‘Chopstick Sally’ helps housebound author tackle ME

An author who is housebound and largely bedbound has been using a miniature cardboard cut out version of herself on chopsticks as a way to "feel more included" in society.

Sally Doherty, who lives in Surrey, was diagnosed with myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) in May 2006 after falling ill in late 2005.

She has to spend prolonged periods of time in bed resting, interspersed with essential tasks including eating and showering, as well as writing.

She said: "I fell ill in my early 20s (completely unexpectedly following a simple cold) in October 2005, and over the space of a week my life ground to a halt."

She said: "I went from working full-time, exercising and socialising to being housebound and largely bedbound.

"I have a huge array of symptoms such as physical fatigue, cognitive fatigue - often described as brain fog, muscle aches, insomnia, light-headedness and nausea."

In a bid to spread the word about her books and explore the country, she came up with the idea of creating a miniature version of herself which would feature on chopsticks and could go to events in place of her.

So Chopstick Sally was born.

To create Chopstick Sally, Ms Doherty poses for photos in different outfits which her husband takes.

They are uploaded to a laptop, printed off, cut and stuck to cardboard and then chopsticks.

"In March this year, my second book was shortlisted for an award and I was invited to a ceremony at London Book Fair," she said.

"I was gutted that I couldn't go and so this gave me the motivation to create Chopstick Sally," Ms Doherty said.

"I think she'll need another change of outfit soon."

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