Here is the link to a video on YouTube called "Fibromyalgia: What Does it Feel like." I was only "on the foothills of fibromyalgia," according to my doctor (Dr. Edelberg, author of Healing Fibromyalgia.) I would imagine that people with severe fibro must have the patience of a saint and the strength of a titan. Just from the symptoms I had, I can see that this video really accurate and that the dramatic music is really "on the mark":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ME06rbUqDPk&feature=player_detailpage
Dr. Edelberg's protocol has reversed my fatigue and I no longer feel like I have the flu or feel "beat up all over." Fibro and chronic fatigue are often overlooked by medical testing, misdiagnosed, and over-medicated. Fibro is a reversible condition and there is a very specific protocol--see Healing Fibromyalgia; parts of this book can be read for free at www.amazon.com.
The things I identified with directly from the video are as follows:
I felt like I had an "invisible illness," feeling like I had the flu, like every inch of my body ached at times, having brain fog as if I walked into a room and forgot why I was there--all the time. Having a sensitivity to smells and chemical sensitivities, constant pain in my upper back (this is commonly where fibro can start), giving up things I enjoyed (for example, hearty exercise used to always be a part of my life but I hadn't been able to do it in years); feeling like the exhaustion altered the course of my life in that I was so tired I was limited in the amount I could do, thinking no end was in sight, and this is just the way life would be for me, going through the acceptance process that I could not be like others who had normal energy--I felt different that other people, had a hard time making advanced plans, especially on lack of sleep when I felt like I had the flu. I felt repeatedly punched in the morning, like I was "beat up" or "hung over," occasionally having tender skin like bruising, feeling completely drained so I could not drag myself out of bed, and feeling exhausted if I slept under 10-12 hours. On top of that I identified with the part of the video saying that many don't believe it exists, I have been called lazy, said to be depressed when I was actually very tired, and I have been told by folks "it's all in your head," and of course, for years, was told there was "nothing wrong with me" by doctors who were ill-informed.
And I was only borderline fibro--think what people must go through if they have it severely!!! If you know anyone who has fibro, please refer them to Dr. Edelberg's book. I am not affiliated with him in any way, except that I went in as a patient and no longer am exhausted! For years I felt like I had severe, constant jet lag as well as the flu at times, and that was my norm--but not anymore!!!
The video says there is not a cure or treatment and that fibro but this is incorrect! Also although fibro is stress related, I am not sure if it is actually a disease of the central nervous system. It is a condition that can be fully reversed or almost completely reversed!
The person who made this video had debilitating fibromyalgia, so I did not experience the following symptoms myself, but I thought the video was very specific and telling about what it is like to have it: I did not experience the debilitation or pain like tin foil hitting a filling, and I did not have any sensations of bad arthritis, full-body spasms; I did not experience constant debilitating full body pain where is hard to stand or walk across the room at a snail's pace. I also did not experience being overwhelmed by sounds.
My formal diagnosis is now hypothyroid--but this went for years and years undiagnosed, and I was eventually told I had chronic fatigue. Because my thyroid is in the low-normal range, it was overlooked as hypothyroid. Furthermore, as I've said in earlier blogs, I was being treated in the holistic health community for adrenal fatigue and also estrogen dominance (a very common hormonal imbalance even in younger women.)
Dr. Edelberg agreed with my prior diagnoses and put me on a tiny dose of natural cortisol (it has to be a small dose to be safe), a small dose of natural thyroid medicine, and also DHEA and progesterone cream, as well as St. John's Wort and magnesium for the muscle aching.
The book Dr. Edelberg pointed me to was his other book, The Tripple Whammy Cure, which is a great book for any woman to read who is experiencing exhaustion. And yes, if you have the conditions listed in the book [the adrenal fatigue, estrogen dominance and sluggish thyroid I have been talking about in this blog,] there is a cure!
A Votre Sante (Here's To Your Health,) Alix
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