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Aches and pains? This could be the reason
4th February 2007
Know how to put up a decent shelf?
Then you're welcome round my house anytime, because my study or “clutterden” (as Lara calls it) is getting out of hand.
As you know, I'm a compulsive reader, and I try to get my hands on as many alternative health books as I possibly can.
But these things are everywhere… piled on the floor… up to desk-height!
So I need a new shelf. But as my wife can tell you, my DIY is a bit like my computer skills. Until recently I thought a 'spirit level' was the thing in the pub that measures shots of whisky.
I shouldn't moan though. Because I've ordered a lot of good stuff at the moment. Last week, if you remember, I was engrossed in the secrets of water therapy.
This week, I've been brushing up on a subject I've not really covered in these letters - but I should. It's so common, and yet so few people know what it is, despite it being a primary cause of those aches and pains we can't explain.
This great handbook by Chet Cunningham has some of the answers.
WHAT IS FIBROMYALGIA?
By Chet Cunningham, 'The Fibromalgia Relief Handbook'
Fibromyalgia Handbook
Fibromyalgia is a serious medical problem that involves some or all of the following symptoms:
Intense chronic muscle pain, fatigue, headaches, sleeping problems, joint pain, numbness and tingling, irritable bowel syndrome, problems with memory and concentration, sensitivity to cold, bladder complications, depression and a swelling sensation of the hands.
Doctors don't know what causes it: therefore it is difficult to figure out how to cure it. They do have a short name though. They call it FibroMyalgia Syndrom, or FMS.
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These aches and pains can come almost anywhere in the body, and can include up to twelve different areas. The pain is often what brings on other problems, especially the mental ones, and depression.
For many years, doctors had no idea what this group of problems actually was. Often FMS was passed off as a patient's imagination, or just feeling 'out of sorts'.
People who have X-rays and blood tests and other physical exams do not show any sign of what is causing the pain. It's there - and even ten years ago, doctors had no idea what was going on.
Today, some doctors still don't, so if you have fibromyalgia. Be sure to find a doctor who knows about it and how to treat it.
The problem is not fatal, and most people are relieved to know what they have an that it isn't some serious bone cancer or other fatal ailment. Fibromyalgia is not consistent. You may hurt one place one day and not the next. Your symptoms may be excruciating for a few months, and then almost vanisjh in certain parts of your body.
The problem with FMS is that it will not go away. Quite simply put, there is no cure for fibromyalgia. In many cases the symptoms will interfere with your work, your pleasure, even your sleeping.
Research is continuing to find a cause. Much work must be done before effective treatment is found to go after the cause, and not just to reduce the symptoms.
FMS is most common in middle-aged women from 30 to 50 years of age. Seven to ten million Americans suffer to some degree with FMS. Some young children have it, and some elderly, but most of the cases are in the 30-50 year range of women. Some experts say that more than fifty women have the problem to every case of a man with it. That still means that 20,000 men will have fibromyalgia.
Others in the field sayt they are now finding that 25% of their patients with FMS are men. They say this may be due to better diagnosis of male patients.
One point to understand. FMS is not the same as arthritis. Arthritis is a problem with the immune system attacking the joints rather than protecting them. The joints themselves are the victoms, and not your muscles or tendons around the joints. It may seem like your joints hurt with FMS, but in reality it is the soft muscles and tissues around the joint that are causing the pain.
The hurt can feel much the same, and in many cases the patient limits the use of the arm or leg, or cuts down on physical activity so the leg won't hurt as much. We'll discuss this later when we get into exercise. For now, exercise will help, rather than hurt your FMS.
A pretty good introduction, I think, to a syndrome that just doesn't get the press!
If you're interested in finding out all the available treatments for fibromyalgia in one easy-to-understand handbook, then you can order Chet Cunningham's book here:
Fibromyalgia Handbook
The publisher has an unconditional money back guarantee, so if you can't find a solution to your problem in the book, then you can send it back for a refund.
But this handbook is pretty comprehensive, in my opinion.
There's even a great chapter on how to deal with the aches, pains and tiredness at work. Chet's tips on beating fatigue can apply to anyone, really, whether they have the illness or not.
In the meantime, I'm off to risk life and limb
As for me, I will have my own aches and pains to deal with as I attempt to put up a new shelf with a drill I got for Christmas.
Perhaps I should ring the ambulance in advance.
Yours, as ever
Ray Collins
The Good Life Letter
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