I am excited for YOU today, if you are a person with an interest in learning about fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome from an integrative medicine perspective like what Lumigrate provides. This afternoon and evening, three amazing providers from across the United States are going to get on the phone and have a conversation that will be recorded and then posted for us to listen to later whenever we want! (You'll be able to find the details here at Lumigrate in the Forums / Fibromyalgia / Awareness 2010 if you're wondering how to know what's available, and the link is below as well). Deirdre Rawlings, ND, PhD (Atlanta, GA) is going to lead and host the discussion with Jerry Rand, MD (San Deigo, CA) and Marcus Spurlock, MD (Dallas, TX) and host it on her Foods for Fibromyalgia website. The title is: Addressing Fibromyalgia's Pain, Insomnia, Fatigue 'n' Fog with Integrative Approaches" and with three of my new favorite experts on the subject of chronic pain and fibromyalgia all in the same place at the same time, I am so very excited and proud to be part of this.
Of the four of us, I was the most involved on facebook last year on fibromyalgia awareness day 2009, with Lumigrate having been all of six weeks old I think, so this year I had an idea of what might be in store on May 12th. And when I saw the first announcement for the International Awareness Day this year, I got to thinking that if I asked the experts who are featured and part of Lumigrate to participate in some educational events BEFORE Awareness Day, that ON Awareness Day more people would be talking about progressive, valid information and where to find it that they would if we waited until the Awareness Day. So then perhaps Awareness Day would have more people saying 'yes, I learned a lot about fibromyalgia through the Lumigrate experts' and people would find their way here.
One of the biggest surprises I had in my first months with Lumigrate up on the Internet last year was how many people were spending tons of time on the internet and not finding out about the solutions to fibromyalgia and fatigue, the really great providers such as Jacob Teitelbaum, MD (CFS and FMS author and website) and James Wilson, ND, PhD (Adrenal Fatigue author), both of whom I have done blog posts about which are also now posted in the Forums where people can find them in the categories the topics are organized into now.
The other thing that surprised me is how many people have said they want information about why they are not feeling well but when they learn of a new concept that might requires some work and sacrifice, they run away from it. Everyone is where they are and I just hope that by putting lots of quality information in a variety of media (video, readable, listenable) at Lumigrate, they'll know where to find us when the time comes that they ARE ready to move forward with acting upon information.
I got a call earlier from a colleague of mine who I hadn't talked to for a while. She had found out that her chronic unwellness (lots of bugs getting to her which she attributed to having little kids initially) and digestive problems were food allergies/sensitivities such as are discussed in the video on Lumigrate by Dr. Lepisto, AND by Deirdre Rawlings. This woman just made all the changes that were suggested by her naturopathic doctor and says it doesn't matter a bit to her about wheat and coffee as she feels SO much better now. There are people like her that are proactive, and then there are others who are not so much. And I think the key is in the YOU model that I'm going to post here for YOU to look at.
If YOU feel that you're the center of your health and are really empowered to make your life and health be as you want it to be, you'll be like my friendly colleague I just referred to. (And YES, I'm asking her to write about it in the Forum area so others can be inspired by her.) But as I told her in a discussion about pain patients and how complex they are to treat, when you've had a medical condition run away with your brain and body that nobody from you to the doctors knew what to do about, it's a process to get everything turned back around. It takes your body, mind and spirit. It takes you, yourself and I (
GRINS). It takes a TEAM. And I think we have a team here at Lumigrate, which is 'grate' and includes YOU -- everyone who reads and writes and refers people here. So that is why I am excited for us ALL today, as this is a the first of I hope many wonderful collaborations between amazing providers that are within the portal of Lumigrate, and those that want to learn fom them and contribute by reading and writing.
You can help us with this by grabbing and oar and let others know in as many ways as you can; links on boards and websites, email friends, post it on your facebook status, PRINT and copy and fax/take pages to your providers or leave them in the break room at work -- be creative. And if you have ideas to share with others, please write in the Forum up near the top that's about How To Get The Word Out. You'll be making the team here stronger and advance education for others, who in a way are a distant part of your TEAM, as we are all in this together.
Here's the link to the area of Lumigrate where the Awareness Day events are: www.lumigrate.com/forums/health-issuesdis-eases/fibromyalgia-chronic-pain-and-chronic-fatigueexhaustion/awareness-2010 [1]
PLEASE Take a minute and look at the graphic below and see if it helps inspire YOU to become an educator to your providers as well, because in reality YOU have the most interest in your health and can do a LOT to find resources that provide information you believe in and thereby advance their information. Think about having to keep up on information on all the different medical things that people have; I bet they'll appreciate the input.
Live and Learn. Learn and Live Better! is my motto. I'm Mardy Ross, and I founded Lumigrate in 2008 after a career as an occupational therapist with a background in health education and environmental research program administration. Today I function as the desk clerk for short questions people have, as well as 'concierge' services offered for those who want a thorough exploration of their health history and direction to resources likely to progress their health according to their goals. Contact Us comes to me, so please do if you have questions or comments. Lumigrate is "Lighting the Path to Health and Well-Being" for increasing numbers of people. Follow us on social networking sites such as: Twitter: http://twitter.com/lumigrate [2] and Facebook. (There is my personal page and several Lumigrate pages. For those interested in "groovy" local education and networking for those uniquely talented LumiGRATE experts located in my own back yard, "LumiGRATE Groove of the Grand Valley" is a Facebook page to join. (Many who have joined are beyond our area but like to see the Groovy information! We not only have FUN, we are learning about other providers we can be referring patients to and 'wearing a groove' to each other's doors -- or websites/home offices!) By covering some of the things we do, including case examples, it reinforces the concepts at Lumigrate.com as well as making YOU feel that you're part of a community. Which you ARE at Lumigrate!
Links:
[1] http://www.lumigrate.com/forums/health-issuesdis-eases/fibromyalgia-chronic-pain-and-chronic-fatigueexhaustion/awareness-2010
[2] http://twitter.com/lumigrate
[3] http://www.lumigrate.com/blog/why-i-am-excited-you-today-team-lumigrate#comment-607
[4] http://www.lumigrate.com/blog/why-i-am-excited-you-today-team-lumigrate#top
[5] http://www.lumigrate.com/user/login?destination=node/461%23comment-form
[6] http://www.lumigrate.com/user/register?destination=node/461%23comment-form
[7] http://www.lumigrate.com/blog/why-i-am-excited-you-today-team-lumigrate#comment-2267
Comments
Excellent!
Faith Young is the pseudonym used by one of Lumigrate's longest content providers, as she began writing at the age of 24 in Lumigrate's FIRST year on the Internet! In real life, this young woman who has been living with FMS for many years received her Bachelors degree in Health Education from Montclair State University and graduated Magna Cum Laude. To further her career, she is currently working on two Masters degrees, one in Counseling from Seton Hall University. Since she is a 6th grade health teacher working to educate students on the importance of being physically and emotionally healthy, we found it best to provider her with a pseudonym of her choice and "Faith Young" is what resonated. In the long run, this very real young woman has faith and hopes be able to use health education in counseling and provide up to date information at Lumigrate which will appeal to the younger people 'out there' and bring them 'in here' to Lumigrate in addition to our more mature adults. In addition, she is a LumiLiaison for Lumigrate.com and helps facilitate Lumigrate FMS fan pages on facebook. Search on Lumigrate and Lumigrate: Fibromyalgia and join us related to general and/or FMS specific information; Like us and those #s count with our advertisers and supporters and also allow YOU to keep up with what we're up to!
It's simply a process at the forums at Lumigrate, which are basically 'social media' of having things be 'processed by the court of public opinion' but in this case there is information related to medical board issues with one of the providers we had interviewed, so I have added in a box of information at the link I provided in this piece. I suggest if anyone reading this long ago blog has an interest in the providers as their personal physicians to follow the link and read my additional comment from 2012.
Live and Learn. Learn and Live Better! is my motto. I'm Mardy Ross, and I founded Lumigrate in 2008 after a career as an occupational therapist with a background in health education and environmental research program administration. Today I function as the desk clerk for short questions people have, as well as 'concierge' services offered for those who want a thorough exploration of their health history and direction to resources likely to progress their health according to their goals. Contact Us comes to me, so please do if you have questions or comments. Lumigrate is "Lighting the Path to Health and Well-Being" for increasing numbers of people. Follow us on social networking sites such as: Twitter: http://twitter.com/lumigrate [2] and Facebook. (There is my personal page and several Lumigrate pages. For those interested in "groovy" local education and networking for those uniquely talented LumiGRATE experts located in my own back yard, "LumiGRATE Groove of the Grand Valley" is a Facebook page to join. (Many who have joined are beyond our area but like to see the Groovy information! We not only have FUN, we are learning about other providers we can be referring patients to and 'wearing a groove' to each other's doors -- or websites/home offices!) By covering some of the things we do, including case examples, it reinforces the concepts at Lumigrate.com as well as making YOU feel that you're part of a community. Which you ARE at Lumigrate!