Occupational therapy for ME/CFS
Living with ME/CFS can affect far more than energy levels. It can change how much you can do, when you can do it, how long recovery takes, and how predictable everyday life feels.
Occupational therapy can help by looking at how ME/CFS affects daily activities, routines, home life, work, relationships and participation, then finding practical ways to reduce unnecessary demand and make everyday life more manageable.
Main areas of support
Pacing and energy management
Support to understand activity patterns, plan around available capacity and reduce the risk of exceeding your limits.
Daily routines and participation
Practical strategies for self-care, household tasks, appointments, social activities and other parts of everyday life.
Sensory and environmental supports
Identifying ways to reduce unnecessary physical, cognitive and sensory load through changes to routines, equipment and environment.
Functional assessment and NDIS evidence
Assessment and documentation of how ME/CFS affects day-to-day function, participation and support needs.
An approach that respects ME/CFS
I understand that ME/CFS requires a different approach from conventional rehabilitation.
My work is guided by each person’s current capacity and lived experience, with care not to encourage activity increases that disregard post-exertional malaise (PEM)
I aim to work flexibly and adapt appointments to the person’s needs. This may include Telehealth, shorter or paced appointments, reduced cognitive load, additional processing time and providing information in a way that is easier to manage.
Working together
Support may include:
identifying what is using the most energy
developing realistic routines and pacing strategies
planning around appointments and essential activities
simplifying tasks
reducing cognitive load
exploring assistive technology or environmental changes
helping communicate functional impact to other providers or the NDIS.