--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It’s absolutely retrogressive to suggest…" description: "\"“It’s absolutely retrogressive to suggest [ME] CFS is in the heads of patients. I have seen patients commit suicide, or have been otherwise destroyed, ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b2/peter-behan-269225_chronic-fatigue-synd_it-s-absolutely-retrogressive-to-suggest_1250466.jpg" --- # It’s absolutely retrogressive to suggest \[ME\] CFS is in… ![“It’s absolutely retrogressive to suggest [ME] CFS is in the heads of patients. I have seen patients commit suicide, or have been otherwise destroyed, because some professor has diagnosed them as having a psychiatric illness.” quote by Peter Behan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b2/peter-behan-269225_chronic-fatigue-synd_it-s-absolutely-retrogressive-to-suggest_1250466.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b2/peter-behan-269225_chronic-fatigue-synd_it-s-absolutely-retrogressive-to-suggest_1250466.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b2/peter-behan-269225_chronic-fatigue-synd_it-s-absolutely-retrogressive-to-suggest_1250466.jpg) > ““It’s absolutely retrogressive to suggest \[ME\] CFS is in the heads of patients. I have seen patients commit suicide, or have been otherwise destroyed, because some professor has diagnosed them as having a psychiatric illness.”” [Peter Behan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-behan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Dismissing CFS as psychological dismisses patients' suffering and can lead to severe outcomes like suicide. **In simple terms:** Invalidating CFS causes harm and despair. Key Takeaway Advocate compassionate, evidence‑based care. Themes health CFS misdiagnosis mental health patient safety Mood medical advocacy Type Chronic-fatigue-syndrome:1 Fatigue:1 Me-cfs:1 Misdiagnosis:1 Myalgic-encephalomyelitis:0 Patience:0 Suicide:1 Suggest Cfs:0 Cfs Heads:0 Heads Patients:0 Professor Diagnosed:0 Having Psychiatric:0 When to use this quote - clinical practice - mental health support Key Concepts stigma medical ethics patient advocacy Questions to Reflect On - empathetic - urgent A Different Perspective denial of illness; blame ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cfs Heads](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cfs-heads-3939753/) [Chronic-fatigue-syndrome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chronic-fatigue-syndrome/) [Fatigue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fatigue/) [Having Psychiatric](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/having-psychiatric-3939756/) [Heads Patients](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heads-patients-3939754/) [Me-cfs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/me-cfs/) [Misdiagnosis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/misdiagnosis/) [Myalgic-encephalomyelitis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/myalgic-encephalomyelitis/) [Patience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patience/) [Professor Diagnosed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/professor-diagnosed-3939755/) [Suggest Cfs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suggest-cfs-3939752/) [Suicide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suicide/) ## Related quotes > [“The doctor was clueless!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/the-doctor-was-clueless/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [“Although it is important to be able to recognise and disclose symptom of physical illnesses or injury, you need to be more careful about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-miller/although-it-is-important-to-be-able-to-recognise-and-disclose-symptom/) [Alison Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-miller/) > [ “It \[ME\] is one of the most disabling diseases that I care for, far exceeding HIV disease except for the terminal stages.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-l-peterson/it-me-is-one-of-the-most-disabling-diseases-that-i-care-for-far/) [Daniel L. 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Carruthers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-m-carruthers/) > [“Basic misunderstandings about DID encountered in the therapeutic community include the following: ° The expectation that all clients with DID will present in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-bray-haddock/basic-misunderstandings-about-did-encountered-in-the-therapeutic/) [Deborah Bray Haddock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-bray-haddock/) > [ “Interestingly, the patients who presented to me self-diagnosed \[with Dissociative Identity Disorder\] had tried to tell previous therapists of their plight, but had been… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-kluft/interestingly-the-patients-who-presented-to-me-self-diagnosed-with/) [Richard P. Kluft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-kluft/) > [“What about the claim, by the PACE trial, that Graded Exercise Therapy and CBT can treat ME? This is a trial where you could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanya-marlow/what-about-the-claim-by-the-pace-trial-that-graded-exercise-therapy/) [Tanya Marlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanya-marlow/) > [“If your doctor relies on blood and urine tests to diagnose and treat you, then you could be in serious trouble.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/if-your-doctor-relies-on-blood-and-urine-tests-to-diagnose-and-treat/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [“When a client enters therapy with a prior diagnosis, it might be difficult for the therapist to think outside of the box presented. One…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-bray-haddock/when-a-client-enters-therapy-with-a-prior-diagnosis-it-might-be/) [Deborah Bray Haddock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-bray-haddock/) > [“Depression, somehow, is much more in line with society's notions of what women are all about: passive, sensitive, hopeless, helpless, stricken, dependent, confused, rather…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-redfield-jamison/depression-somehow-is-much-more-in-line-with-society-s-notions-of/) [Kay Redfield Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-redfield-jamison/) ## More Chronic-fatigue-syndrome quotes > [“The neurological/cognitive symptoms are more characteristically variable than constant and often have a distinct fatiguing component to them. Especially common are cognitive ‘fog’ or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-m-carruthers/the-neurological-cognitive-symptoms-are-more-characteristically/) [Bruce M. Carruthers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-m-carruthers/) > [“The Wessely School rejects the significant body of biomedical evidence demonstrating that chronic “fatigue” or “tiredness” is not the same as the physiological exhaustion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-hopper/the-wessely-school-rejects-the-significant-body-of-biomedical/) [Malcolm hopper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-hopper/) > [“The renaming of ME to Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) in 1988, giving misplaced emphasis to “fatigue”, trivializes the substantial disability of the disease 1…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-hopper/the-renaming-of-me-to-chronic-fatigue-syndrome-cfs-in-1988-giving/) [Malcolm hopper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-hopper/) > [“Please don't look at our scarlet A's and write us off. Look us in the eye, talk directly to us. 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