The Why: The Historic ME/CFS Call To Arms

The Why: The Historic ME/CFS Call To Arms is a book by journalist and author Hillary J. Johnson about ME/CFS.

Synopsis
If you have acquired Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (a.k.a. "chronic fatigue syndrome") in recent years, you may have wondered why the U.S. government has done so little to promote research or understanding of this life-destroying disease. If you are looking for answers, The Why was written for you. Scientific bias, doctors behaving badly, and misappropriation of federal ME research dollars all have played a role in the controversy. In The Why, I unravel deception by the Centers for Disease Control during the first 25 years of the ME epidemic that have fueled all the above. Here are eight questions my book answers.

When did ME begin? What is the origin of the false name "chronic fatigue syndrome?" why are well-established biological abnormalities found in ME and published in the medical literature excluded from the government’s ME diagnostic criteria? why has CDC refused to establish a national reporting system for ME? Why has the federal government crushed rather than encouraged attempts to isolate a causative pathogen in ME? How did the specious but prolonged argument over whether ME is "real" or "not real" begin? Who has benefited from the CDC's longstanding policy of disregard for ME? Have any laws been broken? The Why shows how disabled sufferers were left vulnerable to everything from quack therapies to hate speech to financial impoverishment. Understanding this history may provide ME patients an ability to go toe to toe with a federal health agency that continues to harm rather than help. Raise your ME I.Q. Break the cycle of abuse and end the spread of ME. — from Amazon

Online presence

 * The Why: The Historic ME/CFS Call To Arms - Amazon page
 * Osler's Web - author website
 * YouTube

Learn more

 * The Why: The Historic ME/CFS Call To Arms - Amazon