Doc Watson

More and more people, mostly women, are coming to Doc Watson’s who suffer with the condition known as Fibromyalgia. Fibromyalgia is characterized by some, if not all of the following symptoms; tenderness and stiffness in the muscles, tendons & joints, fatigue, lethargy, poor sleep, depression, anxiety, foggy thinking, TMJ (temporo-mandibular joint) syndrome, gastrointestinal disturbances and migraine headaches. Often times fibromyalgia sufferers have been diagnosed with a variety of other illnesses and been treated by different doctors with different medications before finally receiving the diagnosis of fibromyalgia. In many instances the patient will be told it is “all in their head”. For years I, too, suffered from fibromyalgia but back then it was called fibrositis. It all started with IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome) in my teens followed by migraine headaches, anxiety and depression, then TMJ and serious muscle pain and stiffness with very poor sleep and cognition problems. In the 1960s, I was considered high strung and treated for emotional problems with valium and ergot for the headaches. Later I was given anti-depressant and anti-inflammatory drugs to treat the symptoms of fibromyalgia but little did I know back then that one day I would serendipitously discover what would rid me finally and forever of fibromyalgia so I could lead a normal life.

If you or a loved one suffers with this condition you need to know it is not “all in your head”. There is a common thread that runs through every fibromyalgia sufferer’s life. I hesitate to call it a disease because I have come to believe that we have slowly poisoned ourselves over our lifetimes. For some, that lifetime is a short one for others it might take a little longer. If it’s you, you could have been suffering for years with a variety of the symptoms all at different times until a dramatic event happened; an accident, a death in the family, a divorce, something as simple as a fall, and then all the symptoms can surface at once leaving you completely debilitated.

According to the medical establishment, there is no “known cure” for fibromyalgia, but I can speak with certainty that there is a way to regain your health and live a happy healthy life even if you have suffered for years with it and I am a living example that this can happen.

I went from being an athlete, playing tennis and golf, to having difficulty moving from the bed to the sofa and back to the bed again. At the height of my illness if I wanted to go out to a party or to dinner getting ready to go out would fatigue me to such a degree that I was too tired to attend the event. Now that I am recovered I run Doc Watson’s Health Stuff store in Tempe, host two radio shows every Saturday, sing with Sassy, the Desert Divas singing group all over Arizona, write articles for periodicals and speak to local organizations about health issues and how to incorporate natural remedies into your daily life.

Over the years I have helped hundreds of people regain their health one step at a time through information, education, and implementation. There is a whole program I recommend to individuals suffering with fibromyalgia, but to begin at the beginning; it all starts with body cleansing, ridding the body of toxins that contribute to our ill health.

One of the questions I always ask my clients is “How is your diet?” Most people respond “I eat a good diet.” In fact, most individuals don’t eat as good diet as they think, at least not these days. Many of us are so much on the go we don’t’ have time to prepare wholesome meals with fresh ingredients. We rely heavily on prepared foods from a variety of sources and in some instances swing through the drive thru of any number of fast food restaurants on our way home from work. Many of these prepared foods contain preservatives, artificial flavors, colors and sweeteners. They may also contain flavor enhancers like MSG (monosodium glutamate) all of which slowly poison our bodies leading to not only fibromyalgia but other diseases such as cancer and heart disease.

To begin with if you suffer from fibromyalgia the first order of business is to eat whole food and eliminate processed stuff. That means eating fresh vegetables and fruits; eating meats that don’t contain injected hormones or antibiotics and limit your intake of super sugary and other refined foods. Eliminate your intake of partially hydrogenated fat which can be found in just about every processed food; and refined sugars like high fructose corn syrup that are found in things like soda. Stop eating foods that are non foods, like margarine, and start eating foods that are real, like butter. If you need assistance with this issue you can come to Doc Watson’s Health Stuff to learn about a better way to eat.

The next order of business is, if you are having problems with sleep, to get a good night’s rest. When you don’t sleep well your body can’t repair itself. Each night you go without adequate sleep puts you further away from that sense of well being we all strive for. Once the sleep difficulties are well established you can begin to feel depression, anxiety, pain in your muscles, joints and tendons; you could even have a feeling of being mentally disturbed. Lack of sleep can lead to you feeling stressed to the max which can lead to developing pain in your neck and upper back which can develop into tension headaches. So getting a good night’s sleep becomes of paramount importance to a fibromyalgia suffer. One of the best nutritional supplements for sleep is Source Naturals Night Rest , a mixture of vitamins, mineral, herbs and melatonin; all of which aid an individual in their quest for a good night’s sleep.

For more information about the fibromyalgia program I developed for myself that lead to my complete recovery from the condition you can give me a call at 480 897-1476 or email me. At present I am in the process of writing a book on the entire program including easy recipes and menus. Fibromyalgia can be a debilitating condition but it doesn’t have to be. It’s really all up to you and your decision to be well.