Clery, Philippa, Starbuck, Jennifer, Laffan, Amanda et al. · BMJ paediatrics open · 2021 · DOI
This study asked teenagers with ME/CFS who weren't getting better, along with their parents and doctors, what they thought about a therapy called Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). Everyone interviewed thought ACT sounded like a good option because it helps people focus on what matters to them while accepting difficult thoughts and feelings, rather than trying to fight them. Most teenagers were willing to try ACT, though they worried about being randomly assigned to different treatment groups in a future study.
Many adolescents with ME/CFS remain symptomatic despite standard treatment, and finding acceptable alternative therapies is critical. This study provides evidence that ACT is viewed positively by patients, families, and clinicians, supporting the development of a larger randomised trial to test whether ACT actually improves outcomes in treatment-resistant paediatric ME/CFS.
This qualitative study does not prove that ACT is effective at treating ME/CFS—it only shows that people find it acceptable. The study did not measure whether ACT actually improves symptoms, fatigue, or functioning. Acceptability does not equal efficacy, and further randomised controlled trials are needed to test whether ACT produces clinical benefits.
About the PEM badge: “PEM required” means post-exertional malaise was an explicit required diagnostic criterion for participant inclusion in this study — not that PEM was studied, observed, or discussed. Studies using criteria that do not require PEM (e.g. Fukuda, Oxford) are tagged “PEM not required”. How the atlas works →
The first block is for the primary paper and is the citation you should use in research work. The atlas-snapshot line only applies if you are specifically referring to this atlas’s reading of the paper on the date shown.
Primary citation
Clery, Philippa, Starbuck, Jennifer, Laffan, Amanda, Parslow, Roxanne Morin, Linney, Catherine, Leveret, Jamie, et al. (2021). Qualitative study of the acceptability and feasibility of acceptance and commitment therapy for adolescents with chronic fatigue syndrome.. BMJ paediatrics open. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjpo-2021-001139
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-clery-2021-qualitative-study,
author = {Clery, Philippa and Starbuck, Jennifer and Laffan, Amanda and Parslow, Roxanne Morin and Linney, Catherine and Leveret, Jamie and Crawley, Esther},
title = {Qualitative study of the acceptability and feasibility of acceptance and commitment therapy for adolescents with chronic fatigue syndrome.},
journal = {BMJ paediatrics open},
year = {2021},
doi = {10.1136/bmjpo-2021-001139},
note = {PubMed: 34660913},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/clery-2021-qualitative-study},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-28. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/clery-2021-qualitative-study
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