September 2008

Encouragement is oxygen to the soul.
(George M. Adams)

The current medical climate often induces emotions of fear and worry. That is the reality we live in.

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But, I won’t talk only about the negative. Knowledge of what to do to help yourself recover and feel better is far too important to stay in a negative space for too long.

Let’s address the subject and move on toward positive emotions that foster attitudes of health and the exciting prospects of recovery.
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Also on Friday, September 26, 2008, if you check back here, we begin another part of the discussion about healthcare. You ask, what haven’t we talked about yet?

We haven’t discussed your overall challenges with the healthcare system and how they may be putting your health and recovery at risk if you suffer with a complicated illness like Fibromyalgia or Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

It’s true that many of us depend on one or two doctors to help keep us healthy. (The wisdom of whether that is the only avenue you should take is not the point here.)

The crux of this new discussion about the healthcare dilemma is whether it, in general, causes you to be at risk. And, if it does, what can you do to protect yourself and get ahead of the problem.

If you’re curious about how your general attitude and how the healthcare system are connected, check back here tomorrow.

The Health Matters Show presents information about:

• problems that are important to your overall wellness,
• problems that you should know about,
• problems that you can do something about and
• problems that need to be fixed if you’re going to get well.

Let’s look at the issues of getting well from Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome honestly and completely. Let’s do what it takes to get well!

Thanks,
Cinda Crawford, host of the Health Matters Show

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On Friday, September 26, 2008, you can check in at the Health Matters Show for an interesting discussion on how negative and positive emotions may be affecting your health. I guess I should say… how your emotions are affecting your health.

If you don’t think they are, you’re not being honest with yourself. Maybe that’s because no one has ever stressed their importance. Maybe that’s because you’ve been avoiding the issue of feelings .

This issue is important enough to frankly consider:

• that your thinking and actions may not be in your own best interest and
• that a change of attitude is what you need.

It is, if you’re like most of us.

If you think positively and plan accordingly, you’ll be on a direct path to improving your health, whether you’re recovering from Fibromyalgia, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, or some other long term illness. If you haven’t been able to consistently accomplish that l task, be sure to come back here Friday.

Dear friends, your health status will suffer if you only stay in a negative head space, i.e. mope around or continue to feel sorry for yourself, week after week, month after month.

Whether I’ve made you mad or peeked your interest, be sure to check back here Friday!

Thanks,
Cinda Crawford, host of the Health Matters Show

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I get comments both on and off the blog when we discuss doctors, prescriptions and the problems in the medical profession. That’s good. Dialogue serves a useful purpose to become aware of every side of a problem. And that includes me; I always want to learn.

Recently, a listener/ reader responded to a post and because of her thoughtful comments, I did more research. Please add to the converstion by passing on other data and adding your opinion right here or go back to the first post at the original post.

Here’s additional information that I found which may help. In Google I searched for the word combination of 1) doctor, 2) problems, and 3) drug interactions. It came up with these 3 sources which look interesting:

1. http://www.accessexcellence.org/HHQ/qow/qow07/qow070326.php (Sorry this link was active when I first wrote this post. It later is not an active resource.) http://www.accessexcellence.org/HHQ/qow/qow07/qow070326.php
2. http://www.fda.gov/cder/consumerinfo/druginteractions.htm
3. http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/otc-center/basics/852.html

Thank you, Cinda Crawford
Host of the Health Matters Show

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You may be looking into various ways to bring your weight down and, if you believe that you need to be a bit smaller, there’s nothing wrong with looking, planning and implementing a logical strategy to encourage your body and weight to go in that direction.

Just don’t blindly go running off into the night and… (gasp)… diet. (It is a four letter word!)

Approach losing weight and getting healthier like any other task. Go about it in a healthy fashion, like making sure your Thyroid gland is functioning optimally, getting a bit more exercise and watching what you eat and drink.

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Most of us stay confused about which foods are good for us and which ones we should avoid. I count myself among you. One day a food sits squarely on the absolutely good list and then it’s demoted. Other times we think something is horrible and it turns out not to be so bad.

In this instance I give you sugar. Long, long ago we heard how bad sugar was for us and how the average American eats tons of it. (Literally tons!) The other day I heard a dietician say a little sugar wasn’t so bad. To me that’s pretty much malarkey. Ingesting sugar not only causes your internal sugar regulation to go haywire, it also gives your Adrenal system and HPA axis a real hit.

Plus, if you consume sugar and you have Fibromyalgia, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome or an autoimmune illness (like auto-immune induced arthritis), it will make you feel a lot worse afterwards. Sugar can increase your achiness all the way to full scale, total pain blowout, because of its tendency to increase inflammation in the body.

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After being on the road for 5 days, sleeping on a different bed, maneuvering 2 suitcases and a big purse through 4 airports, 2 taxies, 3 bus rides, and a 4-hour car ride home (me driving), I’m back home safe and mostly sound.

Anytime we folks (in this case Fibromyalgia or Chronic Fatigue Syndrome current or past sufferers) attempt to travel, life can get very challenging. I survived well by using and planning the following ahead of time:

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God provides many avenues to getting healthy and staying that way. He designed our bodies to function at a maximum level and He is gracious enough to give us special tools to heal.

If you’re a person with Fibromyalgia or Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, you may be pondering why your body doesn’t heal. Why is it letting you down?

The question is important and I’ll tell you why.

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I hope you entered the contest and told us why you deserve to have good health and prosperity.

The Health Matters Show received some fantastic entries. Here are the people who sent in his or her winning entry and will receive a copy of Chicken Soup for the Soul’s Celebrating Mothers and Daughters.

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When I say that you have to listen to this broadcast of the Health Matters Show, I really mean it. Join me in welcoming Dr. Freida Eng, a physician working in the trenches of Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome- every day, all day!

I began interviewing Dr. Eng with the intention of learning more about the problems that her Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome patients and many of you are having with the “step therapy” program strategy being imposed by the big insurance companies. (They make it tough for some people to get the drug therapy that they want and their doctor orders.)

But… we not only talked about that issue, but so much more! Everything from the basic protocol implemented at the Fibromyalgia & Fatigue Centers– to hormones– to Thyroid problems– to vitamins! Yes, we covered a lot in this 31 minute 40 second broadcast. Don’t miss it. If you do, click on the download button and save it to your computer or I-pod so that you can listen to it anytime. As a matter of fact, you’ll want a copy of this one to keep! It’s packed full if valuable information. (Hint: Be sure to share this broadcast with a friend.)

Audio 31 min 40 seconds

Thank you, Cinda Crawford
Your host of the Health Matters Show

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By Thursday, Sept 11, 2008, I will be traveling by car and airplane from Roanoke, Virginia, to Los Angeles, California. It’s both a fun trip and a business mission.

I expect to accomplish many things and maybe that’s the message for today’s blog post.

We get out of an experience both what we put into it, plus what we expect to discover.

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We’ve been working on MedicineNet’s 8 causes of night sweats for four weeks now. Today we’ll address 7 and 8, the last ones on the list: Hormone disorders and Neurological conditions.

Most women are familiar with the hormone dysregulation that often occurs right before, during and after menopause. If you didn’t grow up knowing about menopause, you found out about it soon enough.

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If you’re like me, you really listen to what Dr. Jacob Teitelbaum says about Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. He is a world renowned expert on these subjects. Check out both of his books on the front page in the Amazon store, Cinda Recommends, From Fatigued to Fantastic and Pain 1-2-3.

What’s really good news today is Dr. Teitelbaum is giving a free introductory seminar on Effective Treatment of Chronic Fatigue, Fibromyalgia and Chronic Pain. Check it out and schedule your time to listen to this great man on September 16th at 9 pm EST.

After you do, I encourage you to get your thoughts and questions together that didn’t get answered. If we can get our great and inquiring minds together, we’ll ask Dr. Teitelbaum to speak directly with us on the Health Matters Show!

Thanks, Cinda Crawford, your host

(Send in your questions using the question submission box on the front page.)

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Whereas you can see someone in a cast and hobbling with a broken foot, many illnesses like Fibromyalgia (FMS) and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) may not be so obvious.

I know. I used to walk with a cane on my bad days for physical and psychological support. Sometimes we all want to feel as though people should give us the benefit of the doubt. (Plus, I fell easily during that period of my health history and the cane added stability when I moved.)

This next week, September 8- 14, 2008, is National Invisible Illness Awareness Week. Read the full article below and tell somebody about invisible illnesses. Get involved.

If you and I are a little less invisible, our visibility will rise and benefit everyone.

http://www.sbwire.com/news/view/20924

Thanks and have a great weekend,
Cinda Crawford, host of the Health Matters Show

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