Learning

Angel,

FM is definitely "part of a bigger picture" in that there are so many different aspects that contribute to the symptoms - I've had patients get better with one single remedy many times, and even more often it takes many different treatments to achieve success.  Please share more of your history so I might provide helpful comments.

Best,

Dr Rollins

Dr. Rollins,

Are you really ready for this?

I am a 63 year old female, born and raised in the deep South. I have spent my life increasing my knowledge of and practice of heathly eating and lifestyles.  I exercised everyday until just the few years. I still do stretching exercises but because of back and fibromyalgia pain can not longer walk long distances or attend exercise classes.  I have always had an organic garden but haven't been able to maintain it this summer.  Despite my efforts to be healthy I have the following:

Hypothyroidism

Diabetes (newly diagnosed)

High cholesterol (newly diagnosed 212)

High Blood Pressure

Fibromyalgia

Chronic fatigue

Chronic Back Pain with cyadic nerve pain and sometimes with muscle spasms and muscle cramps

Neuropathy

Sleep Apnea

Insomnia 

Acid Reflux Disease

Hiatal Hernia

Mitral valve regurgitation

IBS

Interstitial cystitis

TMJ

Degenerative disc disease

Asthma

Surgeries:

Age 28:  Hysterectomy for endometriosis.   The endometriosis was all over my abdominal cavity, intestines, etc.  The doctor told my husband he did not know how I was still alive and did not know if I would survive.

He told me at my checkup after surgery that in his 30 years of surgery it was the worse he had ever seen.

Age 52 Laminectomy L4-L5

Age 56 Spinal Fusion L4-L5 with bone graft from hip, titanium cage, rods and screws

Age 59 Gall bladder removed and stones from bile duct removed

Age 59 Eye surgery to repair torn retina caused by a fall

Age 59 Kyphoplasty – to repair crushed vertebra L1 

Caused by the same fall (I do not have osteoporoses, my bone density is very good) 

Three heart catheterizations

Biopsy of blood vessel at temple to check for giant cell arteritis

Serious Medical Occurrences:

December 1998 – Heart Attack – no blockage – no blood clot. Attack occurred during spasms from severe back pain. They told me the blood vessels in my heart spasmed. My entire body had gone into spams from the intense pain.

A disc in my back had come out and fallen down with pieces lodging on nerves on both sides.

Kidney stones - three times.

Two miscarrages and one very difficult full term pregnancy with bed rest required most of the term.

2000 Intensive care - low blood oxygen level, fever, difficulty breathing.  They  determined it was a virus. A few days later I broke out in a rash that reminded me of the red measles I had as a child.

2002 Intensive care - difficulty breathing due to allergy to lexapro.

Childhood diseases:  chickenpox, red measles, german measles, mumps, whopping cough.

Allergies: Fish, shellfish, corn, penicillin, keflex, erythromycin, covera, lexapro, ibuprofen, feldene, aceon.

Now, is there a connection between ALL of that or is it conincidental? 

I know genetics played a role in a lot of this, from my father, my mother is 84 and very healthy. 

There are probably some things I have forgotten because it did not occur to me to keep medial records when I was younger.

Thanks.

Alice

Add osteoarthritis to the list.  I need both knees replaced but I am putting that off as long as possible. 

I get injections in my knees every three to four months to keep them "lubricated".

Alice

Wow, you can tell I am in a fibro fog - add migraines since my teenage years to that.

I was just looking at Alice's ''are you ready for this" and thinking 'what a great historian!  And so to have the last two entries she added to update it 1) made me chuckle and 2) reminded me to keep working on suggesting to people they make a notebook or file and have their medical history all done up so that all you have to do with a new provider is to pull out a printed copy (or someday or today, get it to them electronically).  THIS portion right here Alice was able to communicate to Dr. Rollins in I'd guess 2 minutes of his time to read at the most -- he probably is a fast reader so maybe one minute and would take HOW long to verbalize it?  Again, make it EASIER on your providers as much as you can! 

I'll let him know this response is here; I know this is a busy week and time of week for him with it being a holiday just behind us.  THANKS for the use of this area!  

Mardy