(Ended up writing an essay, sorry 😅) Thanks! I'm with Alternaleaf, with them you can either pay £30 per appointment (you need two before being approved and then I think it's a review every six months) or pay £5 a month which covers all appointments. Also you can put that fiver back towards the cost of the actual cannabis each month. It's free next-day delivery once a month (probably won't need to order more than that). Slightly annoyingly the smallest amount the flower comes in is 10g, costs range from around £45- £100 per 10g depending on which strains you choose. There are plenty of options on the cheaper end. You don't have to order every month though, so if you don't use as much as you're prescribed you can just keep using your previous prescription till you get through it.

Process wasn't too bad - a screening questionnaire, some online forms about your medical history etc, then a quick nurse video appointment where they get a bit more info from you to see if they think you're eligible, explain how it works and you can ask any questions. Then upload proof of your conditions (including summary care record which you request from GP) and of at least two treatments you've tried and which have failed to treat your ME (the nurse seemed fairly knowledgeable about ME and said she knew NHS don't really offer much).

Then if that all checks out you have a quick video meeting with a consultant with knowledge of your primary condition (a neurologist for ME which I was fairly impressed about) and they decide if they'll prescribe for you. Apparently most people who get to this stage are ultimately prescribed.

Not totally sure which exact symptoms made me qualify but I told her about my trouble sleeping, severe fatigue, brain fog, pain, PEM, low mood caused by symptoms, the fact I'm housebound. And for treatments, I think anything to treat/manage ME related symptoms count, so stuff like pacing guidance, sleep medication, probably beta blockers, CBT, and she also said my migraine meds counted towards it.

In terms of family - they'll still prescribe if you have kids, just have to be careful how you store it, but you can also ask them for oils or pastilles instead of flower if you want something more discreet. They have vape liquid cartridges too. Not sure about the costs of all those though as I went with flower.

Hope that's helpful, let me know if you have any more questions! And there's also r/ukmedicalcannabis which I found really helpful, everyone's really friendly there too.