The Counting My Spoons Guide to Living with Fibromyalgia has been created for those who want to take steps to improve their lives with Fibromyalgia.
Too often, when patients are diagnosed with Fibromyalgia they leave the office with nothing more than a prescription. My goal with this guide is to give you the tools you need to start living with Fibromyalgia.
Learn to make choices that positively impact your symptoms:
- Fibromyalgia (what is it, how is it diagnosed?)
- Medications (how prescription medications may help)
- Diet (how does diet impact Fibromyalgia?)
- Exercise (why do doctors always tell us to exercise?)
- Alternative therapies (which ones are helpful?)
- Vitamins and Supplements (which ones are most helpful?)
- Pacing (the key to living with Fibromyalgia)
- Medical studies (studies are linked throughout to give you more information)
Because exercise is typically the first advice a patient receives I felt that it was important for you, the patient, to understand both why the doctor is giving you this advice and more importantly how to put it to use without hurting yourself. Next, I cover some alternative therapies that have been scientifically shown to improve one or multiple symptoms of Fibromyalgia.
Medical doctors will rarely direct you to alternative therapies; however, they can often be as (if not more) helpful than any medications the doctor will prescribe. Many times, if you find the right provider, these alternative therapies are also covered by insurance.
I will discuss diet changes that can help improve your symptoms, specifically those that I have personally found beneficial. I address why certain foods should be avoided entirely by those with Fibromyalgia, and why other foods can actually improve your symptoms. I follow this with detailed information on vitamins and supplements that have been shown, through scientific studies, to improve symptoms related to Fibromyalgia.
The last section I cover is on pacing. This is an area that is often overlooked completely, yet for me, and many others, pacing has been the thing that has helped most. Learning to manage time greatly improves stress, which can help reduce pain and improve sleep. When all of these areas are addressed together it is possible to reduce the negative symptoms associated with Fibromyalgia and improve your quality of life. That is my goal for you.
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