shinohara needs a caregiver eight hours a day. she can't even feed herself. >> translator: even if i try to get up, i just can't do it. no matter how hard i try, i can never get up. i feel like i'm stuck in bed, like, well, i guess like a lump of lead. >> reporter: shinohara felt the first symptoms 20 years ago. she had been studying in the u.s. one day, she was overcome with intense fatigue. exhaustion prevented her from going out and her body ached all over. she had to spend more time in bed. blood and urine tests offered no clues. doctors told her it was just exhaustion. after visiting many hospitals, she was diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome, but there is no cure, and her symptoms worsened. she has spent the last five years in bed. >> translator: i look healthy, not skinny, so even if i explain what is wrong with me, people don't understand how serious my condition is. they see a person who looks healthy. >> reporter: shinohara formed a patient's advocacy group that promotes the screening of a documentary about the syndr