Meet Dr. Eleanor Stein
I’m Dr. Eleanor Stein, and I’m glad you’ve found me. I’m a retired doctor who devoted my medical career to helping people like you — and people like me. Yes, like me.
In 1989, I became ill with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME, CFS), fibromyalgia (FM), and environmental sensitivities (ES). I was in the second year of my psychiatric residency, and at that time there were no experts in these conditions. So, I became my own expert. For the next 27 years, I learned as much as I could: I read over 5000 papers, went to hundreds of conferences, and learned what science had to offer. I used what I learned to experiment on myself until I finally had a breakthrough!
It was such a profound breakthrough that — gradually and steadily — I was able to return to doing the things I love. I also began teaching my patients the various strategies that were helping me. Patients whose conditions had plateaued for years began to improve.
It has been one of my greatest joys to help thousands of patients improve their own health before I retired from medical practice at the end of 2022.
Now I’m dedicating my "retirement" to providing science-based information on ME, CFS, FM, ES, long COVID, and chronic pain to anyone worldwide who wants to take charge of their health and improve their quality of life.
I continue to lead research and advocate so that all Canadians with chronic complex diseases have access to informed, effective care within the publicly funded Canadian health care system.
My goal is simple: to help you improve your health much more quickly than I was able to. My vitality is proof that what I’m offering on this website works! So, if you’re ready for hope, empowerment, and education, I invite you to read on!
“My goal is to pass on what I have learned as an ME/CFS patient and a medical doctor
to help make your journey to healing easier, faster, and less expensive.”
I Got My Life Back
and Went Traveling!
What Recovery Can Look Like.
I am living, traveling proof that what I offer in my courses and on my website works.Â
I am literally my own best testimonial! Whether I’m mingling with penguins in Antarctica or looking a gorilla in the eye in Rwanda, my travel adventures are the result of practicing the self-management and neuroplasticity strategies that have helped me recover and return to a life of doing the things I love.
With my travel stories and my online education, I’m offering you hope and inspiration to go for whatever dreams you’ve nearly — but not quite — let go of!
A documentary of my fabulous travelsMeet Our Team
 Cat | Neuroplasticity in Action Instructor
Catherine (aka Cat) was introduced to neuroplasticity by Dr. Eleanor Stein after being diagnosed with severe multiple chemical sensitivities (MCS). Within a couple of weeks of practising neuroplasticity, she started seeing improvements in her MCS and her mood. With Dr. Stein’s guidance, she learned the science behind and the practice of neuroplasticity (NP) and gained a huge toolbox of techniques.
Cat then took Dr. Stein’s Healing Through Neuroplasticity course to help her manage to help her manage her migraines. Her migraines have virtually stopped. After a year or so of practicing the techniques, she realized that she was feeling happy, despite having had chronic severe depression and clinical depression since she was a teenager.
In Cat’s words, “Neuroplasticity is definitely the best thing I have ever done for myself. To me, this was a miracle. I now practice NP every day, many times a day, in a variety of ways. NP is a way of life for me. The more I practice, the better I feel and the fewer and less severe my symptoms are. I am so pleased that Dr. Stein has offered this course so that others may find help and hope with their conditions.”
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Karen | Neuroplasticity in Action Instructor
Karen has been using Dr. Stein’s neuroplasticity program since 2018. She is dedicated to self-management and neuroplasticity strategies to manage her condition.Â
In Karen’s words, “My quality of life has dramatically improved. Self-management strategies helped me stabilize, and the neuroplasticity practices have drastically improved my pain levels, mood, and MCS. I have gone from 28 to 30 migraines a month, down to 2 or 3 minor headaches a month, and my MCS and FM is negligible. I continue to improve with ongoing practice. Studying the science of neuroplasticity and sharing the techniques is a passion. It is my desire to inspire hope and assist others on their journey.”
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Lina | Healing Through Neuroplasticity Moderator
Lina first met Dr. Eleanor Stein when she applied to be moderator for her Pathways to Improvement (PTI) course in December of 2020. On medical leave because of chronic pain, Lina was eager to be part of a team that helped people improve their quality of life through self-management. As a moderator for the PTI Live course, she learned even more self-management skills for her persistent pain.Â
Lina also helped Dr. Stein create the Healing Through Neuroplasticity (HTN) course by assisting in the creation of PowerPoint presentations and the workbook. Doing so gave her an even greater understanding of neuroplasticity and more tools to add to her toolbox.
Her role as moderator for the HTN course and the HTN community is to help participants with any problems they might have with the course or with the community. The sharing of tips and resources in the HTN community continually allows her to learn and discover new tools and strategies.
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Meghan | Live! with Dr. Stein Moderator
Meghan began working for Dr. Eleanor Stein in September 2019. From talking to Dr. Stein’s patients, Meghan realized that she had a lot in common with them in terms of the health issues she’d been experiencing for 5 years. This motivated her to take the Fibromyalgia criteria to her doctor to discuss the possibility of a diagnosis. She walked out of that appointment with a diagnosis and started her health journey anew!
Since then, she has taken Dr. Stein’s Transforming Pain group (now called Healing Through Neuroplasticity) twice and found relief from the nagging pain. She also leapt into Dr. Stein's Pathways to Improvement course and started using her manual Let Your Light Shine Through to adjust the way she was pacing, eating, and sleeping. She was lucky enough to take the last sleep group that Dr. Stein ran through her medical practice, which improved her sleep significantly.
In Meghan’s words, “Although I had a setback in the summer of 2022 when I caught COVID and developed ME, CFS, I have used the tools that I learned in Dr. Stein’s courses to start to heal. I managed to keep up with my job, stay present in both of my little nieces’ lives, and keep up with friends and family even through new symptoms, fatigue, and the missteps that come with a change in circumstance. Earlier this year, I have continued to learn more about both my condition and myself on my journey.”
Michelle Pearson |  Pathways in Action InstructorÂ
Michelle first met Dr. Eleanor Stein over 20 years ago when Ellie hired her as a simulation patient to assist in educating physicians about ME/CFS and FM. For over 38 years, Michelle has worked as, trained, and hired simulation patients for the University of Calgary, the Medical Council of Canada, the Law Society, Veterinary Medicine, Alberta International Medical Graduates, and her own company, Wunjo IS.
Diagnosed with ME/CFS and FM in 2002, Michelle was fortunate to have an internist who supported her in developing her own self-management strategies to stabilize. When she met Ellie, she discovered Ellie was teaching many of the same strategies and more—with great success. This led to Michelle moderating Ellie’s new online program, Pathways to Improvement, and later becoming Ellie’s online manager.
After contracting a severe case of COVID, Michelle was diagnosed with long COVID, which pushed her to adopt new strategies for health. She learned that each illness and person requires their own tailored approach and that acceptance and self-compassion are key to overcoming grief and setbacks. Now, after rejoining Ellie’s team, Michelle is excited to continue exploring the Pathways with everyone.
