The Fibro Fix: Get to the Root of Your Fibromyalgia and Start Reversing Your Chronic Pain and Fatigue in 21 Days - Softcover

Brady, David M.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1623367123 ISBN 13: 9781623367121

Verlag: Harmony/Rodale/Convergent, 2016

Inhaltsangabe

Chronic pain affects nearly 100 million Americans. Ongoing fatigue affects even more. The combination of fatigue and body-wide chronic pain, often called “fibromyalgia,” remains mysterious and confusing, and an alarming 66 percent of sufferers are misdiagnosed. Now, leading naturopathic medical doctor and nutritionist David Brady is here with the answer in his comprehensive book The Fibro Fix.

For more than 23 years, Dr. Brady has treated many thousands of patients seeking relief from fibromyalgia. In The Fibro Fix, he distills his life-changing prescription into an integrative 21-day program to help you determine if, in fact, you’re suffering from fibromyalgia or from one of several severe symptoms misdiagnosed as fibromyalgia. The plan begins with three simple steps—detox, diet, and movement—to start relieving those symptoms for good and then offers deeper long-term solutions specific to the real cause in each person. The Fibro Fix is your groundbreaking guide to resolving fibromyalgia, and uncovering the mystery behind chronic pain and fatigue.

Über diesen Titel

Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Dr. David M. Brady, is a leading naturopathic medical doctor at Whole Body Medicine in Fairfield, Connecticut. He is the VP of Health Sciences and the director of the Human Nutrition Institute at the University of Bridgeport and the chief medical officer of Designs for Health, Inc., and Diagnostic Solutions Laboratory, LLC. Dr. Brady is a highly sought after presenter and prolific author of medical papers and research articles on fibromyalgia as well as a dedicated champion and advocate for patients suffering with a fibromyalgia diagnosis.

Auszug. © Genehmigter Nachdruck. Alle Rechte vorbehalten.

CHAPTER 1

FIBROMYALGIA AND CHRONIC GLOBAL PAIN SYNDROMES--CLEARING UP THE CONFUSION

I decided to write this book in response to the mass confusion over fibromyalgia and the associated syndromes incorrectly diagnosed as fibromyalgia. Together, these syndromes afflict literally millions of Americans.1 For decades, too many have suffered in silence from these illnesses because medicine has been slow to understand them--and slower still to offer the right diagnoses and specific treatments. Sadly, there are millions of people who fit one of the following categories.

• People who have been diagnosed with fibromyalgia but still have questions about their condition

• People who are being treated for fibromyalgia but aren't feeling better yet and wonder if something else might be wrong

• People who have been told that they have fibromyalgia but have been misdiagnosed and may be suffering from another illness

• People who are still struggling to identify what is wrong with them, even though they've been to countless doctors

The bottom line is that those who experience fibromyalgia and other chronic global pain syndromes are one of the most substantial--and underserved-- segments of pain sufferers. If you suffer from global pain, I feel for you. I am writing The Fibro Fix because, after working with so many patients who have struggled with global pain, I know your struggle. In fact, my mother- in-law was once a sufferer until I married her daughter and helped fix her fibromyalgia!

My approach begins with understanding the complexity of this interrelated cluster of illnesses, which--for now--I discuss under the broad term fibromyalgia syndrome, or FM. This is the foundation for finding and implementing new and more effective treatments. The first step is to determine precisely what you are experiencing, and the second is to identify what is causing your specific complaints. Surprisingly, standard health care often fails to explore those two simple steps.

In this book, my goal is to help you understand why it has been so hard until now to get answers and solutions for your pain. FM is mysterious because each case is individual, and without an individualized approach, people and their doctors can't readily arrive at the right treatments. Unfortunately, the US health care system is not yet ready to accommodate individualized treatment--even though that is what is required to help you resolve your pain. Later in this chapter, and throughout the book, I will examine the factors in our health-care system that make it unnecessarily challenging for patients with FM. You need to fully grasp this in order to move forward, put past hardships behind you, and be ready for all the benefits you'll get from this new approach.

I want you to feel those benefits right away. So, as soon as you read this chapter--or for that matter, as you read it--I invite you to undertake my 21-day foundational program, which you'll find in Chapter 2. By following just three simple steps you'll begin to alleviate your symptoms at once, whatever their underlying cause may be. You'll automatically revive low energy; reduce any inflammation that may be driving your pain; eliminate food allergens and sensitivities, which can also cause inflammation; reduce your stress; and start to regain critical mobility. As you follow the plan, go on to read Chapter 3, where I explain that along with fibromyalgia, we need to look at additional kinds of health problems that aren't fibromyalgia--but are often misdiagnosed as such. Both fibromyalgia and each kind of FM mimic require their own specific treatment, which I discuss in Chapters 4, 5, and 6. Understanding the distinctions among classic fibromyalgia and its imitators is half the battle. You'll also take a test to help you determine if there's a likelihood that your issue is classic fibromyalgia.

In Chapter 7, I will troubleshoot additional and more advanced treatments, tests, and options, should these be necessary, as determined by your progress through the program. And in Chapter 8, I present a maintenance plan for going forward as your health improves.

This book will ensure that you have all the resources you need to get to the bottom of your chronic pain syndrome and regain your health.

Who Suffers from Fibromyalgia Syndrome?

About 15 million people in the United States and about 20 million in the rest of the world are suffering from FM, according to a 2011 National Institutes of Health finding. And that figure may be even higher, for several reasons. A prime reason, as you'll hear me say over and over again, is that fibromyalgia is notoriously hard to diagnose; you'll learn from reading this book that it's often mistaken for illnesses with strikingly similar symptoms. Another reason the statistics may be skewed is that men and women tend to perceive pain differently, and as a group, women have been shown in research to perceive pain at lower pressure thresholds when it is applied to their soft tissues than men.2

THE COSTS OF FIBROMYALGIA

Fibromyalgia costs a lot of money--both to patients and to society. A 2014 study found that 34 percent of fibromyalgia sufferers spend from $100 to $1,000 per month over and above their insurance on health professionals. In addition there's lost work time. Researchers estimate that fibromyalgia is responsible for a 1 to 2 percent loss in the nation's overall productivity. And failure to diagnose FM correctly has its own costs, in doctor visits, prescriptions, lab tests, and lost time.3

Based on the statistics we have, although fibromyalgia strikes both genders and all races, it generally strikes people between the ages of 20 and 55 and affects women about ten times more than men. The typical fibromyalgia sufferer is a Caucasian woman. But since white women are also the segment of the public most likely to schedule an office visit when they experience a health problem, it's possible that is skewing the statistics somewhat.4

Although a precise cause is not known, classic fibromyalgia is a disorder of the central nervous system--in effect, a wiring problem--that may be triggered by trauma or early psychological issues. While environmental factors play a role, there is very likely a genetic component, as well: Up to 28 percent of children born to a parent with fibromyalgia develop it themselves.5

Symptoms of Fibromyalgia

While there may be many other possible symptoms of FM, let's start with the most common one: pain. The pain of true, or classic, fibromyalgia is referred to as global, affecting the upper and lower extremities on both sides of the body as well the torso. This type of pain is not just in one region, or even several regions, of the body--for example the shoulder, lower back, and pelvis. Global pain is experienced all over the body.

Do You Have Global Pain or Regional Pain?

The pain diagrams filled out by patients in Figure 1.1 illustrate the difference between global pain and regional pain.

It's actually quite easy to distinguish global pain from localized or regional pain. Suppose you accidentally hit your finger with a hammer. It will hurt like crazy! Doctors call this localized pain since it's confined to a specific area that you can readily pinpoint. The pain also comes from a clearly known cause--in this case, the hammer. In contrast, global pain is not limited to any particular area of the body. The pain you feel is widespread. It involves your arms and legs on both sides of the body and is usually felt in your torso, as well. There is acute sensitivity to touch and sometimes light and sound. Even mild stimuli, like a pat on the back, may feel painful. But while the pain is real, the source of the pain seems like a mystery; this is one keynote of chronic global pain syndromes.

Other Common...

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: Harmony/Rodale/Convergent
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2016
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN 10: 1623367123
• ISBN 13: 9781623367121
• Einband: Taschenbuch
• Anzahl der Seiten: 304
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: Nicht verfügbar
• Verantwortliche Person: preigu; mail@preigu.de; ; Lengericher Landstr. 19; Osnabrück; 49078; Deutschland