Van Damme, Stefaan, Crombez, Geert, Van Houdenhove, Boudewijn et al. · Journal of psychosomatic research · 2006 · DOI
This study looked at whether accepting ME/CFS—rather than fighting against it—might help patients feel better overall. Ninety-seven patients answered questionnaires about their fatigue, daily functioning, mood, and how much they accepted their illness. The researchers found that patients who accepted their condition reported better emotional health and less anxiety, even when accounting for how severe their fatigue was.
This study provides evidence that psychological interventions focusing on acceptance rather than symptom elimination may improve quality of life for ME/CFS patients. For patients struggling with the unpredictable nature of the illness, this research suggests that mental health support strategies emphasizing acceptance could be clinically valuable and worth exploring with healthcare providers.
This study does not prove that acceptance causes better well-being—it only shows they occur together. It cannot determine whether accepting the illness leads to better mental health, or whether people who already have better mental health find it easier to accept their condition. The study also does not measure whether acceptance-based interventions actually work when purposefully introduced as treatment.
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
Van Damme, Stefaan, Crombez, Geert, Van Houdenhove, Boudewijn, Mariman, An, & Michielsen, Walter (2006). Well-being in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome: the role of acceptance.. Journal of psychosomatic research. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychores.2006.04.015
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-van-damme-2006-well-being,
author = {Van Damme, Stefaan and Crombez, Geert and Van Houdenhove, Boudewijn and Mariman, An and Michielsen, Walter},
title = {Well-being in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome: the role of acceptance.},
journal = {Journal of psychosomatic research},
year = {2006},
doi = {10.1016/j.jpsychores.2006.04.015},
note = {PubMed: 17084136},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/van-damme-2006-well-being},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-29. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/van-damme-2006-well-being
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