Treating Fibromyalgia with Acupuncture & Energy Medicine

The Shift Doctors’ good friend and colleague Melanie Smith is co-owner of Well Within Natural Medicine, Inc., Doctor of Oriental Medicine, Acupuncture Physician, Eden Energy Medicine Advanced Practitioner and Senior Faculty Member of Donna Eden’s Energy Medicine Certification Program. Well Within Natural Medicine, Inc.’s overall mission is to “TRANSFORM LIVES THROUGH ENERGY MEDICINE.”  For more information about Melanie or to order items from her Energy Medicine Store, check out her website. In this article, Melanie shares information about fibromyalgia and energy medicine tips to rebalance the energies. Click here to visit Well Within Natural Medicine, Inc

Treating Fibromyalgia with Acupuncture & Energy Medicine by Melanie Smith

What is Fibromyalgia? How can energy medicine improve what can be a debilitating and chronic energy imbalance?
Fibromyalgia Syndrome (FMS) affects an estimated 2 percent of the population. Research shows that up to 90 percent of people with fibromyalgia have turned to complementary and alternative medicine to manage their symptoms. Acupuncture and other forms of energy medicine, in particular, have become  popular treatment choices for fibromyalgia.

Fibromyalgia is a medically unexplained syndrome characterized by chronic widespread pain, a heightened and painful response to pressure, insomnia, fatigue, and depression. While not all affected persons experience all associated symptoms, the following symptoms of fibromyalgia commonly occur together:

· chronic pain
· debilitating fatigue
· difficulty sleeping
· anxiety
· depression
· joint stiffness
· chronic headaches
· dryness in mouth, nose, and eyes
· hypersensitivity
· inability to concentrate (called “fibro fog” or “brain fog”)
· incontinence
· irritable bowel syndrome
· numbness, tingling or poor circulation in the hands and feet
· painful menstrual cramps
· restless legs syndrome

Fibromyalgia is diagnosed when there is a history of widespread pain in all four quadrants of the body for a minimum duration of three months and pain when pressure is applied to at least 11 of 18 designated tender points on the body. On its own fibromyalgia does not result in any physical damage to the body or its tissues and there are no laboratory tests which can confirm this diagnosis.

Symptoms often begin after a physical or emotional trauma, but in many cases there appears to be no triggering event. Women are more prone to develop the disorder than are men, and the risk of fibromyalgia increases with age.

An Oriental Medicine Perspective
The Oriental medicine theory of pain is expressed in this famous Chinese saying: “Bu tong ze tong, tong ze bu tong” which means “free flow: no pain, no free flow: pain.”

Pain is seen as a disruption of the flow of Qi within the body.  The disruption of Qi that results in fibromyalgia is usually associated with disharmonies of the Liver, Spleen, Kidney and Heart meridian systems.

The Acupuncture and Energy Medicine Treatment
Oriental Medicine does not recognize fibromyalgia as one particular disease pattern. Instead, it aims to treat the specific symptoms that are unique to each individual relevant to their constitution, emotional state, intensity and location of their pain, digestive health, sleeping patterns and an array of other signs and symptoms. Therefore, if 10 people are treated with Oriental medicine for fibromyalgia, each of these 10 people will receive a unique, customized treatment with different acupuncture points, different nutritional supplements and different lifestyle and dietary recommendations.

Because symptoms of fibromyalgia vary greatly from one person to another, a wide array of traditional and alternative treatments have been shown to be the most effective way of treating this difficult syndrome. A treatment program may include a combination of acupuncture, energy medicine techniques, energy psychology techniques (Clearing and Manifesting Energies™, Advanced Clearing and Manifesting Energies™), energy medicine exercises, nutritional supplements and bodywork.

If you have fibromyalgia, integrative energy medicine may be what you’ve been looking for to ease your symptoms and reclaim your health and vitality.  Melanie Smith OMD can be contacted via her site for consultation if you have questions. 🙂

Energy Medicine Quick Tips for Fibromyalgia:

1. Do the Daily Energy Medicine Routine.  If you are new to Energy Medicine, download Melanie’s free eBook at her website to get started.

2.  Homolateral Crossover Re-Patterning – with Fibromyalgia the body’s energies are not properly crossing over from the left and right sides of the brain. An easy way to begin to shift this pattern is to take your index finger and beginning between your eyebrows, trace a large Figure 8 around your eyes several times and then repeat in the opposite direction.  The more times a day you do this exercise, the faster this pattern will change.  (For the full exercise and more information, see page 19 of their eBook.)

3. Balancing Triple Warmer and Spleen Meridians – while there are many ways to do this holding the Triple Warmer Acupressure Sedating points and the Spleen Strengthening points are the most functional.

Triple Warmer Sedating Points — hold First Pair (TW10 and ST36) for 3-minutes on each side of your body then hold Second Pair (TW 2 and UB 66) for 1.5 minutes on each side of your body.

Spleen Strengthening Points — hold First Pair (SP2 and HT8) for 3-minutes on each side of your body and then hold Second Pair (SP1 and LV1) for
1.5 minutes on each side of your body.

For more information on Acupressure Strengthening and Sedating Points, Click Here to check out our Chart and DVD.

More Healing Help for Fibromyalgia

Although fibromyalgia is a disorder considered disabling by many due to chronic widespread pain and fatigue there are some things you can do to alleviate the symptoms and improve your overall quality of life.

Learn and Practice Energy Medicine Stress Reduction Techniques
Chronic stress can lead to fatigue, depression, a weakened immune system, and a host of serious physical and psychological ailments. When under stress your muscles contract and tense affecting nerves, blood vessels, organs, skin and bones.  Chronically tense muscles can result in a variety of musculoskeletal conditions and disorders including muscle spasms and pain.  While it isn’t always possible to remove the external forces causing stress the ability to effectively deal with stress is a choice. Take time for yourself to cultivate the energy you need to handle your stress more skillfully and effectively.

Eat a Well Balanced Diet
Managing your diet may seem time-consuming but the benefits it offers make it worthwhile. Many fibromyalgia sufferers find relief through a properly managed diet.  A list of basic nutrients to combat nerve sensitivities, improve cognition, boost the immune system, and reduce swelling is included in this newsletter.  Avoid white sugar, artificial sweeteners, additives, white flour, caffeine, alcohol, and processed foods.   Stop drinking sodas.  Sodas are acidic in nature and loaded with sugar and chemicals.  Sodas are detrimental to both the spleen and the kidneys.

Exercise
While even basic movements may be painful exercise helps restore strength and endurance.  Tai Chi, Qi Gong or Yoga are great for easy stretches, careful strengthening, deep breathing, along with relaxation techniques.  The gentle stretching will clear tension that builds when muscles tighten and tense and improve overall circulation. Be sure to check with your doctor before starting any exercise program.

Meditate
The practice of meditation is a proven stress reducer that helps the body create a sense of calm and a continuing sense of well being. While 15 minutes is recommended, even 5 or 10 minutes can have a powerful effect on your day.

Restorative Sleep
Get at least 8 hours of restorative sleep. Maintain a routine sleep schedule and make your bedroom a sanctuary from every day stress free from TV and computers.  Practicing good sleep hygiene will give your body an opportunity to get stronger and heal.

Hope this post is helpful to you. 🙂

The Shift Doctors will be scheduling a teleseminar with Melanie Smith in the  future to discuss both Eastern and Western medical approaches as well as other integrative techniques for various physical issues. Stay Tuned! 🙂

Melanie Smith DOM with The Shift Doctors (Tracy Latz M.D. & Marion Ross PhD)

-Please stop by Melanie’s website for great Energy medicine DVD’s and her free Energy Medicine  Ebook Click here to visit Well Within Natural Medicine, Inc

*Check out The Shift Doctors’ books at the Amazon link by clicking here and the Meditation CDs at the digstation link by clicking here Find out about The Shift Doctors’ new videos courses on self-healing at The Shift Store ! 🙂  **The Shift Doctors (Tracy Latz, M.D. & Marion Ross, Ph.D.) are available for keynote talks, classes, events or for seminars (1/2 day or up to 2 day) on personal transformation, team-building, motivation, anger management, intuitive development, or collaboration for private groups, conferences, corporations or corporate events. Contact them at info@shiftyourlife.com or find out more about them at www.shiftyourlife.com .