On my most recent birthday my husband gave me a beautiful, lush potted plant that I simply adored. A week later I took off for a three-week trip to Africa, leaving my daughter to care for my new plant while I was away. Imagine my dismay when I returned home and found a mass of […]
Category: Physical health & diseases
In the Lyme Light
Lyme disease is the fastest-growing infectious disease in the United States, and 2012 is predicted to hold the highest risk ever for contracting it. Like most people, Vibrant Life editor Heather Quintana didn’t think she was at risk. But after several years of seizures, night sweats, and severe fatigue, a blood test traced all her […]
Foods That Fight Cancer
If you want to fill your grocery cart with foods that will help keep cancer far from home, start with these powerful foods: Colorful Fruits & Vegetables According to the recent World Cancer Research Fund report, fruits and vegetables are especially protective against cancer of the lung, mouth, esophagus, and stomach. A Swedish study, for […]
How to Show Support for Someone Who Has Cancer
Receiving a cancer diagnosis is horrifying news that deeply affects patients and their loved ones. Offering support is crucial, yet we may feel we don’t know the “right” thing to say or do. Still, we can’t let feelings of discomfort stop us from coming alongside our loved one at a time of great need. Cindy […]
Six Ways to Relieve Pain Naturally
Antidepressants, muscle relaxers, analgesics, and antianxiety medications—nearly a dozen prescriptions were supposed to manage Myrna Scott’s fibromyalgia symptoms. But instead of helping her feel better, the side effects—such as a severely upset stomach and a general feeling of being “out of it”—made her feel even worse. So she decided to do something about it. She […]
Simple Strategies for Outmaneuvering Motion Sickness
You’re sitting in the passenger seat of your family’s SUV, watching trees rush past in a blur. Your head spins, your stomach lurches, and a warm, clammy feeling comes over you. No, you’re not in love. You’re experiencing motion sickness. Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day are among the busiest travel periods of the year. […]
Getting Smart About Cancer
Really stop to think about your diet. How many servings of fruits and vegetables did you honestly have yesterday? In response to that question, many people sigh and think, I need more veggies. It’s just too inconvenient to eat healthfully! Research agrees with that inner voice telling you to eat more veggies. In fact, for […]
Shyness: More Than a Feeling
Wallflower. “The word describes me perfectly, as I’m such a loner,” Shannon, age 33, said. “I sit home alone every weekend, waiting for a friend to call. Then when the phone does ring, I don’t answer it. My heart starts to pound, and my face turns warm and red. I’m so afraid it’s someone I don’t know well, and I won’t know what to say. Lately I can count my friends on one hand, and even these friends are not very close.”
Forever Young
In a recent U.S. News and World Report article titled “10 Health Habits That Will Help You Live to 100,” sandwiched between suggestions to floss your teeth and stay connected with your friends, was a piece of surprising advice: “Live like a Seventh-day Adventist.”
Not long before that article was published, the national best-selling book The Blue Zonesrecognized Loma Linda, California, as one of the world’s longevity “hot spots” because of its high concentration of Seventh-day Adventists.
Natural Help for Fibromyalgia
We all get tired. Most of us have experienced sadness or mild depression at times. And who doesn’t feel achy and stiff every now and then, especially after a weekend of sports or yard work? But for those with fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS), these debilitating symptoms occur daily for months to years on end, and are relentless, causing poor quality of life.
What is Fibromyalgia Syndrome?
Fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) is a complex rheumatic-type disorder characterized by widespread pain, decreased pain threshold, and incapacitating fatigue. These symptoms affect millions of Americans, mostly women ages 25 to 60. In fact, women are 10 times more likely to get this disease than men. While there is no specific laboratory test or abnormal X-ray finding to diagnose fibromyalgia, the symptoms of the disease can be successfully treated once a proper diagnosis is made by a physician.
Years ago it became apparent to doctors that patients (usually women) who told of having muscle pain, achiness, fatigue, disordered sleep, anxiety, and depression were harboring a distinct syndrome, or collection of symptoms, that make a disease. Yet in test after test the results were always normal. Even in recent years doctors simply sent these patients home.
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