Those are good points, Pete and Metmom. Pete, they're comparing the catastrophic fatigue from Morgellons to Lyme Disease. The fact that it's a rare disease, mostly found in California, Texas and Florida is good. However, Morgellons disease' rarity does not prove naysayers' contentions that it is a psychosomatic, hysterical illness.
Fortunately there's at least one person performing medical research on Morgellons disease.
Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences
Morgellons Disease
"Randy S. Wymore, Ph.D., assistant professor of pharmacology and physiology has taken on the research challenge as volunteer director of research for the Morgellons Research Foundation.Oklahoma State University Morgellons Research
'Health care providers are shooting in the dark as to how to treat it. Antibiotics seem to help some, but if they are stopped the symptoms come back,' Wymore says.
In coordinating research efforts, he sees a research challenge and a chance to help.
'I am doing this partly from scientific curiosity, but also with real empathy toward sufferers.'"
A Times UK article today quotes Dr. Wymore:
"At the moment I'm leaning towards the possibility that some kind of neurotoxin may be involved in this," he said.Times Online UK
"There's clearly something going on. These people are not imagining this."
The fact that there is some improvement with antibiotics would suggest a bacterial infection. Since it does not eliminate the problem perhaps this infection is secondary to the real cause.
Perhaps this is a fungal or parasitic disease that reduces the immune response or provides a particular bacterial with some substance that allows it to infect the patient.
Of course they're not imagining it, it's a psychological disorder. My grandmother had it for a time. In her case it was a reaction to medication. This is just delusional parasitosis masquarading as a new disease.