Fibromyalgia Poorly Served By Drug Happy Rheumatologists

The term “fibro” was used to designate soft (or fibrous) tissue involvement and “myalgia” is Latin for “pain”. 

Fibromyalgia was originally thought to be a rheumatologic condition because - like a disease such as rheumatoid arthritis - it is characterized by musculoskeletal pain. But research has since shown that there are no abnormalities in the musculoskeletal system in people with fibromyalgia. Instead, the problem appears to lie in the pain processing pathways of our central nervous system.

The term Fibromyalgia was created by rheumatologist Dr. Frederick Wolfe in 1984 to describe a condition affecting primarily women.

Of course if you’re subscribed to my free Health Matters newsletter, http://drmurphreesnewsletters.com, you read my article about how Dr. Wolfe now denies that fibromyalgia is a real disease-Sad but true.

Before 1990, no guidelines for evaluating and diagnosing fibromyalgia existed. To reduce misdiagnosis and confusion, the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) sponsored a multicenter study to develop these criteria; the results were published in 1990. In 1992, at the Second World Congress on Myofascial Pain and Fibromyalgia, the diagnostic criteria for fibromyalgia were expanded and refined.

Since rheumatologists were the first health specialty to promote and ratify the diagnostic criteria for fibromyalgia, they became the doctors of choice for seeing fibro patients. It didn’t matter that may at least early on had no idea what fibromyalgia was or how to treat it-unfortunately this is often the case today. Many rheumatologists won’t take any new fibro patients or are openly skeptical about the condition.

I believe rheumatologists are the worst possible doctors to manage a fibromyalgia patient’s case. 

Why? There are several reasons -

Because they deal in hard to treat autoimmune diseases, and see patients other doctors don’t want to see, Rheumatologists have a lengthy waiting list-may take 3 months to be seen.

A waiting list of patients can create a lack of empathy for the longwinded, hard to treat fibro patient who needs more than a five-minute office visit every 3 months. “Who cares if you come back I have plenty of other patients waiting in line to be seen.”

Rheumatologist are trained to use drugs, usually incredibly toxic drugs, Methotrexate, gold salts, Plaquenil, Enbrel, etc.

Here is the warning box info for Enbrel:

WARNING

SERIOUS INFECTIONS AND MALIGNANCIES

SERIOUS INFECTIONS.

Patients treated with Enbrel are at increased risk for developing serious infections that may lead to hospitalization or death.

Most patients who developed these infections were taking concomitant immunosuppressant’s such as methotrexate or corticosteroids.

Enbrel should be discontinued if a patient develops a serious infection or sepsis.

Reported infections include:

Active tuberculosis, including reactivation of latent tuberculosis. Patients with tuberculosis have frequently presented with disseminated or extrapulmonary disease. Patients should be tested for latent tuberculosis before Enbrel use and during therapy. Treatment for latent infection should be initiated prior to Enbrel use.

Invasive fungal infections, including histoplasmosis, coccidioidomycosis, candidiasis, aspergillosis, blastomycosis, and pneumocystosis. Patients with histoplasmosis or other invasive fungal infections may present with disseminated, rather than localized, disease. Antigen and antibody testing for histoplasmosis may be negative in some patients with active infection. Empiric anti-fungal therapy should be considered in patients at risk for invasive fungal infections who develop severe systemic illness.

Bacterial, viral, and other infections due to opportunistic pathogens.

The risks and benefits of treatment with Enbrel should be carefully considered prior to initiating therapy in patients with chronic or recurrent infection.

Patients should be closely monitored for the development of signs and symptoms of infection during and after treatment with Enbrel, including the possible development of tuberculosis in patients who tested negative for latent tuberculosis infection prior to initiating therapy.

MALIGNANCIES

Lymphoma and other malignancies, some fatal, have been reported in children and adolescent patients treated with TNF blockers, including Enbrel.

Scary huh?

The black box warning for Plaquenil is just as scary.

Immunosuppressive medications used by rheumatologists for autoimmune diseases are fraught with danger. That is the reason these drugs are used only by rheumatologists and not by internists, family physicians, or other medical specialists. Rheumatology is a medical specialty developed to prescribe and monitor the side effects of these high-risk medications.

The rheumatologists mentality has been conditioned over the years to continue prescribe more and stronger symptom suppressing drugs. This is a disastrous approach for fibromyalgia patients. Most fibro patients can’t tolerate drugs - they only make them worse. Drugs don’t make you healthy, they can be helpful but they don’t make you healthy. The only way to reverse fibromyalgia is to get healthy!

Using an atomic bomb like Enbrel or Plaquenil to treat fibromyalgia symptoms is not only stupid, it is incredibly dangerous!

Traditional medicine and drug therapy is a dead end for fibro patients. You can read my past blog Traditional Medicine Fails Fibro below or even better:

You can listen to my past First Tuesday of the Month Fibromyalgia Teleconference recordings here:

http://drrodgermurphree.com/fibro-conference-recordings/

My fibro blog- Traditional Medicine Fails Fibromyalgia

http://treatingandbeatingfibroblog.blogspot.com/2010/12/traditional-medicine-offers-little-for.html

Fibromyalgia Can Be Reversed-Don’t Give Up

Anyone can give up, it's the easiest thing in the world to do. But to hold it together when everyone else would understand if you fell apart, that's true strength.
-- Author Unknown


Battling fibromyalgia, the pain, fatigue, low moods, weight gain, insomnia, can be a real test of one’s willpower. It’s hard to be positive, even when we feel our best, but it’s almost impossible to be upbeat when we feel bad. And unfortunately with fibro more days are bad than good. 

It’s easy to understand why someone with fibro could become discouraged, bitter, and hopeless. The chronic symptoms of fibro could test the strongest optimist.

However, the old adage about “if you want to feel better, find someone less well off than you,” still rings true. I know, I KNOW, I’ve been working with fibro patients for 17 years, and yes it is one of the worst illnesses ever-no doubt about it. But,  there are always others who are less fortunate than we are. CANCER, especially terminal cancer-hard to imagine anything worse… I’ve watched a parent die to lung cancer-terrible, terrible death.

If you’re battling fibro and discouraged please don’t give up. You can reverse fibro-I didn’t say cure it, but reverse it. You can feel better. There are doctors who are having success treating and reversing fibro. You can get better, I know because I’ve been fortunate enough to have worked with some of the toughest fibro cases over the last 17 years. Don’t give up.

Don’t Give Up

A little girl had been shopping with her Mom in Target. She must have been 6 years old, this beautiful red haired, freckle faced image of innocence. It was pouring outside. The kind of rain that gushes over the top of rain gutters, so much in a hurry to hit the earth it has no time to flow down the spout. We all stood there under the awning and just inside the door of the Target.

We waited, some patiently, others irritated because nature messed up their hurried day. I am always mesmerized by rainfall. I got lost in the sound and sight of the heavens washing away the dirt and dust of the world. Memories of running, splashing so carefree as a child came pouring in as a welcome reprieve from the worries of my day.

The little voice was so sweet as it broke the hypnotic trance we were all caught in, "Mom, let's run through the rain," she said. "What?" Mom asked.

"Let's run through the rain!" She repeated.

"No, honey. We'll wait until it slows down a bit," Mom replied.

This young child waited about another minute and repeated, "Mom, let's run through the rain."

"We'll get soaked if we do," Mom said.

"No, we won't, Mom. That's not what you said this morning," the young girl said as she tugged at her Mom's arm.

"This morning? When did I say we could run through the rain and not get wet?"

"Don't you remember? When you were talking to Daddy about his cancer, you said, 'If God can get us through this, he can get us through anything!'"

The entire crowd stopped dead silent. I swear you couldn't hear anything but the rain. We all stood silently. No one came or left in the next few minutes. Mom paused and thought for a moment about what she would say. Now some would laugh it off and scold her for being silly. Some might even ignore what was said. But this was a moment of affirmation in a young child's life. A time when innocent trust can be nurtured so that it will bloom into faith.

"Honey, you are absolutely right. Let's run through the rain. If God let's us get wet, well maybe we just needed washing," Mom said.

Then off they ran. We all stood watching, smiling and laughing as they darted past the cars and yes, through the puddles. They held their shopping bags over their heads just in case. They got soaked. But they were followed by a few who screamed and laughed like children all the way to their cars.

And yes, I did. I ran. I got wet. I needed washing.

Circumstances or people can take away your material possessions, they can take away your money, and they can take away your health. But no one can ever take away your precious memories... So, don't forget to make time and take opportunities to make memories everyday. To everything there is a season and a time to every purpose under heaven.

I hope you still take the time to run through the rain.

Author unknown

I'd add that while fibro can take away so many things, good health, your social life, your ability to work, your marriage, and more, it can't take away your greatest asset-your ability to mentally decide to keep going, to keep living, to keep fighting to do whatever it takes to get better, to be healthier.