Former Team GB sprinter Beth Dobbin has revealed how her life has been transformed since being diagnosed with myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME), a condition that now confines her to bed for more than 22 hours a day.
The 32-year-old, who competed at the Tokyo Olympics and represented Scotland and Team GB as recently as 2022, has left her house just five times so far in 2026. She only gets out of bed to eat or use the bathroom.
Life with a debilitating illness
ME, also known as chronic fatigue syndrome, is described as a multi-systemic illness affecting the brain, immune system and energy metabolism. It can cause muscular pain and major sleep disruption, meaning even minor stimuli such as bright light, conversation or loud sounds can trigger severe symptoms.
Dobbin told BBC Sport: "I've done little things like attend a blood test at the doctors and been in bed for months after. So doing this interview, chatting away for 30 minutes, that could have an impact on me in 2027. But I felt like it was really important to do that to get the message out."
A promising career cut short
Dobbin first emerged as an athletics prospect with silver in the 200m at the England Under-20 Championships in 2013. She went on to compete at the Olympics, World Championships, European Championships and Diamond League, and won a bronze medal in the 4x400m relay at the 2022 Commonwealth Games.
After British Athletics doctors could not explain her symptoms, Dobbin saw a series of specialists in 2022 and was later diagnosed with ME. She described the condition as the body feeling like it's "shutting down; it feels like you are a few days from death."
Family support and awareness efforts
Dobbin's father, Jim, played for Celtic, Doncaster, Barnsley and Grimsby during the 1980s and '90s. Appearing alongside his daughter during her BBC interview, he said: "I'm just so desperate to help her but I can't because there is nothing. I'd take her anywhere, I'd take her to America if I had to, but there's nothing."
Her sister, Faye, is running the Yorkshire Marathon to raise awareness about ME and support her sibling. Faye said she's "always worried" about her sister and wonders whether her symptoms will ever improve.
Dobbin noted that the Covid-19 pandemic increased awareness of ME and the potential for research. She is using her profile as a former athlete to highlight the condition, but when asked about her optimism for the future, she replied: "It's very bleak, unfortunately."
