Have you ever met someone who fully recovered from myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) or long COVID?
This study is a summary of interviews with 75 people. Hear what they did.
We are very fortunate to have with us Dr. Sarah Cefai from the University of London, author of the study, and Raelan Agle, the interviewer. Join Dr. Cefai, Raelan Agle and me to learn about the groundbreaking, never-researched-before study of what real people did to get better from ME, chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), long COVID, and related chronic illness.
This webinar is your one-time opportunity to hear what methods the
75 people employed in their recovery and also to be able to directly ask
Dr. Cefai and Raelan your questions.
Some of the topics in the report include:
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what was the single most consistent finding that precedes and accompanies recovery
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what strategies did people use to recover (and why they keep using them)
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why being told "there is nothing you can do" is so harmful
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how hitting rock bottom can be a turning point to people taking charge of their health
You've heard it before: "There's no cure. Learn to manage it." You've tried the pacing, the supplements and all the specialist appointments. Good weeks give you hope; crashes take it away again. Come to this webinar and find out how 75 other people demonstrate that recovery and living well are possible.
The webinar will last approximately 90 minutes.
- 5-10 minute introduction
- 20-minute presentation
- 10-minute break
- up to 55 mins of Q&A
Join us on Wednesday, August 26, 2026
at 9:00 am Pacific / 10:00 am Mountain / 12:00 pm Eastern
Time converter at worldtimebuddy.com
This presentation is part of Dr. Stein's Expert Speakers Series. These will be held approximately monthly, and each session will feature a different guest expert on topics of interest to people with complex chronic disease, chronic disease in general, and people interested in living healthier, longer.
All webinars are recorded. When you register, you get indefinite access.
ALL presentations in the Expert Speakers Series are free with a membership to Live! with Dr. Stein.
About the Presenters
Sarah Cefai, PhD
Dr. Sarah Cefai is a Senior Lecturer in Gender and Cultural Studies at Goldsmiths, University of London, in the School of Media, Communications and Cultural Studies, where she teaches social and cultural theory, and feminist and cultural studies. She has a specialist interest in the cultural politics of knowledge, the body and affect - which, as you'll hear, informed the way that she approached this study.
She is also a Leverhulme Research Fellow, working on a project that examines consent as a cultural genre, looking at the popular culture examples of Friends and Married at First Sight.
Sarah has a PhD in Gender and Cultural Studies, an MA in Gender and an undergraduate honours degree in Geography with Gender Studies, and she has published widely in key journals in her field.
Raelan Agle
Raelan Agle, MSW, is a former clinical social worker who spent a decade with chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) before finding her way out through nervous system regulation and brain retraining. She's the founder of Brain Retraining 101, a recovery program that has helped hundreds of people move past ME/CFS, long COVID, and other chronic conditions.
Since recovering, Raelan has interviewed nearly 300 recovered patients and leading experts in neuroscience, psychology, and mind-body medicine on her YouTube channel, which has grown to over 70,000 subscribers and 8 million views. Those conversations, alongside her own experience, revealed consistent patterns in how people recover from conditions like chronic pain, POTS, MCAS, and fibromyalgia, which are often neuroplastic in nature. She also hosts The Raelan Agle Podcast. Her work blends lived experience, clinical training, and a deep belief that recovery is possible for almost everyone.
Eleanor Stein, MD
Dr. Eleanor Stein brings a rare combination of over 35 years of lived experience and medical expertise in myalgic encephalomyelitis, chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, environmental sensitivities, long COVID and chronic pain.
She became ill with ME, CFS, FM and MCS in 1989. Since then, she has experienced, studied, and treated the full alphabet of related conditions, including joint hypermobility, orthostatic dysfunction and mast cell activation syndrome. She has personally tried hundreds of approaches, attended hundreds of medical conferences, and reviewed thousands of peer-reviewed papers to determine what works best for the greatest number of people.
Since retiring from medical practice at the end of 2022, Dr. Stein has dedicated her time to integrating emerging research in neuroplasticity, hormesis, circadian biology, and related fields. While traveling in her camper van, she continues to study and translate this research into practical, accessible programs designed to make the healing journey easier, safer, and more effective.
