Tag Archives: speaking out

Public Comment on Engaging People with ME

I delivered these comments via telephone today at the CFS Advisory Committee meeting: My name is Jennifer Spotila. I will soon begin my 25th year of living with ME. People with ME know this disease. We have valuable insights and … Continue reading

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NIH Time Warp

Let’s take a quiz. I have a letter that was sent on behalf of Dr. Francis Collins, Director of NIH, to a person with ME, and I want you to guess when that letter was sent. Here’s an excerpt: First, … Continue reading

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Talk To FDA About Chronic Pain

The FDA wants to hear from people with chronic pain, and is hosting a meeting on July 9, 2018 to collect public input. I have chronic pain, and I know that many of you do as well. This meeting is … Continue reading

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The NIH Pilot Program: What We Can Do

As I discussed in Part One of the NIH Pilot Program, NIH thinks that the three (and only three) Collaborative Research Centers are seeds to generate interest in ME research, and will wait for more research applications to come in … Continue reading

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The NIH Pilot Program: Wait and See

MEAction has collected thousands of signatures on a letter to Dr. Francis Collins, asking for a meeting with him and a plan of action to attack the ME public health crisis. That request is all the more urgent because NIH … Continue reading

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One Dance: Millions Missing 2018

I was never a talented dancer, but I loved it. I quit ballet lessons when I was in the 3rd grade because it was hard. I struggled to learn the simple choreography in school musical productions. I never learned to … Continue reading

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All The Time and None At All

Dr. Francis Collins, in answering a question about ME research on April 20th, said that NIH recognizes and empathizes with our suffering and our “frustration that so little is known.” Then he dropped some knowledge. Dr. Collins said, “Research, done … Continue reading

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Return on Investment: David Tuller

When journalist David Tuller asked for crowdfunding in 2017 to support his research and writing on ME for a year, he had already demonstrated his commitment to a rigorous examination of the many problems and issues associated with the PACE … Continue reading

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2017 NIH Spending on ME/CFS Research

It is time to analyze how NIH spent its investment in ME research in 2017. NIH has not yet issued its own tally for 2017 through the categorical spending page, so I can’t say for sure how much money NIH … Continue reading

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“Take Care Of Each Other”

“Take care of each other.” Those were the closing words in Anne Ortegren’s suicide letter. Anne’s death came as a shock to many of us, myself included. Anne was a friend and long-time supporter of my work. She made a … Continue reading

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