in me/cfs forums I see the same debate over and over again: is me/cfs a "biological/physical" illness or can it be cured/treated through the nervous system? i think this discussion is extremely counterproductive for several reasons:
the distinction doesn't make sense. the nervous system is an integral part of our body and there are several "physical" diseases of the nervous system. furthermore everything psychological is also physical and represented in the structure of the nervous system and the release of neurotransmitters. this might seem pedantic, but I think it's very important, because it means that symptoms caused by the nervous system itself are just as "biological" and real as in any other system of the body and have to be taken just as seriously. it also means, that an illness in the nervous system (and I don't think cfs is just in the nervous system btw) can be treated through medication (e.g. see antidepressants!).
Even if the nervous system was somehow not biological, there are obvious interactions with other parts of the body. pain, for example, can be caused through a clear "physical" trigger, but persist long after the original trigger is removed. it's also extremely well documented how stress (a nervous system state) can cause or contribute to long term health problems. why should this not be the case in me/cfs? why couldn't the nervous system play an important role in keeping us sick and therefore also in help with recovery?
There's very understandably a lot of resistance to the idea, that we just have to have a more positive attitude or are only imagining symptoms, because these ideas were used to invalidate disabled and chronically ill peoples realities since cfs was still called hysteria. i have also been told by neurologists that it's impossible to tell wether I'm really just depressed and I know that is absolute bullshit. but pushing back against reactionary ideas cannot mean disregarding an entire system of the human body as a possible starting point for treatments, even if the treatments themselves are psychological.

















