HOMEOPATHIC MEDICINE and FIBROMYALGIA SYNDROME
Many people today feel utterly tired and exhausted; often with aches and pains all over their body, bloated with digestive or bowel troubles and not sleeping well. After a few years they are even labeled “depressed,” which is not surprising considering they are literally living at half their potential. Fibromyalgia Syndrome (FMS) is a condition characterized by muscle pain and stiffness throughout the body, accompanied by fatigue.
Unfortunately FMS has become an over used diagnosis for patients that doctors simply don’t know what else to do with – or when the doctors don’t have the time or insurance coverage to get to the root cause. Even worse, many are showing up at my clinic in desperation saying that their doctor said nothing is wrong with them when they feel terrible!
Homeopathic Medicine offers a unique approach in that it doesn’t rely on the doctor’s diagnosis, as each case is taken individually with time spent uncovering the core of the problem. In this way, each immune system can be given the specific support it needs.
A diagnosis of FMS actually doesn’t tell us much at all. Basically the person “hurts all over,” which we already knew. Specific areas or “trigger points” in the muscles, when pressed, cause pain. A positive diagnosis occurs when 11 of the 18 trigger points hurt when pressed. According to most conventional doctors, the cause of FMS “remains elusive.” It is not adequately explained and the therapy models don’t seem to address any particular theory of cause. Medical research finds no pathophysiology – no disease to explain it.
Since medicine is dependent on pathophysiology as a means for treatment – they offer no real cure. Sometimes treatment involves drugs to enable the patient to live with more easily. However, it can be very frustrating not to have answers and it’s no wonder people get offended when they are prescribed anti-depressants and told that it’s “all in their head.”
A full investigation is needed to see what specific parts of the immune system need support. The emphasis is not on diagnosis but rather on restoring the body so that it can do the job it was designed to do. This is why I consider my practice a “root cause” practice.
I believe that the body was designed intelligently and knows exactly how to heal. In fact, in ways that still makes our best scientists speechless! When a client comes to see me, I want to know what’s in the way of that intelligence. What is the underlying mechanism that is preventing the body from healing?
In Homeopathic Medicine this is called “Obstacles to Cure.” Is there a deficiency of micronutrients that the body must have to get those organs back to health? And if so, why? Are they not in the diet; is the body not metabolizing or assimilating them? Or is something in the diet preventing the body from utilizing them? Or is there some persistent element in the person’s life preventing healing (such as inadequate sleep, continuous stress or toxic chemicals in their living or work environment)? Much research and clinical correlation has been directed towards FMS from a this standpoint.
Falnutrition or Malnutrition?
Falnutrition is when we are exposing ourselves to something that is toxic to our system. This could be a food that our body is allergic to, but it can also come in the form of heavy metals, chemicals, parasites, bacteria, fungus and many other contaminants. In fact, Fibromyalgia and Multi-Chemical Sensitivity (MCS) are very closely linked and almost identical in their symptom pictures. Different people react to different toxic onslaughts with differing reactions. The more toxic the person is and the less capable the liver is in managing it, the greater the reaction (or sensitivity). We need to understand what a person is sensitive to, and at the same time, address the function of the organ involved with that sensitivity. If you only remove the toxin, you may feel better for a while, but the organ system is still struggling and new sensitivities or “allergies” will be sure to surface.
It’s not about fanatical eating or fasting diets, but rather about understanding the items that are causing us harm.
Malnutrition sounds like something primitive societies experience, not here in the U.S., where obesity and food abound. However, our foods are so refined that they no longer nourish the body. They are canned, fried, boxed, pickled, frozen, freeze-dried, homogenized, pasteurized, flaked, puffed, baked, refined, dehydrated, concentrated and basically processed to the point that the nutritional content is missing! However, even if you adjust yourself to the most perfect whole foods organic diet, your body still may have organs too tired to get well; they need specific therapeutic support for a period of time to catch up.
There’s hope.
First things first. Clean up your diet in the most basic and obvious ways. Eliminate processed foods and make the switch to an organic whole foods diet. Eliminate sugars, chemicals and stimulants (sorry Starbucks!). Get basic exercise (like walking) every day and drink more clean water. Take a break from worries and negative thinking, surround yourself with loving supportive people and make an appointment with a natural health practitioner that you feel you can work with.
John C Cassone, MS, CNC is the owner of Cassone Wellness, A Natural Health Clinic located in Old Town Temecula. (951) 837-9013 www.cassonewellness.com