Fibromyalgia
My most compassion goes to those diagnosed (or undiagnosed, for that matter) with Fibromyalgia. Fibromyalgia is a collection of symptoms, with the worst of them being:
constant pain, both deep in the body and joints and on the skin surface
extreme insomnia, sometimes not sleeping for days
debilitating fatigue
And the extensive list of annoying and life-energy-depleting symptoms continues, varying from person to person. Persons with Fibromyalgia range from those who battle through their pain and fatigue and still manage to work 50 hours a week, to those that spend days on end in bed, unable to function.
As a holistic doctor, my clinic often treated patients with Fibromaylgia. In fact, I have considered opening a clinic that specializes in natural treatments for Fibromyalgia, but that is not yet on the horizon.
Doctors at educational seminars often lament on the difficulties of treating this syndrome; there is no agreed upon causative agent, and the treatments can vary as much as the disease can.
I would tell patients on their initial examination that "I will do my best, and most likely only 80% of your symptoms will improve, and it will be quite expensive, and you will definitely feel better in a few months. Don't expect it to go away completely. You will have to do your part by making some lifestyle changes as well".
For those with mild, initial stages of fibromyalgia, many symptoms resolved and never returned. For those that had been diagnosed for years and sought treatment after treatment, it was a more difficult and complex path.
There are many theories, studies, and opinions as to the origins of Fibromyalgia in the body. What I have observed is multi-layered:
In my opinion from clinical observations, fibromyalgia patients tend to be perfectionists, and never feel completely satisfied with any of their own accomplishments. Very self-critical, they tend to constantly fret over small details, sometimes to the point of obsession. Learning to let go and surrender is a huge life lesson for many of these patients.
There is always a hormonal imbalance found in the fibromyalgia patient, sometimes stemming from as long ago as puberty. And there are always viruses, often multiple chronic viruses such as Epstein-Barr, Cytomegalovirus, Herpes and others.
There are often food allergies, and frequently undiagnosed food-allergies. Many patients are really gluten-intolerant and have been misdiagnosed with Fibromyalgia Syndrome. You should get tested to know for sure, and if positive, avoid gluten (grains and other products - google it to find out more foods), many times their symptoms would resolve.
One patient told me her story: she had been "diagnosed" for years with Lupus (SLE), but no treatments seemed to help much. She lived with daily migraines, extreme exhaustion, depression, rashes, you name it - an extremely low quality of life.
Her brother found out that he was gluten-intolerant through his own doctor (he lived in another town). Because of the genetic tendencies of gluten-intolerance, he told his sister about it. She was tested, and found to be gluten-intolerant as well.
Because of her willingness to do whatever it takes to feel better, she immediately embarked on a very clean, gluten-free diet. Her migraines, joint pain, sleep issues and digestive problems immediately began to improve. This was a miracle! She could sleep at night, improving her energy. She stopped having incessant and debilitating migraines.
She discovered over the years that if she completely avoids gluten, she feels great. But even the slightest misstep, and her symptoms will flare up. She now mostly avoids eating out, because of the high price she will pay for even a hint of gluten in her food.
She discovered a huge missing piece that MD's over the years had never explored, simply diagnosing her with Lupus and telling her there wasn't much to do about it except live with it. She wasn't willing to accept that answer, and continued to search to help herself.
If you have chronic pain, chronic fatigue or other debilitating and unexplained symptoms, never stop until you find the solution! The solution may be physical, mental, spiritual, or a combination of all three. But a solution does exist.
If I had fibromyalgia, with all of its life-limiting problems, I would definitely get food allergy tested, especially for gluten.
There are no quick fixes for Fibromyalgia, and I'll let you know right now that my Brand-Name Vitamin and Supplement Reviews doesn't list any specific Fibromyalgia products.
It does, however, list ways to help Estrogen Dominance and Metabolic Syndrome, which can dramatically improve many of your symptoms.Most likely, these two dangerous medical issues are probably part of your overall problem. This combination of syndromes is often misdiagnosed as Fibromyalgia or Lupus.
I have also observed that many Fibromyalgia patients don't have a healthy absorption of Estrogen, the hormone that dramatically improves sleep. Some have a history of endometriosis, so Estrogen supplementation, even bio-identical, is often unwise. This puts you in a bind - you can't take estrogen because your body puts it in places where it doesn't belong (endometriosis), yet you need more appropriate estrogen in your cells in order to sleep and think. This situation is resolvable, and you must have patience to fix it. See my product reviews to see which products will help you.
Fibromyalgia patients also seem to struggle with some emotional issues that may exacerabate their unhealthy state. You may find that a good psychologist or psychotherapist that does cognitive and/or spiritual therapy can uncover some deep-seated negative feelings.
A common theme that I hear from Fibromyalgia patients - some who don't even realize they are doing it - is speaking from a place of victimization.
This state of consciousness typically stems from your family of origin, and some people may feel like their parents or siblings also have this issue. Once you realize just which behaviors you do or which thoughts you think are creating this feeling inside of you, it becomes much easier to change your attitude.
Empowering yourself and learning to have boundaries that support you can be 50% or more of the symptomology picture of Fibromyalgia. And please hear this: I'm NOT saying it's all in your head!
I AM saying that your underlying emotional state has contributed to the extensive nature of your dis-ease state, and resolving this may help you control your syndrome in a way that makes you feel normal again.
Treating Fibromyalgia is a multi-layered and multi-faceted approach. Here are some key factors that must occur in order for you to feel better.
1. Exercise. Even when you don't feel like it, you are too tired, you are too depressed, whatever. You MUST, even for 15 minutes.
2. Nutrition. Avoid sugars and white foods (white flour, white sugar, white rice, white potatoes, white bread, etc). Add in the appropriate supplements with a good multi-vitamin, good protein with every meal, and plenty of minerals.
3. Be asleep before midnight and get at least 9 hours of sleep. Most of you have insomnia issues, which is contributing to your fatigue and depression. Balancing your hormones can help that tremendously.
4. Have your female hormones tested, as well as your adrenal gland, by a doctor who understands the extensive testing truly needed to look underneath the obvious issues. A simple blood test will not do. Saliva testing is best, because you gather samples throughout the day, not just one time.
5. Address Metabolic Syndrome. Nearly every Fibromyalgia patient has this issue. I list products that help tremendously in my Brand Name Natural Supplement Reviews. The company that has created these products also gives incredible weekly support via email newsletters and mailings.
6. Try to avoid getting caught up in the paradigm that you "have fibromyalgia and can't do things". See yourself as a healthy person, and begin to monitor your thoughts. Journaling can often reveal negative self talk that defeats all the medicines and supplements that you might be using.
7. Get professional help for emotional issues. I've discussed this above, and must be an integral part of your healing. Even if you don't think you have any.
8. Get acupuncture, massage and/or chiropractic treatments. Both of these techniques help alleviate the pain and restore some flexibility.
Get my natural product reviews today and order the products for estrogen dominance and metabolic synddrome now. You will feel better almost immediately.