Yes, it can be hard to remember what one was like in the past. But most ME/CFS patients can relate to the simple ME/CFS scale of:
very severe, severe, moderate, mild, remission. Roughly speaking this scale is:
Mild — an approximate 50% reduction in pre-illness activity level
Moderate — mostly housebound
Severe — mostly bedridden
Very severe — totally bedridden and need help with basic functions
If you move up 1 level on this scale, you will notice, because your daily lifestyle changes quite dramatically (eg, if you are severe and in bed most of the day and night, and then as a result of treatment, you move up 1 level to moderate, so that you are now up and about during the day and can leave the house a few times a week, then you will notice that).
So on this thread, I've only tended to include patients who have made at least a 1 level improvement in their ME/CFS, which is a clearcut and noticeable change. There are many more minor improvement stories on this forum, but here I am just collecting the 1 level or more improvements.