Chemical Sensitivity

Chemical sensitivity baffles most doctors and many patients – I am amazed by this as it is so well documented in neuphysiology research. When we are under stress the blood brain barrier becomes more permeable allowing substances to pass that would normally be blocked – this will resolve when the nervous system is healed – medications can prolong this condition since all medications are considered a toxin by the body.

Allostatic load also can cause the immune system to become hyperactive and respond to innocuous things – or your own body. Stress also alters the bodies detox system – primarily the CP450 liver enzymes. This can cause strange and baffling symptoms as the liver fails to detox properly – and no you cant take anything to help it.

Chasing the symptoms, especially with medications is fruitless and in many cases harmful and keeps the conditions going. The patient has either been born with a highly sensitive CNS, incurred childhood stress that permanently alter the CNS stress response, a build up of allostatic demands or a unhealthy lifestyle...or all of the above. Once the CNS reaches a threshold it will express its displeasure in physical symptoms...and then we keep them going or don’t know or use the evidenced based recovery techniques.

Once you story is about your pain and suffering or symptoms recovery is near impossible. Every self statement or awareness of “something wrong” sends a jolt to the CNS and fuels the conditions.

The only way out is to heal the nervous system......

Watch painting yourself into a rhetoric corner. The links between environment and brain chemistry are not factual; they are an avenue of inquiry.

This is just a study...one of many. Here is the gist of that link. "The ACE STUDY finding SUGGESTS that certain experiences are a major risk factor for the leading cause of illness and death as well as poor quality of life in the United States." Just a study! It is NOT fact. I was never abused, neglected, or lived with a dysfunctional family. The reverse is true. This doesn't prove that this is why we have fibro. For goodness sakes!

You are putting everyone in the same catagory and that definitely is not accurate. I'm very tired of being told that I must have been abused, neglected, or lived in a dysfunctional family because I have fibro and other illnesses. I also know people who were abused, or neglected, or lived with dysfunctional families that are not sick at all! Update the forum? I think not. I will when there is a proven cause of fibromyalgia.


Sherrine

Louise74, your last sentence is spot on, "Stress is just a trigger for the illness that is already there." Also NextAdventure, your documentation throughout this forum has been excellent and informative. Although I already knew all of this, having finally been diagnosed after several years of pain, symptoms and wondering, and four doctors including a spinal surgeon for my DDD, a hand surgeon for my neuropathy due to a major injury/laceration to my hand and wrist, a neurologist who ran every possible test in the book (along with the spine surgeon who tried every treatment, procedure, etc possible) and psychologist who outright stated "you've had so many PTSD events so close together you never had time to heal from one before you got hit with another one" (deaths, starts/losses of many jobs, major move, marriages-2, divorces-2, accidents/injuries, illness/surgeries, menopause, family stuff, etc) over the course of about 30 years. Not to mention the pain and hurt from childhood that came up. But it was a rheumatologist that finally diagnosed me (via the neurologist) who after examining me for well over an hour, asked tons of questions and finally said "Darling, you have RAGING Fibromyalgia!" The sad thing was, I was ALREADY taking pain killers, neurontins and muscle relaxers by the time I saw the Rheumatologist and was STILL in horrible all-over body pain. She adjusted my drugs (I take a lot for other issues as well) and along with my PC put together a "cocktail" that works well for me daily. NextAdventure, you're right that meditation, prayer, yoga, etc can be helpful, especially for relieving stress, (and to keep from choking people to death), but I'll still continue to take my anti-anxiety meds, neurontins and painkillers as necessary, NOT overdo my physical activity, and take my other prescriptions as well due to other medical conditions that demand I do if I want to live, sleep and function normally (for a Fibro patient, that is!) As well as avoid stressful situations when possible AND keep my hormones in balance! Thank you so much for all the good information. Now back to my easy chair....

Am I the only one that is holistic here? I've had multiple doctors tell me that the can't help me, so I have lost all faith in them as of now.

Does anyone do MTHFR testing? It plays a role in many things.

Has anyone else looked into other non traditional explanations for their illness?

I've been trying to do mind over body method combined with non-perscription methods first, but I still find I need my painkillers when it gets intolerable.

I think you need to find what works for you because there's no one perfect solution. If there was we wouldn't be here.