I just returned from supporting a friend who rode on her bike from San Francisco to Santa Monica to benefit the Arthritis Foundation as part of the Amgen Tour. To see the faces of many cyclists of all ages who rode over 545 miles in one week! What an accomplishment! Many of you reading this with fibromyalgia probably are thinking "I wish I even had the energy to get out of bed, let alone ride a bike! But, guess what?...I listened to three women get on stage afterwards and tell "their story" of living with arthritis. One was 30 years of age and had suffered with juvenile arthritis since she was seven years old! She said she never would have thought even a year ago that she would have done this ride! She had been through numerous doctors and medications and was determined to enter and complete this ride and.... she did it!
Why do I bring this up? Because fibromyalgia is another debilitating condition, often diagnosed by a Rheumatologist because of "arthritic-like" aches and pains. Commonly referred to as a musculoskeletal disease, fibromyalgia affects 6 million Americans and most are women. As a doctor who treats individuals with fibromyalgia, most patients are women and most have difficulty facing every day with body aches and pains, fatigue, headaches, digestive disorders, insomnia (difficulty sleeping), and depression. There is not one drug or therapy alone that works any wonder for long term help with fibromyalgia.
Many frustrated women come to my office telling me through their frustration that at one time or another that they were told their problem was "all in their head." Well, in some respect that is true (before you get upset at me, wait... listen to me as a woman doctor). Functional MRI scans have shown that people with fibromyalgia have increased activity in areas of the brain dealing with where it hurts and how much it hurts (U.S. News & World Report 2007). A look at how the brain and body communicate together is the key to finding out where there is a "brain imbalance," and how to correct it without more medication. I refer to this cause of fibromyalgia as a "brain imbalance" often caused by STRESS on a physical, chemical, and/or emotional level. Once you help balance the brain and body communication, the symptoms of fibromyalgia are greatly reduced, even gone!
We have helped hundreds of people get their life back from fibromyalgia. If you would like help with our Brain Based Therapy we have only 10 openings right now for new patients to see if you may be a good candidate for our care. This is for a limited time only! Call (619) 393-6642 to make your Free No Obligation Consult with me today and also receive a Free Surface EMG Evaluation of your spine.
