Many
doctors laugh off Fibromyalgia sufferers as mental cases. The truth is
this is a legitimate malady, just one doctors cannot see in a CT SCAN!
Nor can blood be tested for SIGNS of it. The thing is a HIDDEN condition
although the 'OWNER' knows he has it as it HURTS. So you know doctors;
they dismiss what they can't track! They tell patients: you have a mental
problem --not a physical one. Pain, muscle and back specialists quickly
noticed that there was a large number of people with inexplicable back
and muscle pain who also had a great number of supposedly separate medical
complaints. These complaints had been present in the patients for years
and none had ever improved, or if they had it was only for a short period
and then they had returned. This could have been put down to the fact that
there are a lot of hypochondriac clinical depressives around if it hadn't
been for the fact that out of the list of symptoms below (about 35) a very
large number of patients had at least 25 of them but nothing else wrong
with them (obviously some were just hypochondriac clinical depressives).
This could have been coincidence apart from a quirk these people all shared,
from a total of eighteen possible trigger points clustered around the shoulders,
neck, chest, elbows, hips and knees there was extreme sensitivity touch
in at least eleven. This was more than enough evidence for these specialists
to conclude that there was a single condition effecting these people and
it was causing all of thew symptoms, this was not however enough to convince
the doctors.
Doctors don't diagnose on evidence alone, if you can't test for it they don't believe in it. This has created one major problem in the past, many of the pain killers doctors prescribe can actually aggravate the fatigue in people with FMS to disabling levels.
Research carried out over the last couple of years in the States is now forcing doctors to accept the condition although in the UK they are still very slow to catch on. Its has been discovered that FMS causes tightening and thickening of the bodies myofascia, this is a sticky film that covers your muscles to form your shape and goes on to form your ligaments and tendons. Sleep clinics have also discovered that people with fibromyalgia are severe insomniacs and/or have an abnormal 'awake' like brain activity during the period when they should be in deep stage 4 sleep, this is called an Alpha EEG abnormality. The myofascia abnormality is thought to disrupt the bodies chemistry and cause a break down in communication between the muscles and mind resulting in uncontrollable muscle spasms particularly in the legs (known as restless leg syndrome). This abnormality is also believed to cause the body to over produce a chemical called substance 'P', this is what the mind interprets as pain so what should be a mildly uncomfortable condition becomes a very painful one. The muscle spasms and pain disrupt your normal sleep, it is well known that low sleep quality can cause both physical and mental illness including muscle stiffness, damage and pain, it can also disrupt your body chemistry and the brain can become oversensitive to substance 'P'. This of course aggravates the pain and spasms you normally experience which will then disrupt your sleep still further, this process cycles round and round becoming worse and worse.
FMS is not new. It was first described by William Balfour, a surgeon at the University of Edinburgh, in 1816. The medical profession called it many different names, including chronic rheumatism, Magi, pressure point syndrome, and fibrositis. The condition was also thought to be psychological by some physicians, but that notion must now be relegated to the Dark Ages of medicine.
In 1987, the American Medical Association (AMA), recognized FMS as a true illness and a major cause of disability. Now, nearly ten years later, it is still, unfortunately, too often dismissed as the "newest fad disease", and most physicians still lack the knowledge to diagnose and treat it.
FMS is not a catchall, "wastebasket" diagnosis. FMS is a specific, chronic non-degenerative, non-progressive, noninflammatory, truly systemic pain condition. Diseases have known causes and well-understood mechanisms for producing symptoms. FMS is called a syndrome, which means it is a specific set of signs and symptoms that occur together. Don't let this fool you into thinking that Magi is any less serious or potentially disabling than a disease. Rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, and other serious afflictions are also classified as syndromes. Lab tests for fibromyalgia are valid only to rule out other conditions. There is no blood test that can accurately identify fibromyalgia.
The official definition requires that * Tender points must be present in all four quadrants of the body -- that is, the upper right and left and lower right and left parts of your body * You must have had wide-spread, more-or-less continuous pain for at least three months.
Tender points occur in pairs on various parts of the body. Because they occur in pairs, the pain is usually distributed equally on both sides of the body.
In traumatic FMS, tender points are often clustered around an injury instead of, or in addition to, the 18 "official" points required for a patient to be able to enter a clinical fibromyalgia study. These clusters can also occur around a repetitive strain or a degenerative and/or inflammatory problem, such as arthritis.
FMS can occur at any age. Most patients, when questioned carefully, reveal that their symptoms began at an early age. About 25 percent of the FMS patients I see are men. This ratio differs from most sources in the literature. I think that this is due to FMS being under diagnosed in males. Flu-like achiness is frequently the most prominent symptom of FMS, but there are many others. For example, * Your eyes may be too dry, but at other times they will water * Your thermal regulatory system is out of whack. You may notice this thermal fluctuation when you get out of bed (which may be often, due to bladder irritability) during the night. You may have to wait for your temperature to cool down after getting back in bed before you can pull the bedcover up.
* Another symptom of FMS is spasticity (tightness) which can constrict the peripheral blood vessels -- those close to the skin.
This symptom, especially in the winter, makes certain parts of our bodies -- most often the buttocks and thighs -- feel like cold slabs of meat. * You may experience skin mottling. Fingernails can break off, often in crescent-shaped pieces. If nails do grow, they sometimes start to curve under.
FMS is a sensitivity-amplification syndrome. This means that people with Fibromyalgia can be sensitive to smells, sounds, lights, odors, pressure and temperature fluctuations and vibrations. The noise emitted by fluorescent lights can drive you crazy. FMS sensitizes nerve endings as well as the rest of the autonomic nervous system, which means that the ends of the nerve receptors may have changed shape.
Because of this, for example, your body might interpret touch, light, or sound as pain. Your brain knows pain is a danger signal -- an indication that something is wrong and needs attention -- so it mobilizes its defenses. Then, when those defenses aren't used, you become anxious.
Sleep plays a crucial role in FMS. Perhaps you aren't getting enough sleep, or the right kind of sleep. You may have insomnia, or a host of other sleep-related problems. People with FMS often have the alpha-delta sleep anomaly. As soon as we reach deep delta level sleep, alpha waves (awake) intrude and either jolt us to an awakening or to a lighter stage of sleep. The body heals and many neurotransmitters are restored during delta sleep, so we soon suffer from sleep deprivation. Try Ambien if your doctor will rx it, very fine. Or use Benadryl (unisom.). Or better, valerian leaves brewed at bedtime, Not capsules they leave you groggy next day. If no diabetes but low bloodsugar wakes you frequently during night, i.e. hypoglycemia-- keep 1/2 cup near beer next to bed, sip every time you wake, then rinse mouth, sleep some more. But the second you cross from low blood sugar to diabetes II you must quit that tack. You'll know as you have numb feet and hands while asleep.
Neurotransmitters are electro-biochemical agents that cross nerve synapses. They are the vehicles that carry information back and forth between your body and mind. One might say that neurotransmitters are the "information superhighway" between the body and mind.
Much of our mental and physical sense of continuity and security depends upon our ability to repeat appropriate and predictable actions, but this is disrupted in FMS. Neurotransmitters normally inform muscles constantly about what they're doing so their actions can be modified.
Much of our muscle tension function is improperly controlled by these neurotransmitters. Healthy people think nothing of picking up a glass of water and bringing it to their lips. They know just how tightly their hand has to grip, how heavy the glass of water feels, and how much speed is appropriate to accomplish this act smoothly. People with Fibromyalgia, however, lack proper sensory feedback. The thumb grasps with too little pressure, and the wrist muscle lets go when flexed. The economy of effort is not there. To enable us to sit , walk, and stand, the entire musculature must be able to feel its own activity, and we often can't do that.
Only about 20% of FMS cases have a known triggering event that initiates the first obvious "flare." During a flare, current symptoms become more intense, and new symptoms frequently develop.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
SYMPTOMS OF FMS = The majority of FMS sufferers will have a long history
of most (not all) of the symptoms below but normally will not have any
other long term medical problems (unless they are either very unlucky and
have something else as well or are just a normally clinical depressive).
PAIN - The pain in FMS appears regularly and varies from moderate to unbearable, the intensity has no limits and can be throbbing, shooting, aching, burning and stabbing pains. The pain is most intense around the trigger points.
FATIGUE - Symptoms can range from mild to incapacitating, the fatigue can come on in seconds and feels like someone has just unplugged your power supply.
BRAIN FOGGING - A feeling of being 'on another planet', you can get very confused and disorientated. This can also lead to the time spent ill as feeling very 'unreal', many people with FMS when they are going through a good patch think they imagined everything, this can make it very hard to go and see a doctor.
SLEEP ABNORMALITIES- Whether the FMS causes or it causes the FMS isn't known. someone an alpha EEG abnormality which means that as soon as you reach deep sleep you alpha waves intrude and jolt you either awake or to a lighter sleep. Can also include insomnia. Take licorice drops in beer every time you wake and at bedtime. Or make fennel soup every few days, a cup of that next to the bed. Delicious vegetable. Italians call it finocchio. Bottle of beer lasts three days. Get the big bottle, lasts a week unless there's a boy in the house. (Put it into a mason jar write URINE TEST on label.)
CHRONIC HEADACHES - Can be like having a migraine 24hrs a day 7 days a week and can make life 72hrs. 50% of FMS sufferers have reoccurring migraines or tension type headaches.
IRRITABLE BOWEL SYNDROME (IBS) - 47% of FMS sufferers also suffer from IBS
FREQUENT ABDOMINAL PAIN - Can be (so I've been told) similar to severe period pains.
NAUSEA - Can be frequent or permanent during a flare up and can make eating very unappealing over long periods of time.
TEMPOROMANDIBULAR JOINT DYSFUNCTION SYNDROME (TMJ) - Tremendous face and head pain suffered by around 25% of people with FMS.
MUSCLE TWITCHING - IRRITABLE BLADDER
FEELING OF SWOLLEN EXTREMITIES - Take hawthorne, cayenne, ginger to get circ up.
THERMAL REGULATORY SYSTEM OUT OF WHACK - Difficulty in maintaining body temperature, sometimes feeling like your going to boil and others like you may freeze.
SKIN SENSITIVITIES AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF NEW ALLERGIES
DRY EYES AND MOUTH
FREQUENT CHANGE IN EYE PRECIPITATION
DIZZINESS
IMPAIRED CO-ORDINATION
PREMENSTRUAL SYNDROME AND PAINFUL PERIODS
CHEST PAIN
MORNING STIFFNESS
COGNITIVE IMPAIRMENT - Difficulty in concentration, memory lapses.
MEMORY LOSS - Frequently struggling to find words and names
NUMBNESS AND TINGLING SENSATIONS
ANXIETY
DEPRESSION
IRRITABILITY
ITCHING SKIN
CLUMSINESS
COLD SENSITIVITY
COMPRESSION OF THE SPINE
TENSION
BRUXISM (GRINDING OF TEETH DURING SLEEP)
SENSITIVITY-AMPLIFICATION - Sight, hearing, touch, taste and smell
are all over sensitive and many supposedly normal things either cause pain
or extreme irritability, the most common is the buzz from fluorescent lights
driving you round the bend.
RESTLESS LEG SYNDROME - knee jerks?
SLEEP MYOCLONUS (NIGHTMARE JERKING OF ARMS AND LEGS)
From the list above the symptoms highlighted in blue can be found repeatedly
in my medical history over the last five years and yet my doctor like many
other peoples insisted that there was nothing wrong with me. It was not
until about eight months ago (June '98) when I paid to see an osteopath
that the condition was diagnosed, it was rejected by my doctor as a condition
that in his opinion did not exist, then confirmed again by a second osteopath,
a different doctor and my works occupational health department. Although
it took my first osteopath a few months to work out what may be wrong the
condition itself can be pretty much diagnosed in under five minutes. Without
knowing why I was quizzed for a while about my medical history and then
poked in certain points and asked if it hurt which of course it did (apparently
it wasn't supposed to). Although the diagnosis could not be definite it
was highly probable. Once diagnosed the condition is very easy to control
for most, unfortunately there in no actual cure and you may always be prone
to flare ups but as long as you take care of yourself these can be kept
to a minimum. It can take up to two years to recover to a degree were you
are likely not to have any more flare ups but it is possible.
CAUSES -It is often said that the cause is unknown but it is far more
likely that the causes are limitless in people prone to the condition.
It is thought that anything or a combination of things that can start the
self perpetuating cycle of disrupted sleep, muscular pain and chemical
imbalance can be responsible. Common causes include insomnia, stress, caffeine,
depression, trauma (mental or physical), long periods of illness and physical
injuries such as back injuries and whiplash. Once it starts additional
factors can increase the intensity of the condition. You can have periods
of remission where you are almost normal but it can rapidly deteriorate
over weeks or even days.
TREATMENT - The most important thing is to re-establish good quality
sleep and improve fitness. You should avoid pain killers and sleeping tablets
as these tend to aggravate the condition. If you regularly drink regularly
in drinks like tea, coffee or cola you should cut these out completely
and change to decaffeinated or stick to water as this should improve your
quality of sleep almost immediately. If you do not drink a lot of caffeine
it would be a good idea to get a referral to a sleep clinic to find out
how disturbed your sleep is and what can be done about it. You should avoid
alcohol as although it helps you to get to sleep it does seriously lower
the quality and length of the sleep. You should take up some regular aerobic
exercise to improve your general health and in particular improve the blood
supply to the muscles. If you smoke you must give up to reduce the chemical
toxins in your body and improve circulation. A fully balanced healthy diet
is essential, you should never skip breakfast as this starts your body
going in the morning, you should also have your evening meal quite early
rather than just before going to bed. You should have a fasting day on
one day a week (i.e. one day where you do not eat), this helps your body
to dispose of toxins. Cold bathing is known to help, this means having
a cold (not too cold) bath rather than a hot one. Amino acid supplements
are known to help, you can get these from health shops. You should make
sure you have good posture.You should avoid taking any medication if possible,
although some mild anti depressants have been found to help recovery (if
you are prescribed medication you should discuss it with your doctor).
The most important thing to remember is that FMS is a chemical condition and you are not in as bad a shape as your body would like you to belive. The exhaustion and pain is not as bad as it feels, your body is effectively lying to you. You have to push yourself through this, although to start with the pain and fatigue will hold you back you will quickly start to feel the benefits.
NEW TREATMENTS AND INFORMATION - With more and more evidence to support FMS more research is of course being done. They are currently looking into the possibility of corrective spinal surgery which is believed to be having good results, personally I don't like the sound of it. There is also research being done on two particular mild antidepressants with very promising results. These drugs are thought to calm down the brain activity allowing better sleep.
RELATED CONDITIONS- FMS is often diagnosed as chronic fatigue
syndrome, the conditions are very similar but the connection is unknown.
Gulf War Syndrome is Identical to FMS in every way, the connection is suspected
by some to be mycoplasma
from animal flesh. Click on URL or Google that word to learn more.
.
HOLISTIC CURE (suggested). Where is ache worst? Get sun on that
area. I recommend oiling body coco or olive, almond, those are natural
oils, lying 1/2 hr per side in bright sun, not removing oil, let
it soak in 1 day, clean armpit with water in basin if you want...that's
ok.
MASSAGE- Get free massage from a mate/ friend sweetheart or kid who does hard rolfing massage on nerve nexus staying off bones and lymph glands
NO MORE AMALGAM - Any amalgam that's recent? May be the cause of problems.see DENTAL INDEX PAGE -- Have no more put in, instead get porcelain. By now your old amalgam is finished poisoning you so just eat well. Greens chelate heavy metals, cilantro most of all. I grow arugula, endive, am forced by frugality to make salad daily. greens which are more bitter than commercial lettuce but totally tolerable. READ UP ON CHELATING, which is pulling heavy metals from wherever they're STORED in the body.
RADIATE THE AREA - Get a chi lamp, made in China, won prizes at fairs in Europe, not costly, very useful for entire family's aches and pains. I've used it on bad back, as every decade it goes out so bad I cannot sit or even get up out of a chair. Am currently using it on overgrown parathyroid.
YOGA: Inhale into a painful stretch along a limb, arm/ leg, spine,
doesn't matter, wherever the bone meridian is.. the one that hurts. Inhale
into that stretch as you go down into it and pull the stretch, or hve someone
push you into it.. fully, hold breath, hold stretch. that is yoga --exhale
and relax. do it again and again. the nerve gets pulled, lengthened, encouraging
chi energy to go to that area and clean it out. your coriander goes to
the area.
drink lemon/ water after massage/ yoga to wash the toxins out.
USE CLEANSING DIET: A Chelate-flushing diet, (best food for that is green cilantro) Throw this Latino parsley thru blender with a tomato, onion, good salt or soy sauce, garlic and lemon or lime. Make every time you have a protein meal or throw onto salads. Serve on top of all protein meats. (It is Hot sauce basically but much more cilantro than usual). Be sure you digest proteins by not combining sugar, cokes, starches in the same meal with them.
BEVERAGES: Lemon and Water after every massage or yoga session. Citrus cleans us. Keep homemade, real lemonade in fridge full time. Honey better than sugar. Tupelo best kind. Soak the peels (once rasped a little to break into the outer rind) in the pitcher, squish them around in there.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
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