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ME/CFS Science
@mecfsscience.org

1) 🇳🇱 In the Netherlands, ME/CFS patient and advocate Anil Van Der Zee was appointed Knight in the Order of Orange-Nassau. It's an recognition of his outstanding contribution to society, a very high honour.

ME/CFS Science
@mecfsscience.org

2) Anil is severely affected by ME/CFS has been living in isolation for more than 10 years. He can only see someone a few times a year, for a couple of minutes. The Dutch national broadcast NOS and the newspaper de Volkskrant wrote a profile on him.

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ME/CFS Science
@mecfsscience.org

3) Despite the severity of his illness, Anil helps to raise awareness of ME/CFS and related diseases by sharing news, advising researchers and helping fellow sufferers. As a former professional ballet dancer, he uses a lot of art and photography in his advocacy.

ME/CFS Science
@mecfsscience.org

4) He also makes movies from his bed, for example 'Doctors as Patients' which has been viewed more than 60.000 times on YouTube. In this film, doctors with post-infectious syndromes explain how becoming ill changed their lives and their view on medicine.

youtube.comDoctors as Patients (with subtitles)In this film, five medical doctors open up about living with #PAIS/#IACC conditions like ME, #longCOVID, and chronic #Lyme. It’s a format that I believe has never been shown before, not just in the Netherlands but possibly worldwide! They speak candidly about their experiences with illness, what th
ME/CFS Science
@mecfsscience.org

5) Its truly special that a leader from our field (ME/CFS and Long Covid) gets knighted. It feels as recognition, not only of the special person Anil is, but also of the entire community, of the patients and carers fighting every day.

ME/CFS Science
@mecfsscience.org

6) That said, I wanted to add some personal words of appreciation for Anil and what makes him special. One thing is that he is often critical but always kind and uniting. Scientist Jos Bosch described him as "someone who offers criticism but never polarizes.”