MICHAEL SHARPE: BMJ Journal Medical Humanities: Chronic fatigue syndrome and an illness-focused approach to care: controversy, morality and paradox

[Mary]

I hesitate to put this in "Latest ME/CFS Research" because this does not qualify as research. But it's something that got published in BMJ Journal Medical Humanities (that sounds like an oxymoron to me!). It's a paper written by Michael Sharpe and Monica Greco, who apparently is a sociologist and therefore an expert on ME/CFS.

It's pretty bad: https://mh.bmj.com/content/early/2019/06/18/medhum-2018-011598.info

Mr Sharpe tweeted about this which is how I saw it.

He wonders why people with cancer will accept GET and CBT treatments without getting all upset, whereas people with ME/CFS get irrational when faced with these treatments. Words fail me, but they certainly don't fail him!

 

[ljimbo423]

He wonders why people with cancer will accept GET and CBT treatments without getting all upset, whereas people with ME/CFS get irrational when faced with these treatments. Words fail me, but they certainly don't fail him!

He seems to KNOW CFS is a psychological "illness" not a biological disease. He is blinded by his own ignorance. Ironically (or maybe not) he is suffering the very same delusion he is claiming we have.

 

[Rufous McKinney]

But it's something that got published in BMJ Journal Medical Humanities (that sounds like an oxymoron to me!).

I read enough of this to determine this is total BLARNEY.

What is this journal? How could they print such babble? They need to HEAR FROM Actual SCIENTISTS.

I suggest this article be printed and used as toilet paper.

What is this babble recommendation?

"The essential first step is to compassionately validate the reality of the patient’s suffering, even in the absence of a demonstrable disease. The second step is to develop the dialogue of the consultation beyond a preoccupation with the presence or absence of disease, towards a consideration of the illness itself. The third step is to explore with the patient, how their illness might be improved and how they might manage the paradox of illness-without-disease in their own life."

Wow. Obviously, none of us need to further point out how meaningless these recommendations are.

And next: who read this article? Who are the customers of BMJ and what damage are they doing to bodies?

 

[Rufous McKinney]

Mr Sharpe tweeted about this which is how I saw it.

Dear Mr. Sharpe:

I tried your GET and CBT treatments for MECFS. And you know what? As a result, I experienced the gravest downturn and prolonged collapse I have yet to experience.

Would you like to know more about that, Mr. Sharpe...?

No? I didn't think so.

 

[Mary]

What is this journal? How could they print such babble? They need to HEAR FROM Actual SCIENTISTS.

One could only hope . . . it is psychobabble of the lowest order. It's blather. Words do fail me.

 

[Rufous McKinney]

So from this link one can obtain the brief bios of the Founder and other supporters of this Psychobabble Bogus Journal.

https://mh.bmj.com/pages/editorial-board/

As a trained Scientist, I simply cannot remotely grasp that anyone would give any credence to this type of information.

These people have virtually no expertise in Myalgic Encephalomyelitis or any other related systemic illnesses.

This information will lead to the direct harm of some individual(s).

 

[Rufous McKinney]

It's blather. Words do fail me.

Obviously, this was published in their "opinion piece". This is not science, its speculation. And I don't mind speculation per se, as I rather believe in free speech, when clearly so labeled: but this is leading to direct harm to bodies.

By appearing in an online "journal" with no peer review, no comprehensive literature review, no data, and the pathetic outdated opinion of some self-annointed INCOMPETENT, we are more or less being TROLLED.

 

[Judee]

This thought came to me the other day:

Potassium is supposed to be healthy for everyone so imagine my surprise when I heard that kidney patients are advised to cut back on all those healthy wonderful vitamin-filled potassium rich foods like avocados, spinach, lentils, brown rice, chicken, bananas, etc. etc.

The following article at Healthline.com says People with kidney disease have diminished renal function. They’re typically unable to regulate potassium efficiently.

Ahhh...so there are times when something that is healthy for "everyone" might not really be healthy for everyone?!!??!!

Arrrggghhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[percyval577]

This is not science, its speculation. And I don't mind speculation per se, as I rather believe in free speech, when clearly so labeled.

If it would be labeled as speculation it couldn´t work anymore to help false illness believes -

 

[Strawberry]

I suggest this article be printed and used as toilet paper.

I would, but it would plug my septic tank.

 

[Rufous McKinney]

So I decided to look at the article BMJ published as "Original Research".....I saw no research, no data, so that is also more or less an Opinion Piece.

But it came with this Acknowlegement section. This type of thing is entirely missing from the Sharpe etc piece. So while I understand its just Sharpe's Opinion, who would give any of this credence? Thats the scary part.

"We thank Monica Greco for the invitation to be part of her special issue on biopolitics and psychosomatics and the anonymous peer reviewers for their suggestions in relation to the arguments we make here. We are grateful to audiences at the Centre for Critical Theory, University of Nottingham and at the Psychoanalysis and History seminar (Institute of Historical Research, School of Advanced Study, University of London) for their helpful questions and comments on earlier versions of this article. FC thanks the Wellcome Trust for their support of the medical humanities and social sciences (see grant details below). CP is supported by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Collaboration for Leadership in Applied Health Research and Care South London at King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. The views expressed are those of the author and not necessarily those of the NHS, the NIHR or the Department of Health and Social Care."

I did alot of peer review. It was never anonymous.

And why is this publisher in Ohio: printing so many articles on this British psychobabble Babble? (sorry British, but you've lost my support on this one topic, for sure).

 

[percyval577]

p 186

The third step is to explore with the patient, how their illness might be improved
and how they might manage the paradox of illness-without-disease in their own life.

Today I had some good moments, but this is still too much for my brain.

"in their own life", thank you for clarifying:

Ironically (or maybe not) he is suffering the very same delusion he is claiming we have.

 

[Judee]

he is suffering the very same delusion he is claiming we have.

He most definitely is delusional plus he is OCD about it.

I did alot of peer review. It was never anonymous.

We're getting a lot of "anonymous" sources in our news nowadays.

 

[Judee]

Just read this on JenB's web blog. She said her CCI surgeon was skeptical at a point and explained it by saying, 'He didn't want to drink his own koolaid.'

He sounds wise in that. I couldn't help contrast that to the views of Michael Sharp. Unequivocally, that's exactly what Mr. Sharp has done with ME/CFS and his GET/CBT ideas.

 

[Pearshaped]

this makes me so angry.
i am one of those PwCFS who were told to move more even though i always treid
to explain that i couldn't do sports anymore because it would make me worse.
they didn't believe me so after several docs toldme to move more, i did - consequence: from Housebound within months to 1,5 year bedbound.for one year i couldn't even leafe the bedroom to go to the restroom.was awful.

 

[S-VV]

I know this won't happen soon, but one day... Lawsuits. It's the only way.

 

[percyval577]

I still think that this research is crime.

It´s not that´s a bad idea in itself to come up with a try to heal or improve ppl by cbt (or maybe even by get)
after they didn´t recover from physiological impacts of unknown mechanisms,
but not to take in consideration that it might not prevail (for unknown reasons) is violence of principles of science.
And here logical thinking tells us that it could have an additional impact on patients.

As far as I have had glimpses, they even did not mention the possibility of a disease that is not already understood
(and for about 85% of medicals the mechanism of action is not known).
Hopefully I am wrong, though it really doesn´t look like so.

And then it´s a bold guess: physiological impacts (including outbreaks) but psychological treatment.
Not mentioning that the (underlying) hypothesis is a bold guess may well be a case for the court, here.
If I would be a university or a journal, I would think twice in view of my reputation.

And btw, if one is so adroit and can come up with a "illness-without-disease", then we might well expect that such a person could think that there might be a feeling-ill mechanism in the bodies, and that such a mechanism might have gotten ill. I don´t know if it is stupidity (negligence) or sadism.

 

[percyval577]

It shows a lack of imagination (haha).

 

[Gijs]

Michael Sharpe is an example of Dunning - Kruger effect.

 

[Mary]

Michael Sharpe is an example of Dunning - Kruger effect.

I had to look that up - it's spot on! (are you sure it's a real thing and not a spoof??)

In the field of psychology, the Dunning–Kruger effect is a cognitive bias in which people mistakenly assess their cognitive ability as greater than it is. It is related to the cognitive bias of illusory superiority and comes from the inability of people to recognize their lack of ability. Without the self-awareness of metacognition, people cannot objectively evaluate their competence or incompetence.[1]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning–Kruger_effect