What is Fibromyalgia?
Fibromyalgia is not a catch-all "wastebasket" diagnosis. In his book, Fibromyalgia Syndrome and Massage Therapy: Issues and Opportunities, Richard van Why writes that it is commonly known to be a specific, chronic non-degenerative, non-progressive, non-inflammatory, truly systematic pain condition – a true syndrome.

Devon Starlanyl, M.D. in her book, Fibromyalgia and Chronic Myofascial Pain Syndrome: A Survival Manual: "...fibromyalgia is the presence of unexplained widespread pain or aching, persistent fatigue, generalized morning stiffness, non-refreshing sleep and multiple tender points. Most patients with these symptoms have eleven or more tender points..."

In the past decade or so, fibromyalgia has become recognized as a common condition not readily yielding to "treatment." However, when one considers the many names fibromyalgia has been called and the many varying symptoms a patient who has it experiences, the medical diagnosis and prescription of anti-inflammatory and anti-depressant drugs can hardly be called a "treatment."

In the realm of diagnosis and treatment, many members of the medical profession lack the diagnostic skills needed to differentiate fibromyalgia from other chronic pain conditions. Very few medical doctors have received any substantial training or education in the management of the condition of fibromyalgia. The proof of this is in the following example.

Consider yourself the average fibromyalgia patient. You will suffer for five years and spend thousands of dollars on medical bills before receiving your accurate diagnosis... hopefully from a Chiropractor. You may even undergo unnecessary surgery as a result of all the misdiagnosis. However, once you learn you have a recognized illness and come to understand it is not progressive, you will feel a profound sense of relief.

As all patients will be different with different symptoms, each patient's overall health must be investigated. Careful investigation of a patient's lifestyle of social factors and hard work using a multi-faceted protocol by both the patient and caring Chiropractor, will likely bring significant improvement int he patients condition. Here, the consequences of body toxicity are not to be overlooked. Here, the consequences of body toxicity are not to be overlooked. When the body experiences an overload of toxic substances, the consequences can manifest in a number of ways: headaches, muscle and joint pains, fatigue, irritability, cardiovascular irregularities, depression, mental confusion, gastrointestinal tract irregularities, flu-like symptoms or allergic reactions including hives, stuffy or runny nose, and coughing. The degree the Chiropractor will be successful, will be the degree of the cause, not the symptoms, are addressed.

Summary
Fibromyalgia is a symptom of overall poor health and many leading authorities agree that there is no single approach or single known cure for it. However, the best management of fibromyalgia will likely be one that encompasses nutrition and diet, exercise, lifestyle changes such as stress reduction, detoxification in some cases, and Chiropractic care. A supportive team, patient and Chiropractor, working together, may be the best chance for success.