We know that our Kickstart Your Recovery from Chronic Fatigue programme brings about huge transformations...but don't take our word for it!
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Take a moment to read about the experiences some of our participants have had.
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And when you've finished, ask yourself if you are ready to experience a similar change.
We'd love to help you kickstart your own journey.
Changing lives with the Kickstart Your Recovery programme
from participant
Jayne Le Carpentier
​The National Lottery Funded Kickstart Your Recovery programme is helping change lives.
One participant’s story is testament to the impact it’s having. Before joining the programme in Feb 2024, Jayne’s life was one of pain and fatigue. Diagnosed with fibromyalgia in 1997, her health issues had escalated over the years. She’d endured cancer treatment, a severe fall, and arthritis, all of which had left her in daily pain.
"I would struggle to get out of bed each morning and the pain meant I could only do small things. I felt very very tired. Even so, my mental health was good, but then that began to deteriorate too over the last five or six years," Jayne explains. "Part of me accepted it was just how things were. But I felt so frustrated. I'm retired now and can do whatever I want, but my body and mind weren’t cooperating."
Jayne had tried various self-help methods, including CBT (cognitive behavioural therapy) and mindfulness. They made some difference, especially the mindfulness, but she was still feeling incredibly fatigued. When her daughter came across the Kickstart Your Recovery programme, she suggested Jayne give it a try.
"I'd not heard of the programme and read the leaflet thinking it sounded too good to be true! I checked out the website, then got in touch to find out more. I came away thinking they had a nice way of talking to people. It came across in the call, and also during their support throughout the 12 weeks."
A more holistic approach to health
The Kickstart Your Recovery programme offered Jayne a holistic approach to her health. It focused on eight key elements and included support for both physical health and mental wellbeing.
When she signed up, Jayne was hoping to find a better way to cope with the way her life now was. She was convinced she had to live with the physical pain and disabilities. But she hoped the course could help with her fatigue and mental health.
"The coaches talked about recovery from the start, which I found surprising. I never expected that you could recover from these physical conditions. I didn't want to be sceptical, but it was in the back of my mind. I'm a medical scientist by training so a full recovery seemed a big ask. But it was fantastic to hear that some of the coaches had actually recovered. It made the possibility very real."
Jayne says that the structure of the programme was excellent. She found the combination of coaching sessions, tutorial videos, and group discussions kept her engaged throughout.
"The sessions were all very interesting, especially learning how everything links," Jayne recalls. “Everything has an effect that can trigger you into a fatigued state. The way the coaches explained things upfront was excellent, and they used scientific facts too. They were all very knowledgeable and shared in-depth information with us."
Transformative results and a new lease of life
Jayne found the sleep module a massive turning point as she'd struggled with sleep for years. Most nights, she could fall asleep but would then be awake for hours in terrible pain. She would worry and ruminate, then get a little more sleep before starting the day feeling exhausted.
"I knew something about sleep hygiene before doing the course. But they explained it in more depth and shared that it was partly a mental mindset. They also talked about the patterns of sleep, and taught breathing and meditation techniques. I have a new mindset about sleep now, knowing that it’s ok to wake up. I do some breathing and meditation, then quickly fall back asleep.”
Since incorporating these techniques a few weeks ago, Jayne has been getting restful sleep. She says it’s almost like a miracle and it’s had a positive knock on effect on other things too.
"I've always wanted to learn how to identify birds by their song. So, I now get up at 6.30am, sit with a warm cup of water, and listen to the birds. My pain has reduced, and I feel like a different person. I'm functioning better in the daytime, I've changed my nutrition, and I’m much less anxious now."
Jayne says the holistic nature of the course has been the key to her success. She hadn't realised how much the wrong foods or environment could drain energy. Or that constant anxiety could sap energy and lead to fatigue.
She now understands the importance of balance between energy consumption and drain. Her transformation over the 12 weeks has been profound with a 43% shift in physical and mental health. Her family have noticed the changes too, sharing how much calmer she is.
"If something happens that I can do nothing about, I accept it and move on. In the old days, I'd sit and worry. It was exhausting! Now I do lots of little 5 minute meditations throughout the day, then a big one at the start or end. I'm much more conscious and my body is in a completely different place."
Looking towards the future
Looking ahead, Jayne is committed to continuing her journey. She's blocked time in her schedule to go through the course materials again, saying she wants to try some of the other techniques shared. She's also signed up for monthly support groups, and to be part of buddy groups.
"I started practicing mindfulness before the course and thought it was really good. But it didn't give me the same step change as this has. If anybody is considering joining the programme, I'd say just give it a go. I'm amazed with the difference it's made for me. The coaches address so many elements from physical health to mental wellbeing. It's transformative."
Jayne also hopes that more people will get access to the Kickstart Your Recovery programme in the future. "I hope the NHS takes it on and that more people know it’s available. It has the potential to change so many lives."
Check out our next course dates
All of the details of our Kickstart Your Recovery programme are on the Kickstart Course page.
If you'd like a chat to find out more, send us a message via the Contact page.
Overcoming Chronic Fatigue: Andy's Journey
from participant Andy Leader
Chronic Fatigue (CF) can be a life-altering condition.
One participant on the National Lottery Funded Feb 2024 Kickstart Your Recovery programme knows this all too well. Andy has spent years suffering with the symptoms of chronic fatigue. His battle began in 2014, and it took almost a decade for him to get a diagnosis.
“It started with the Epstein-Barr virus, which is glandular fever,” he recalls. “I was sick for three weeks and never really recovered.” As an outdoor enthusiast, the impact was devastating. “The last three years have been awful – I’m an outdoor type, and would usually be out hill walking, sailing, and cycling. Because I couldn't do those things anymore, I became frustrated and stressed. That only made things worse, it was like a poisonous cycle of loss.”
Despite seeing different GPs over the years, Andy found his condition was often dismissed. He struggled for eight years before, in 2022, a GP diagnosed chronic fatigue. She referred him to an NHS chronic fatigue clinic which confirmed the diagnosis. They also offered a short course which Andy says was very useful.
During this time, Andy looked for other ways to help himself too. He began a regular meditation practice, calming his nervous system. Even so, after suffering with undiagnosed chronic fatigue for so long, his health continued declining.
The turning point: Kickstart Your Recovery
In late 2023, someone passed Andy information about Kickstart Your Recovery from Fatigue Free Futures. Although he first approached it with a negative frame of mind, he decided to give it a go and see what happened.
"My wife encouraged me to apply for the programme. I'd started to accept that this was my life now, so I would probably have given up if it hadn't been for her. I was a little concerned when I realised there were no other men in the group, but it turned out fine. The course was brilliant, and interesting right from the start. They shared how the nervous system works and how everything interlinks. I also learned about the damage you do to your immune system by being in fight or flight all the time."
The course turned out to be an eye opener for Andy. The sessions enabled him to explore both his physical symptoms, and related mental and emotional triggers.
"We did a timeline one week, looking further back into our lives," he explains. It led Andy to connect his current struggles with unresolved grief from a stillborn child 28 years ago. "It was like tapping into a well of unaddressed grief that I'd subconsciously buried. It can't be healthy burying things for so long. Daily meditation is helping me release it now, and it's something I want to continue working on."
The power of community and support
Andy says he enjoyed the structure of the course, especially the weekly videos. Because his memory was still poor in the early weeks, he'd watch them two or three times. Often, his wife would join him, and they'd chat about the content.
"It was a useful exercise because it meant I could talk in a more considered way during the group coaching. I wouldn't have found this type of session easy in the past. But I made a decision to be open minded and to be honest during the course."
This connection with others gave Andy a sense of community and understanding. Hearing other people's stories also gave a valuable perspective on his own situation. Andy maintains the course has helped transform his outlook on life. His health is improving, and he has come away with practical tools and techniques.
"Understanding the stress response and triggers at a deeper level has been useful. My mother was right when she said count to ten! We also talked about Adverse Childhood Experiences which I found interesting. The course gently unravelled things over the 12 weeks. I've released grief and feel so much lighter now."
A new outlook on life
Andy has experienced a dramatic shift in his approach to life too. He's begun doing things that give him joy again but says it's in a different way. Instead of trying to recapture his old lifestyle, he's happy enjoying the moment. This new perspective has allowed him to find joy in the everyday.
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"This week, I drove around for three hours, just getting in and out of the car for 15 minutes at a time. I'd simply sit somewhere and look, or take photos with my camera. I've gained a heightened appreciation of being outdoors."
Until very recently, Andy had hidden his symptoms and tried to carry on with business as usual. But today, he's much more open about having chronic fatigue. He's happy working with a smaller number of customers and letting his business tick over.
“Over the 12 weeks, I’ve gone from being negative to feeling positive. And it’s not fake positivity, I really do feel it. It’s a process that I can only describe like baking a cake. All the ingredients on their own are things on a table, they don’t make much sense. But add them together, mix them up, and something grows. It's the same with the things we learned.”
Andy feels so positive about the Kickstart Your Recovery programme that he's already planning to pass the link onto others. If anybody is thinking about applying, he encourages them to give it a go and be open minded.
"The course was brilliant and makes such a big difference. I’d say be willing to try something new and take things one week at a time. The practitioners have put so much work into the material and the delivery. They're empathetic, supportive, and give so much value."
As for his own future, Andy says he's gained so many insights from being ill. He feels like he's on a journey of recovery, and that the course has given him a roadmap to follow.
"I more confident about improving my health and physical levels of activity. My plan now is to let everything flow and unwind. I'm off the hamster wheel and I'm not getting back on for anything. In an odd way, I think being ill has made me a better person."
Check out our next course dates
All of the details of our Kickstart Your Recovery programme are on the Kickstart Course page.
If you'd like a chat to find out more, send us a message via the Contact page.
Referrals from Health Professionals
Please get in touch
We work closely with Health Professionals such as Social Prescribers who refer patients on to our courses.
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For more information, please use the contact page to get in touch with us. We're happy to provide a referral form and inclusion/exclusion information to ensure that patients get the best support.
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