by: Matthew Krajewski
So we got a great deal of interest from readers from the post published awhile back entitled, “Understanding Fibromyalgia.” I was initially interested in exploring what fibromyalgia was since I was seeing the advertisements for Lyrica so frequently. The surface research I shared offered a brief glimpse at the disease and the controversy that surrounds it; but what remains constant is the enduring pain that plagues fibromyalgia sufferers. Since the comments surrounding the earlier post were around treatments, and success with different treatments, I thought I’d share some resources we’ve uncovered at RightHealth during the course of building a first class health site.
If you haven’t checked out Daily Strength yet, that should be your starting point for finding a community of people interested in sharing success with different treatment options for fibromyalgia (or any other disease or condition). Their Treatments page for fibromyalgia is interesting because it lists a phlegm clearing drug Guaifensin, which Daily Strength users have listed as having a 63% success rate for treating fibromyalgia. They also have support groups, discussions, and a journals section where users share the intimacies of their struggle with the disease; sometimes communicating about a condition serves as a cathartic treatment to at least release negative energy associated with dwelling on the reality of the disease/condition.
While Daily Strength focuses on traditional Western medicine, Mamaherb is concerned with Eastern or alternative medicine options and their success rates. Their page for fibromyalgia treatments lists passion flower, red clover, and pine bark extract as possible alternative medicine options for treating fibromyalgia, and like Daily Strength, Mamaherb users rate their success rate with associated treatments.
Just like the journals section of Daily Strength, there are communities devoted soley to journaling their experience, like Peoplejam where users share their stories with individual diseases. One caught my eye that had to do with lyme disease, although the user wasn’t sure if she was suffering from fibromyalgia. Other communities like Inspire offer groups where users can come together to share treatments, stories, and advice.
In short, just like the users that chose to comment on the original “Understanding Fibromyalgia” post, there are a wealth of resources where treatments and stories can be shared so that you can find support and success with managing fibromyalgia.
