Understanding Fibromyalgia by Dr. Steve
Having recovered from fibromyalgia, I know this condition all too well. It was 1985 when a stressful situation put me in this world called fibromyalgia. I hurt all over, I was depressed, I had no energy, and I couldn’t think well. My brain was in a fog. I was able to recover from fibromyalgia, but it wasn’t until recently I fully understood what happened to me and why.
I had some genetic testing done for the MTHFR anomaly (see the MTHFR mindmap) and found out I had one of the worst combinations 677/1298. The numbers refer to the location on the gene where the anomaly occurs, but I am getting a little ahead of myself, so let me first talk about MTHFR enzyme and what it does. MTHFR stands for methylene tetrahydrofolate reductase, this enzyme ‘s job is convert regular vitamin B12 into the active form called methyl B12. Methyl B12 is a primary ingredient on the methylation pathway that makes gluatathione (more about glutathione later, but the lack of glutathione is the primary reason fibromyalgia hurts so much). My MTHFR pathway was functioning around 7 to 10 percent of normal, which means the amount of glutathione my body was producing was not adequate to handle the stress.
If you want to understand fibromyalgia, you first need to know about glutathione, because people with fibro don’t make enough glutathione. Glutathione is the body’s primary anti-oxidant and detoxifier. If there is not enough glutathione then the body is easily inflamed and is unable to clear toxins efficiently. One of the keys to recovering from fibromyalgia is repairing this pathway. There is nothing we can do about the genetics, but we can provide our bodies with extra methyl B12 and glutathione. We essentially bypass the enzyme and provide glutathione and methyl B12 by supplementation or shots. This process of bypassing a genetic enzyme defect with nutrition is what is called a ” genetic bypass”.
The underlying medical problems responsible for the syndrome called fibromyalgia have usually been there for awhile before the pain syndrome starts. If the low glutathione is a genetic issue then why don’t we have fibromyalgia earlier in our lives? The answer is our bodies are able to cope with a certain amount of stress, and toxicity, but there comes a point where the defense system is just overwhelmed. In many cases fibromyalgia is triggered by a stressful event, the straw that broke the camel’s back, when this happens some think a positive inflammatory feedback loop is created perpetuating the fibromyalgia long after the stress is gone. In my case fibromyalgia was triggered by a stressful event.
No discussion of fibromyalgia would be complete without talking about IBS, irritable bowel syndrome, as the two conditions associated with each other. Both IBS and fibromyalgia have a genetic component. One study found in 49% of first degree relatives of people with IBS also have IBS. What has IBS got to do with fibro, plenty, since IBS is a huge source of inflammation and the last thing someone with fibro needs is more inflammation.
There can be other sources of inflammation such as unresolved emotional conflicts, chronic viral or bacterial infections and if found these too need to be addressed. However, there does not need to be complete treatment of each of these conditions for improvement or relief from the symptoms of fibromyalgia. What does need to occur is the positive resources particularly glutathione levels need to adequate to handle the load.
When you understand the underlying causes of fibromyalgia, the treatment becomes clear. You ameliorate or correct the causes. In my case this what it took to get rid of my fibromyalgia. This same regime may not work for everyone. It is also important to realize the improvement come gradually over time.
My fibromyalgia treatment regime.
- Improved methylation with L-methyl folate (Deplin), methyl B12 in the form of subcutaneous shots and sublingal lozenges. This increases glutathione levels.
- Glutathione IV 3,000 mg weekly.
- Chelation therapy to remove heavy metals.
- Nutritional support: malic acid (helps the Kreb’s cylce produce more energy), zinc, and magnesium.
- Greens First (a greens drink) stabilized my GI track and got rid of my IBS.
- Detoxification: various methods including IR sauna, detox massage, homeopathic and supplement regime.
- Treat allergies with LDA (low dose antigens)
- Reduce stress as much as possible.
I think this program will work for most people with fibromyalgia. Getting the glutathione to normal levels is a key step. Glutathione levels can be measured by specialty labs. Another key was knowing my MTHFR status. MTHFR testing used to be quite expensive over $400, but is now available for about $150.00. 23andme.com offers even more extensive genetic testing at a very affordable price.
Dr. Steve
