Through the development of the Lightning Process for people with Myalgic Encephalopathy (ME), Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS), Fibromyalgia (FMS), Post Viral Syndrome (PVS) and related illnesses (from now on referred to as ME) it was found that:

1. The Lightning Process is an extremely effective approach
2. There appears to be a set of common findings in ME cases, which are a number of repetitive and specific thought patterns. It is important to emphasise however, that this does not mean I or the Phil Parker Lightning Process considers ME to be all in the mind, it is not. 

It is an illness with major physical components. However, physical approaches to this condition have a poor and slow outcome.  Whilst addressing the illness using the Lightning Process seems, so far, to consistently produce rapid and lasting recovery. We consider this to be yet another example of how the body and the brain powerfully influence each other.

To give an example of some of the elements that seem to be common in all ME/CFS sufferers, one aspect is outlined below:

The Physiological Catch 22

Many people with ME or related illnesses find themselves stuck in the following downward spiral:

1. You fall ill due to an initial 'bug' or some stress, or external factor that started your ME. This event caused an extreme stress on your immune system.
2. You felt very unwell. The symptoms were either very strong or lasted so long that you began to wonder if you'd ever get better. You consulted your doctor and specialists in a number of fields, but nobody seemed to have any answers, or provided much useful help, and the illness continued.
3. These concerns, understandably, made you even more stressed than you were when you got ill, which in turn made your body produce adrenaline and cortisol. Adrenaline (also known as epinephrine) and cortisol are a good and normal response to short term stress, but long-term production of them exhausts us, it affects our blood sugar and thyroid levels, it suppresses (and messes up the proper regulation of) our immune system and makes us prone to illness and tiredness.  This unfortunately makes you loop back to step 2.

Please note: The physiology of this cycle is well documented by other authorities (Selye et al), and is explained more fully during the course. We've tried to keep the above description brief and simple, but it is of course only a partial glimpse of the complex interactions of the brain, body and hormonal systems, and should not be taken as the entirety of our understanding of the physiological mechanisms involved.

More complex events can result from long-term stimulation of this cycle, such as adrenal exhaustion and low cortisol levels which in turn create different physiological responses and immune system regulation issues - again these more advanced issues are explained in detail on the course. 

We cannot guarantee results as every individual is different, however we have had considerable success in helping people with these issues.