Authority Magazine Features the Story Behind #NotJustFatigue

August 11, 2025

#NotJustFatigue founder Elizabeth Ansell shared her story with Authority Magazine, how a devastating ME/CFS crash in 2016 left her bedbound, and how the six years that followed became the foundation for an award-winning advocacy platform she never could have anticipated building. The piece traces her journey from patient to founder, and what she’s learned about making lasting change from inside an illness that most people still don’t understand.

The numbers she shares are stark: ME/CFS affects more Americans than MS and Parkinson’s combined, yet receives only 11% of comparable research funding. 94% of people with ME/CFS experience career changes, with average income drops of 42.8%. And building something real takes time—notjustfatigue.org took six years to complete, which is exactly why it endures.

The most powerful moment in the piece? When Senator Cassidy directly questioned Health Secretary Kennedy about ME/CFS following a #NotJustFatigue advocacy meeting, which is proof that this work is reaching the people who can act on it. Read the full feature here.

GLOSSARY

CDC

The Center for Disease Control protects the United States’ health from threats using science and data

NIH

The National Institute of Health aims to discover new information that will result in better health for everyone

National Academies of Medicine

Previously called the Institute of Medicine, this nonprofit, private organization was created to advise the country on relevant issues

WHO

The World Health Organization works worldwide to promote health, promote safety, and serve the vulnerable

PACE

Short for “Pacing, graded Activity, and Cognitive behavioral therapy; a randomized Evaluation”

The Lancet

One of the world’s highest impact, most prestigious academic journals

FDA

The Food and Drug Administration protects American health by overseeing food, drugs, cosmetics, animal food, dietary supplements, medical devices, biological goods, and blood products

GLOSSARY

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