body” interventions for Long Covid. Wired published the article last Monday under the title “The Painful Truth About Long Covid.” As the word “painful” suggests, the epic is also infused with darker notes. These involve an unhinged…
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Interview with Chris Ponting about “Sequence ME & Long Covid”
Last year’s release of the results from the DecodeME, a UK-based genome wide association study of more than 15,000 DNA samples, generated significant excitement. Action for ME, which spearheaded DecodeME, recently announced that it had received funding for a multi-phase follow-up project called Sequence ME & Long Covid. The UK government has committed £4,750,000, and…
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My Exchange with an FND Physical Therapy Specialist
When I write about functional neurological disorder (FND) or functional neurological symptoms, I sometimes get feedback from Zachary Grin, a physical therapist in New York. As an FND specialist, he disagrees with pretty much everything I write about the topic. At first, I tried to engage with Zachary in a good-natured manner. I had some…