One good thing about living with a chronic illness for 30+ years (especially an illness like ME/CFS, stigmatized and belittled by the general public and even some researchers) is that I've had a lot of practice fighting against despair and hopelessness.
So many reasons to feel despair, but I keep trying to do what little I can (very little, I'm mostly homebound) to change things for the better.
My impact may be small but it's better than doing nothing!