I live in Southern California, I just googled Fibromyalgia and not one advertisement came up. It seems no one is helping and everyone has forgotten or maybe just given up on these wonderful people. I am dedicated to changing all of that. Get with me and help me get the word out. Lets raise the awareness. Look what they did with AIDS, we have a lot more people suffering just as badly. We need to unit and make a stand for our cause. The problem is many of our people are so sick they can barely stand. So the rest of us need to make the difference.
It is time for us to be heard. It is time for the world to fund good research. We have so many good things happening out there and no one seems to care much.
It seem the majority of sufferers have given up on finding the answer and if they hear of anything just don’t believe it. Let ban together and make a difference.
Dr Whitcomb
Hi Bill
Many time meningeal compression can cause symptoms like this. Where do you live. I may be able to get you a free test to see if you can be helped.
Dr Whitcomb
You are right Lucy, tight muscles will increase problems in the upper neck, especially if they are causing meningeal compression. What area of the US do you live in?
Early in 2001 I had two Fibromyalgia patients enter my office, both had been disabled in the same auto accident 3 years previous and were taking the medical triad: pain pills, antidepressants, and sleeping pills, that often goes with Fibromyalgia. This, I thought, was a golden moment, as it gave me the chance to crosscheck so many things and hopefully find common denominators that could be the cause of their condition.
Having treated over 6,000 car accident victims in the past and understanding the neurological and physiological implications of trauma, gave me a great advantage. I thought to myself, if there was a neurological component, it would have to be upper neck (upper cervical) or brain (cerebral) in origin, because they both had total body pain. I found that both had severely displaced C-1 vertebrae in a position that is found in few of our patients. However, to make it worse this malpositioning was much more severe than what is normally seen. I immediately checked my other Fibromyalgia patients and found the same condition. Could this be the results of spinal cord compression (spinal Stenosis) or maybe a torgueing of the covering of the spinal cord (the meanings)? After reviewing many MRI’s and plain radiographs (X-rays) It seemed apparent that the Menengies was the culprit, and the torqueing, or compressing, was pulling on the nerves exiting the spinal cord (nerve roots) and causing them to fire pain signals to the brain. These involuntary signals being sent to the brain would also explain the inability to sleep, and as a Chiropractor, I already was fully aware of the emotional component involved with upper cervical (neck) problems. There it was, all at one time.
This was something our profession had for the most part overlooked and now I had a chance to see if my discovery was correct. Four years later I discovered a test for Fibromyalgia that hundreds of Doctors now report very effective. It lets us know it the patients will respond in most cases and how to treat. Doctors and myself have found that it relieved a significant portion of the patients symptoms at the time of testing, sometimes all of them.
Hundreds of Doctors now use this technique and growing rapidly.
Look at some of my other posts on WordPress to find out more about what causes this problem.
Dr Paul Whitcomb
Fibromyalgia Statistics
Our typical Fibromyalgia patient comes in sick and goes out well. For many this is after decades of suffering. Naturally, there are those who just do not respond to treatment, and fortunately they are few. We are happy these numbers are small, but we continue to study and test new procedures that may bring relief to everyone.
The answers given in the form below include many symptoms that may not have been caused by Fibromyalgia. Therefore, at the end of treatment the patient may still have symptoms from a knee that was injured years ago, which continues to cause pain but has nothing to do with Fibromyalgia. Naturally, this would not disappear with the treatment and would leave residual pain figures on the study. So as you look at the results, remember that some of the symptoms you are seeing are leftover old injuries and have a negative impact on the statistics. Even so, the overall results reveal a 73% drop in symptoms. In addition, the original symptoms are with medications and the end statistics are with little or no medications.
The figures in the following study were compiled from questionnaires, completed without help or persuasion from our staff, by patients who volunteered to be in this study. The “patient numbers” represent each patient participating in the study. “Total First Pain” represents how much pain the patient was experiencing upon arrival at our office. This was determined by asking the patient to rate their pain on a scale of 0-10, 0 being no pain and 10 being severe. The numbers were all added together to reach the numbers below. The “Total Last Stats” are a total of all of the pain ratings at the date of their last report.
An example form is shown below and the actual study totals are below that.
| Frequency | Intensity | ||
| Head | Headache | ||
| Whole head | |||
| Back of Head | |||
| Forehead | |||
| Temples | |||
| Migraine | |||
| “Heavy” Head | |||
| Memory Loss | |||
| Hearing Loss | |||
| Pain in Ears | |||
| Smell Loss | |||
| Taste Loss | |||
| Balance Loss | |||
| Eye Pain | |||
| Light Sensitivity | |||
| Fainting | |||
| Lightheaded | |||
| Dizziness | |||
| Ear Ringing | |||
| Ears Buzzing | |||
| Neck | Neck Pain | ||
| Movement Pain | |||
| Feels Out | |||
| Neck Stiff | |||
| Muscle Spasm | |||
| Neck Grinds | |||
| Grating | |||
| Popping | |||
| Arthritis | |||
| Pinched Nerve | |||
| Shoulders/ Arms | Right Shoulder Pain | ||
| Left Shoulder Pain | |||
| Both Shoulder Pain | |||
| Across Shoulder Pain | |||
| Arthritis Shoulder Pain | |||
| Arthritis Right Shoulder | |||
| Arthritis Left Shoulder | |||
| Arthritis Both Shoulders | |||
| Cannot Lift Arm | |||
| Above shoulder Level | |||
| Over Head | |||
| Nerve Pain Right Shoulder | |||
| Nerve Pain Left Shoulder | |||
| Nerve Pain Both Shoulders | |||
| Shoulder Spasm | |||
| Tense in Shoulder | |||
| Pain Up arm (right) | |||
| Pain Up arm (left) | |||
| Pain Up arm (both) | |||
| Pain Right Forearm | |||
| Pain Left Forearm | |||
| Pain Both Forearms | |||
| Pains Right Hand Fingers | |||
| Pains Left Hand Fingers | |||
| Pain Both Hand Fingers | |||
| Hands Cold | |||
| Swelling Right Hand | |||
| Swelling Left Hand | |||
| Swelling Both Hands | |||
| Pain Right Wrist | |||
| Pain Left Wrist | |||
| Pain Both Wrists | |||
| Pain Right Hand | |||
| Pain Left Hand | |||
| Pain Both Hands | |||
| Pain Right Hand Fingers | |||
| Pain Left Hand Fingers | |||
| Pain Both Hand Fingers | |||
| Pain Right Arm | |||
| Pain Left Arm | |||
| Pain Both Arms | |||
| Arthritis Right Hand Fingers | |||
| Arthritis Left Hand Fingers | |||
| Arthritis All Fingers | |||
| Weak Grip Right Hand | |||
| Weak Grip Left Hand | |||
| Weak Grip Both Hands | |||
| Mid Back/ Chest | Mid Back Pain | ||
| Pain Between Shoulder Blades | |||
| Spasms Mid Back | |||
| Chest Pain | |||
| Shortness of Breath | |||
| Pain in Right Ribs | |||
| Pain in Left Ribs | |||
| Pain in Ribs ( both sides ) | |||
| Nervous Stomach | |||
| Low Back | Low Back Pain | ||
| When working | |||
| When Lifting | |||
| When Stooping | |||
| When Standing | |||
| When Sitting | |||
| When Bending | |||
| When Coughing | |||
| When Lying down | |||
| Low Back Out | |||
| Muscle Spasms | |||
| Arthritis | |||
| Abdomen | Nausea | ||
| Gas | |||
| Constipation | |||
| Diarrhea | |||
| Menstrual Pain | |||
| Cramping | |||
| Irregularity | |||
| Hip / Legs / Feet | Pain Right Buttocks | ||
| Pain Left Buttocks | |||
| Pain Both Buttocks | |||
| Pain Right Hip | |||
| Pain Left Hip | |||
| Pain Both Hips | |||
| Pain Right Thigh | |||
| Pain Left Thigh | |||
| Pain Both Thighs | |||
| Pain Right Leg | |||
| Pain Left Leg | |||
| Pain Both Legs | |||
| Pain Right Ankle | |||
| Pain Left Ankle | |||
| Pain Both Ankles | |||
| Pain Right Foot | |||
| Pain Left Foot | |||
| Pain Both Feet | |||
| Cramps Right Leg | |||
| Cramps Left Leg | |||
| Cramps Both Legs | |||
| Numb Right Leg | |||
| Numb Left Leg | |||
| Numb Both Legs | |||
| Numb Right Foot | |||
| Numb Left Foot | |||
| Numb Both Feet | |||
| Numb toes ( right foot) | |||
| Numb toes (left foot) | |||
| Numb toes (both feet) | |||
| Cold Right Foot | |||
| Cold Left Foot | |||
| Cold Both Feet | |||
| Cramps Right Foot | |||
| Cramps Left Foot | |||
| Cramps Both Feet | |||
| Swollen Right Ankle | |||
| Swollen Left Ankle | |||
| Swollen Both Ankles | |||
| Swollen Right Foot | |||
| Swollen Left Foot | |||
| Swollen Both Feet | |||
| Pain in Toes (right foot) | |||
| Pain in Toes (left foot) | |||
| Pain in Toes (both feet) | |||
| General | |||
| Fatigued | |||
| Teeth Grinding | |||
| Run Down | |||
| Insomnia | |||
| Restless Legs | |||
| Abnormal Itch | |||
| Wakeup Exhausted | |||
| Irritable bowels | |||
| Asthma or Hay fever | |||
| Emotional | Chronic Fatigue | ||
| Suicidal Feelings | |||
| Suicidal Plans | |||
| Suicidal Attempts | |||
| Nervousness | |||
| Depressed | |||
| Irritable | |||
| Anxiety |
Result Totals on Fifteen Patients Surveyed
| Patient # | ||
| 1 | 593 | 61 |
| 2 | 622 | 460 |
| 3 | 468 | 178 |
| 4 | 298 | 101 |
| 5 | 367 | 48 |
| 6 | 371 | 69 |
| 7 | 567 | 75 |
| 8 | 198 | 119 |
| 9 | 383 | 22 |
| 10 | 524 | 115 |
| 11 | 481 | 28 |
| 12 | 367 | 131 |
| 13 | 865 | 236 |
| 14 | 248 | 8 |
| 15 | 892 | 313 |
| Totals | 7244 | 1964 |
| 73% improvement |
Study with 70 Patients 10-8-08
The following study was used with the above criteria and only the results have been published in the interest of brevity. There were a few additions in symptoms added.
Again, these numbers include all problems and pain the patients had at the time of their initial intake including non-Fibromyalgia symptoms and the fact that most patients were on narcotics at the time of their intake. Further at the time of their release the patients were off of most of their medications and still had the following results again we included the non-Fibromyalgia symptoms in the results, which made our results lower.
Number of patients in the study: 70
Average decrease in the Frequency of Symptoms
71.69%
Average decrease in the intensity of Symptoms
70.78%
The next study was done to see the impact surgery was having on Fibromyalgia.
Number of people in the study 74
The number of patients who had surgery with the intent of helping their symptoms:
Fifty-two patients had surgery, that’s 70.27% of the seventy-four people in the study having surgery.
Twenty-nine people who had surgery had their Fibromyalgia get worse, that’s 65.38% of the fifty-two people who had surgery got worse.
Two patients who had surgery had their Fibromyalgia get better, that’s 3.85% of the people who had surgery.
Three patients had multiple surgeries and got better after one and worse after another. This represents 5.77% of the people who had surgery.
74 Fibromyalgia patients
52 Surgeries
29 Worse
2 Better
3 Mixed results
Of the Fibromyalgia patients having surgery, 65.38% had their Fibromyalgia symptoms get worse.
Mental Illness
Our focus is on Meningeal Compression and Fibromyalgia, not on mental illness per se. But anyone who works in this area will understand how the mind is affected. As we meet this in our practice, and have consulted with specialists in this field, we see once again the close relationship between the mind and the body. Whatever affects the body will inevitably affect the mind—and vice versa. There are the factors of exhaustion, prolonged pain, and trying to meet the frustrations of cognitive failures and lack of concentration, along with whatever other problems are involved. Naturally there will be emotional and logical thinking problems. In addition there is the issue of medications and their particular effects. There’s no doubt in our minds that Meningeal Compression and Fibromyalgia can bring about mental illness.
We have seen patients who have suffered long term Fibromyalgia. Often they have had Fibromyalgia as children and some received shock treatments, one patient, twenty four times and later another set of chemical shock treatments.
We had another patient who spent fifty years institutionalized on and off with symptoms of Fibromyalgia. We also treated two patients, who at the time they presented, could have been institutionalized and are doing well now.
We tell you this in case it is you or a loved one who is suffering like this, it doesn’t have to mean it is the patient loosing their mind it could easily be a nervous system that is running unchecked because of Meningeal Compression and Fibromyalgia. If Meningeal Compression and Fibromyalgia are bad enough anyone can be like this.
Meningeal Compression and Fibromyalgia in Children
A child sees whatever is going on in life as normal. We have seen many children with Fibromyalgia, and one common denominator is this: they think what they feel is normal until it gets so bad it becomes overwhelming. Most parents will think their kid is just whining or is “just a baby”. Children will not tell you all of their problems unless you ask the right questions; they don’t always know what is abnormal. But consistently, when we ask the correct questions of children with Meningeal Compression or Fibromyalgia, they will shock their parents with answers that reveal just what the child is going through.
Consider that a child with a significant case of Meningeal Compression or Fibromyalgia doesn’t have energy, so he isn’t as active as the other children. His mind is foggy and forgetful so he can’t compete with the other kids in school unless he is extremely bright or has a lighter case. He is emotional, so he is seen as moody. He can’t sleep well, so he gets in trouble for not going to sleep. He is always tired so he is labeled as lazy. He will usually have stomach problems and be charged with faking to avoid school or chores. And he will usually not be good at or even have a desire to compete in sports. This child might take refuge in food or drugs, or maybe end up with troubled kids as friends.
Usually children respond very quickly to normal treatment for back problems, but with Fibromyalgia they seem to take longer. It is also difficult to keep children down when they start to feel better after being ill, and flare-ups will inevitably follow their irrepressible enthusiasm about feeling good again.
Light Case of Meningeal Compression and Fibromyalgia
The difference between a mild and a severe case of Meningeal Compression and Fibromyalgia is fractional to us as medical practitioners—just a few millimeters of movement in the neck. But to the person who owns that neck it can be life changing. Often the light case can be more devastating than a severe case. The severe case is very obvious and will be attended to, but a light case is often missed completely.
Let’s look at the light case sufferers. They will sleep poorly, often suffer from idiopathic depression (depression of unknown origin), be irritable for no reason, sometimes antisocial, may have light stomach problems, and may be jumpy. These people may be the ones who end up in therapy trying to find out why they feel so bad inside. Perhaps they will turn to drinking to feel better temporarily. How will this affect their lives, their marriages, their promotions, or their friendships?
Often they end up on antidepressants and sleeping pills, and develop poor self-esteem. If you look around, you probably know a few of these people. Maybe they are relatives or work acquaintances. They may not have the outgoing friendly personality of most people. You will notice them because they are often loners. One day they bite your head off and the next they are friendly.
These people are much less likely to get help, because neither they nor their doctor will make the diagnosis of Fibromyalgia. They will not have the typical pain patterns of FMS and are apt to be sent for counseling, or medicated, and regarded as just another person who doesn’t deal well with life. Light case sufferers are very likely to go into a full-blown case of FMS following trauma such as surgery, or even a minor auto accident. Yet they respond very well to treatment, and in less time than the more severe cases.
Like wise the light case of RSD will report with a surgery that didn’t work and they still have pain after the third or more surgeries, or maybe just one, but they have on going pain that didn’t resolve after a surgery that was done properly. These patients are suffering from a cycling pain that is brought on by Meningeal Compression caused by the surgery and the pain is relieved at the time of the Meningeal Relief Test. It is easy to see if these patients are truly Meningeal Compression patients, as they respond to the test.
The Effects of Meningeal Compression and Fibromyalgia on Relationships
The sum effect of all of the problems of Meningeal Compression and Fibromyalgia can leave these sick individuals almost intolerable to live or work with. Yet they are intolerable to themselves also, and need lots of understanding, love, and support. They will probably need it more than at any other time in their lives, because they will probably never be in such a difficult situation again. Many of them feel that even death can seem preferable to living with Fibromyalgia.
Marriage is especially difficult. The spouse is afraid, can’t be touched because of skin sensitivity, is depressed, in pain, and very tired. He or she may yell, be unreasonable, and in more severe cases lose the ability to communicate on a rational basis. This is because the nervous system is on overload and these people can’t function as normal individuals no matter how hard they try. In milder cases of FMS your spouse or co-worker may just appear mean, and may not even have the satisfaction of a correct diagnosis. But these symptoms usually resolve early in treatment.
To put this in perspective, imagine having pain impulses from all over the body being sent to the brain, much as when a heroin addict is withdrawing from heroin. (This may vary from person to person in intensity.) In addition to this, the sympathetic nervous system is being stimulated constantly, causing one to feel as we might feel when walking into a dark home, thinking we’re alone, and someone grabs us from behind. This sensation often continues night and day without relief in the Fibromyalgia patient.
This constant stimulation of the sympathetic nervous system also causes a shutdown of the intestinal system, which in turn causes irritable bowel syndrome. The adrenal glands, constantly producing adrenaline, become damaged and quit functioning properly. The emotional centers become affected, causing depression ranging from mild to overwhelming. Many patients describe feeling waves of depression.
Moreover, the stimulation to the nerve roots sends signals to the muscles to contract, causing constant muscle spasms. These can be located in the neck and shoulders, the low back, and sometimes the entire body all at once. Spastic-type paralysis can occur in rare cases, especially upon arising, sometimes causing inability to walk due to pain in the hips and loss of function in the legs.
Sexual relations are often too painful or unfulfilling; desire may be decreased or non-existent. Testosterone levels in most are decreased greatly. This is a very ill person. How much fun are you when you have a bad case of the flu? We have seen that FMS is much worse than that, and we haven’t even mentioned the effects of drug medication. Those who are close to these sufferers will want to be sensitive to their condition and not expect the impossible of them.
All of these factors combine to place stress on relationships at home, in the workplace, and in all social situations. It requires lots of understanding and patience on both sides.
Depression and Post-concussion Syndrome
Under the heading of depression we include depression syndrome, depression suicide, clinical depression, mental depression, stress depression, depression and fatigue, teenage depression, and bipolar depression.
This is a large subject involving many causes, such as brain injury, mistakes from the past, unfulfilled life—wanting more from life than you have—lack of thankfulness, chemical imbalances, and many others. However, the one we would like to consider here is depression in relation to Meningeal Compression and Fibromyalgia.
Chiropractors have known for almost 100 years that depression and upper cervical problems go hand in hand. We have also known that auto accidents and depression go hand in hand. Assuming that the brain either doesn’t heal or takes some period of time to heal, this has been explained as Post-concussion Syndrome, leaving the victim with symptoms like these:
Symptomatology of Post-concussion Syndrome
Cognitive trouble
Fatigue
Memory loss
Emotional Issues
Depression
Headache
Post-traumatic Migraine
Sleep Disturbance
Neurological disturbances
Seizure
Vestibular and Cranial Nerve Symptoms
If you examine this carefully it looks very much like Fibromyalgia. This is not to say we don’t believe that Post-concussion Syndrome exists. What we are saying is that Post-concussion Syndrome has often been the diagnosis before seriously considering MC. We now believe that it was often a misdiagnosis, when we’re really dealing with MC. These cases need re-evaluation.
With this new insight into the connection between head and neck injury and Fibromyalgia/MC depression, we have a fresh premise from which to make a differential diagnosis between FMS/MC depression and Post-concussion Syndrome depression. This can be done with our test for Meningeal Compression and Fibromyalgia.
However, even with this information, the etiology of Fibromyalgia depression is still elusive. We understand that the combination of sleep deprivation, fatigue, and the neurological aspects could explain the entire basis of depression, but there seems to be more involved. We have shown that the depression leaves when we remove the pressure from the Meninges; but we also suspect that this pulling and pressure on the Meninges is somehow causing depression independently of the other factors. We believe this because the depression usually leaves during our Meningeal Release Test.
We have watched over and over again the depression of Fibromyalgia patients subsiding within one to two months, with almost predictive regularity. This is accomplished solely with repositioning of the spinal cord through the neck.
We once treated a paranoid schizophrenic with severe upper cervical problems. In one month he said he wanted to stop his meds and return to work at Rockwell International. With his treating doctor’s help he succeeded, went through one month of testing, and was returned to work without further symptoms. This patient had been institutionalized twice and was being evaluated for a third institutionalization when we first saw him. He had a full recovery.
Dr Paul Whitcomb DC 