Four weeks ago I had never even heard of The Lightning Process and now it's given me back my life!! Are you sitting comfortably...................then I'll begin!!!
I had ME for about 5 years. I was working 30+ hours a week, had 3 energetic Border Collie dogs, 3 teenagers, 3 cats, a hamster and a sick mother and was soooooo busy I never had time to stop and smell the roses!
I think my illness started when I injured my elbow a year before that and developed into tennis elbow. Over the next 15 months I had acupuncture, physio and 6 steroid injections which I have since found out can be a trigger ME. I then had bronchitis, tonsillitis, flu and then an ear and chest infection all within the space of 4 months and that was when PVF was diagnosed as I just felt like I had the flu all the time and had no energy at all. I had had a lot of time off work during those 4 months but at that point I started the worst year of my life - I was off sick for the whole year. Ironically I work as a reception supervisor in a doctor's surgery!! Initially I was bed/sofa bound. Thankfully I never had an issue with light although sound especially 2 or more at a time left me exhausted, "brain fogged" and distressed - we'd always had a lot of noise in my house - music, TV , conversations and dogs "singing"!! The worst thing was the constant aching and feeling of being totally "unplugged" ( I have described it as being like the Wicked Witch of the West when she "melts" in The Wizard of Oz or like that famous painting "The Scream" where the face is all "melting"!).
I have always been a proactive person so, over the next few months, I made certain decisions that I thought could relieve some of the stresses/demands on my limited energy and so, perhaps, help me to get better. The most painful was to have my 2 "babies" rehomed - 2 year old border collies have a never ending supply of the one thing I couldn't give them - ENERGY!!!!!!! Needless to say, although I knew with my head this was right, not only for me, but also for the dogs, I slipped into sadness. Luckily I still had my "Old Fella" who at 9 years old was so chilled he became my constant companion.Once I was able to go out in the car for a short distance again (I live about 1/4 mile from Poole Harbour) I decided that if I did nothing else every day I would take him for a walk. To start with this was just me sitting in the car, and my husband or daughter driving/walking at the other end, then me sitting on a bench next to the car, then a short walk away with the most fantastic view of the harbour and the Purbeck's beyond, then I drove myself and eventually could do a 20 minute circuit. At this stage I had an interesting "limp" which was a good indicator of my energy levels - the more pronounced my "Morse foot" (as we called it!!), the more knackered I was!!! I'm sure the walk kept me sane as I not only had fresh air, I also saw people and had brief chats AND, perhaps most importantly for me, felt I was in control of one small area of my life.
This continued for 10 months with no major set backs BUT no moving forward either. One of the dog walkers read about a treatment called the Bowen Technique which claimed good results for ME/FM AND Tennis Elbow and there was a local practitioner in Southbourne. I was on the waiting list for an op to remove scar tissue from the blasted elbow so thought I had nothing to lose by trying it!! Just before Christmas 3 years ago I phoned and got an appointment for the 1st week of January. At the same time I was sent to Wareham to do their management programme. Despite my disbelief that Bowen could work - the lady didn't seem to really "do" anything!!! - my elbow recovered completely in 3 sessions AND I had a bit more energy - RESULT!! In Wareham I finally learned some strategies to help use my limited energy effectively which I was able to use everyday. My mother's health was getting worse ( 2 strokes, 4 hospital admissions and sadness/anxiety) and I was having to use all my resourses to cope - sometimes I failed and "crashed" completely.
At the end of February I went back to work. I did 2 half hours a week in a quiet office upstairs as I still couldn't cope with more than one thing at a time and a doctor's reception is very busy!!! I was sooooooooo pleased it felt wonderful to be back in the real world but the price was high as I had to spend the rest of those 2 days in bed at first!!
Over the next 2 years I've gradually built up my working time to 4 x 3 hours 4 days a week. Often needing to sleep in the afternoons and never able to guarantee I'd be able to go in. Determination made me succeed most of the time. So now I had "If I do nothing else today I'll work and walk the dog".
I thought, "OK. It's not what I really want BUT it's better than it was". I had started doing a bit of cross stitch again - a hobby I've had for about 15 years prior to ME and which I couldn't do for about 18 months post diagnosis due to lack of concentration and fine motor control in my hands. Great delight when I finished a piece I'd started 4 years before!!
So.........4 weeks ago my sister said had I heard of the Lightning Process as a lady she knew had been walking with sticks and now wasn't! She also said she looked so much better in her self as well.I looked at Phil Parkers site and felt that flutter of excitement I'd felt with every other suggestion I'd tried (whether it was Vitamins, Prozac, Amitriptiyline, Royal Jelly etc etc) and found Alastair's story. Wow! Could this be really true? Had to have a go - I'd tried so many other things!! I got an application form and duly sent it off not expecting to hear anything before the new year but...................exactly 2 weeks ago today I got a phone call!!!!!!!!! Alastair said he had a space the very next week but my office manager was going to be on holiday and I'm second in command (!!) so thought I'd blown my chance!! Not a bit of it. Alastair contacted the hotel and other people who would be doing the course then and changed the time of the sessions to the afternoons so I could go!! I will always be grateful to him for that!
Tuesday arrived and off I went to Bournemouth apprehensive about the next 3 days but knowing I was going to give this LP an acid test! Let me explain. On the Wednesday after I spoke to Alastair my lovely old dog died, my son (who's relationship ended Sept 06 and has moved back with us having his son (4 in Jan.) here 3.5 days a week), was being continuously sick and we had to go to hospital, my husband was ill and I was knackered!! On the Monday I had to do a resus training at work which extended my day by 2 hours and then I had to take my son back to the hospital in the evening! Tuesday I'd worked until 11.40 from 8am and that evening the doctors were taking us all out for dinner as a Christmas treat! So, I wasn't exactly "chilled" when I did the seminar!!
I listened with great interest and was amazed at how "logical" the whole process seemed and how it could actually give me the ability to get rid of this illness. The process worked immediately and I felt energised!! I went out that evening and was actually "there" in mind, body and spirit and not just watching the clock tick round to the first reasonable opportunity to go home!! I got up for work the next morning at 6.00 and realised I didn't ache and I have ached all day every day for five and a half years!! I also felt "raring to go" - a feeling I haven't had for years either. I'd only slept 2 hours because I was running through the day in my head BUT I didn't stress about not sleeping but rather just enjoyed lying there feeling warm and calm and reviewing the day that turned my life around!
By the end of the seminar I still felt great and, if I'd met anyone new that day I wouldn't have mentioned M.E./F.M at all. It was no longer part of me!!! FANTASTIC!!
I have used the LP every time I doubted myself and the results have been a continued feeling of well being. I keep catching myself smiling at nothing at all and people at work/home have noticed a difference in both my appearance and energy levels!
It's 1 week since I did the LP seminar and I have been listening to Phil Parker's support CD everyday and just know I will never have to say "I have M.E/F.M" again - EVER!!!!!!!!!
Thankyou so much Alastair. Your delivery of the information was bang on, just at the right pace and your life (you love) is an example to everyone!! Keep up the great work.
Janice Edwards........................ "doing" the life I love!!!
