Increasing number of Americans dealing with fibromyalgia - Good4Utah.com

Increasing number of Americans dealing with fibromyalgia - Good4Utah.com

Is It a Gluten Sensitivity or a Carb In The Wheat?

This article has been circulating the internet as of late in either written or video form. It talks about a study done where gluten sensitive people may not actually have a problem with wheat but with fructan.

The study is very small, and you all know what I think about small studies. I'd rather see at the very least 100 participants to see if there is any validity to these findings. Having said that, I can understand where this is all going. Many researchers believe Celiac Disease is rare since only 1 percent of the population ever gets diagnosed. So according to these researchers, it MUST be something else rather than wheat, right?

It could be. I personally didn't have a huge problem with wheat. I'd break out in an eczema flare if I had two servings of pasta in a week, but that was it. I didn't start having serve bloating that led to a 4 size change in my dress size until just a couple of years ago. I also miscarried twice, suffered from severe panic attacks, hand eczema, and severe fatigue and brain fog-- all of which can be considered symptoms of Celiac. BUT I could very well have a reaction to something the food manufacturers added to the wheat in the past 14 years if these problems are recent within the past 14 years.

Here's the thing, though, I grew up on a gluten-free diet. And by gluten-free I mean I didn't consume a whole lot of carbs at all. I didn't actually like bread growing up and would only have it one a week when I had my salami and provolone cheese sandwich on rye bread. I also wasn't a big rice or potato fan either. I only ate what I liked. I ate veggies and protein in the form of chicken, pork, or on rare occasion, beef. That was it as far as my diet was concerned. And I even steered clear of diary. I HATED milk as a kid and I still do unless it's in my tea.

My diet only started to change to the 4 basic food groups when I had kids and that's where I wound up getting into trouble because I always cooked a dreaded starch with every dinner. And even though I like carbs now, my body feels they are the enemy.

I do applaud these researchers for trying to get to the bottom of this, but I'd honestly like to see the studies grow into tests done on a processed free diet verses a processed one. I think that's where they might find something BIG, especially for chronic pain sufferers.

I'm not saying that processed foods are the only factor that makes any of us chronic pain patients suffer, but I know it plays a big role with me. I honestly feel much better if I don't consume anything out of box, can, or bag that has something processed in it. I LOVE my potato chips with Cabot dip, as well as Twizzlers, but my body isn't a big fan.

Sadly, Twizzlers contain wheat and after one helping, I have suffered from a panic attack the following day. Cabot dip (at least the one I like) has MSG and I got bloated and tired after having that within 2 hours. So, I really can't have any processed foods anymore.

Sure, it COULD be something else. It would be nice if it was so I could feel just as normal as everyone else that is healthy. But I doubt it. Fibro symptoms can get worse with age if you don't do what's right for your body. Period

How about all you? What do you all think? Is this study just bogus or do you think they might be onto something? I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Stay fabulous!
Love and friendship,

Kimberley
http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2014/05/22/314287321/sensitive-to-gluten-a-carb-in-wheat-may-be-the-real-culprit?utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=npr&utm_term=nprnews&utm_content=20140522

2014 Fibromyalgia & Chronic Pain Conference

Manage My Pain App

An app created by founder and CEO of ManagingLife Tahir Janmohamed, called Manage My Pain is getting noticed. Not only is it the most downloaded app on Android and award winning, but the reviews are quite high with an average of 4.1 out of 5 stars for its free version and 4.3 out of 5 stars for its paid version.

This app offers chronic pain suffers a way to electronically capture their day-to-day pain in one program that is compatible with cloud and any Android device and then the patient can look up easy to read reports for him/herself and the doctor.

This app can replace all the hard copy tracking you have in a pain diary, journal, log, and/or tracker for any sufferer of chronic pain, especially ones suffering from arthritis, cancer, chronic muscular pain, migraines, fibromyalgia, and chronic fatigue, so you and your doctor have a better sense of your condition.

Both the main site (http://www.managinglife.com) and the Google app store (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.lcs.mmp.lite) have a video to further explain this wonderful app. It is available in a free and paid version.

Pain is considered chronic if it lasts for 6 months or longer and the free version of this allows you to add 10 records of data for your doctor. This makes it a great free app because after your initial consultation, you will at the very least a week and a half of data to share for your next visit.

However, if you'd rather share more data with your doctor, the paid version, which is priced at $3.99, will allow you to store an unlimited amount. This would be a good option for patients that only see their doctor monthly.

I like what this app has to offer, even though, I personally do not have it. It is not yet available for the iPhone, but I've been in contact with Tahir Janmohamed and will try and pin down the launch date for us Apple users and then announce it here.

Stay fabulous!
Love and friendship,

Kimberley

The 15 Best Fibromyalgia Blogs of 2014

Fibro and Fabulous made the list for the 3rd year in a row! YAY!!!! A BIG THANK YOU goes out to all of you, my dear readers. I couldn't have made this accomplishment without all of you!
http://www.healthline.com/health-slideshow/best-fibromyalgia-blogs

Stay fabulous!
Love and friendship,

Kimberley

Upcoming Interview

In a few days I will have the pleasure of talking with a rheumatologist about a new treatment for Fibromyalgia.

If you'd like more information about the person or drug we will be discussing, please sign up for my newsletter.

I will be sharing not only that, but what we discuss on Friday with my subscribers first BEFORE it gets posted here.

Stay fabulous!

Kimberley

Making of -- Forever Friends Book Cover (+playlist)

Are you curious about my upcoming Paranormal Romance novel? If so, hop on over to https://www.facebook.com/authoramandakimberley to check it out, like the page, and receive updates!  This novel will be available on Amazon and Kindle Direct Publishing shortly!

Appreciation

I just came across this statement this morning and I find it to ring very true in my own life, but it may not be for the reasons as you see it. This entry today may sound more like a rant as opposed to my other entries, but it's nothing more than me standing up for what I believe we Fibromites should all have in our lives.

Relationships are truly important. You have family relationships, friendships, partnerships, working relationships, and the list goes on of important people in your life.

In today's society it seems we have many, many people that think our time means very little. I've personally spent countless hours driving all over New England for middle school band concerts, middle school basketball games and tournaments, school projects, school functions, and the like. Each one of these things had a person in charge who expected many, many hours of dedication from my child with little regard to the parent who had to supply the ride, time, and money to pay these people for such an event.

When you work at a job in today's society, many of the bosses seem to feel that if you are getting paid, you should be available on call for whenever they need you instead of working a set schedule.  My husband and I have both worked for places that expected 18 hours/day of work 5-6 days a week and did not provide us with maids or landscapers for our homes that we neglected for them to have a body at their establishment so they could (in my case) get their nails done.

Doctors and specialists in today's society will make you wait hours in a waiting room even when you have a scheduled appointment. Why is that happening? They certainly charge me and my insurance company an awful lot for 5 minutes of service!

There's an old saying that states, "Time is money". Well if time truly is money, then please explain to me why I'm at the mercy of someone else's time if I'm the one providing the money? And if I provide services, why do I have to wait to get paid from someone on their time?

We now live in a society that does not make any sense because many, many people forgot how to respect one another. I've spent years trying to do things expected of me out of the respect I was taught to provide and I've paid the price of that in Fibromyalgia pain. And is that fair if I'm the one paying for something mentally, physically, AND financially? I think not!

My take on this statement is very different from most because I truly feel people need to learn the term respect in today's day and age:

It's not often I come across a saying like this particular one that fits. Yes, relationships work both ways, and effort should be made, but when a person in your life clearly does not understand you, it is not your fault, nor should you be hearing the statement "relationships work both ways" from someone who is incapable of empathy, compassion, and understanding. Effort should be determined on a person's capacity to love and not on the capability of measured time (as in getting together). Some of the best relationships I've had are from people who barely know me and some of the worst relationships I've had are from those who have taken advantage of my loving nature because they claim to know me. It's about time that people value and appreciate what they have-- including the love that has been freely given to them by others. We shouldn't look for or expect anything more.

We Fibromites take a beating from people who lack respect, and on May 12, we should all take back some power through awareness, the power of respect!

Stay fabulous!
Love and friendship,

Kimberley