My name is Louis Pye. When I was seven I was on a school trip to the Shire Hall Gallery and I started to feel sick. I felt so bad that I couldn’t carry on with the trip so went to tell the teacher, I spent the rest of the day sitting in a room with a school helper.

A few days later I was sick and Mum sent me to bed to lie down and watch TV. Over the next week I just got worse and Mum says that I slept all the time. I had terrible headaches, tummy pains, shivering, cold hands and feet and of course didn’t want to eat or drink.

After going to the Doctors lots of times (Mum was told I might have glandular fever) I woke up one morning, still being sick and unable to walk. I went straight to the hospital (still being sick) and saw the Doctor really quickly. I had to go to the Children’s ward and lie on a bed whilst the Doctor and nurses checked me over and did lots and lots of tests. Later that day I went for a scan in the giant polo mint and had to lie back and be shut into it while the machine took photos. The flash was so bright that I couldn’t keep my eyes open. I went back to the children’s ward in my wheelchair (with the Doctor, who came with me, running down the corridor racing a bed!) The Doctors talked to Mum and I had a drip put in to my arm, which kept beeping all night!!

I stayed in hospital for a week and they were great. I had a brain consultant who kept popping to see me in the day and evenings to see how I was going. I had a physioterrorist (!), a dietician, lots of kind nurses and my Mum, Dad and sister. When I left hospital and went home I still slept a lot and gained the shakes so that I could not hold anything or do anything. Several months on and with the same doctors, physio and dietician I was diagnosed with CFS following a brain virus (as my Mum tells me) in the small of my brain. It was slow progress at first and getting back to school for a couple of hours a week was a challenge.

Now I am 10 and I am 85%. I attend school lots of the time(!!!), well nearly. I still do get tired, have funny body temperatures and get a funny tummy when I’m tired, and have recently needed two weeks off where I felt very poorly. I miss being with my friends when I’m off and hate being poorly but I am now looking forward to High School next year. I was lucky and had lots of help when I was very ill, but Mum and Dad told me that they were told very little about M.E and that the AYME website was fantastic. I love to get my Cheers magazine and read about other people like me.

I decided that I would raise some money for AYME because they helped my Mum and Dad. I have made over 60 plasticine models (I so want to work for Aardman Studios when I am grown up). I sold my models for £1 each although lots of people were very kind and gave me more money than asked for. In total I raised £274 which I hope will help. I am going to make more models in a few months and sell them to other people so hope to send more money yet. I even have people asking for special models!!!