I am Ryan Skelton: a communicator, church member, board advisor, fiancé, brother, friend and advocate who happens to live with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis.
Before illness reshaped my life, I was used to measuring days through activity: work completed, people supported, plans made and responsibilities carried. M.E. changed that calculation completely.
Now, energy is not simply something I possess. It is something I have to negotiate with. Ordinary tasks can carry extraordinary consequences, and a good day can sometimes demand payment long after it has ended.
“Do not become the M.E. guy. Become Ryan, who happens to live with M.E.”
That sentence has become foundational. Advocacy matters deeply to me, but I do not want illness to become the only lens through which people see me—or through which I see myself.
Why I write
People have responded to my writing by saying that I have finally put into words what they have been living. That matters. Invisible illness can be profoundly isolating, particularly when the language available to explain it feels clinical, inadequate or easily misunderstood.
The M.E. Diaries exists to offer honest language: not to speak for everyone, but to create recognition, understanding and conversation.
Why faith belongs here
I believe Christ can heal. I also believe God remains sovereign and present when healing has not yet come. My faith is not a neat answer to suffering; it is the place from which I continue to wrestle, hope, grieve and remain.