Do You Have “Fibro Fog?”

The Problem:

Do you know someone who has fibromyalgia?  Have you ever noticed, or heard them complain about problems with their memory?  If so, they may have what has been called “fibro fog.” You see, in the left temporal lobe of the brain is the area responsible for memory, it is called the hippocampus.  In people with fibromyalgia, this area of the brain is not working normally.  In most cases, these people have high levels of cortisol (the stress hormone) in their blood.  Cortisol is released from the adrenal glands which are on top of your kidneys.  Cortisol is an essential hormone for life, but when it’s levels are high for long periods of time, (as often seen in fibromyalgia patients) it is TOXIC to the brain.  It causes neural degeneration, (wasting of the nervous tissue that makes up the brain) and as a result, you lose your ability to think and remember things.

So how do you lower cortisol levels and get the hippocampus working again?

The Solution:

To help improve memory and get the hippocampus working normally again, you need to take a neurological and metabolic approach.  Neurologically, you need to “rebuild” the brain using neurologically based therapy (NBT). NBT works, because of recent breakthroughs in the understanding of how the brain works, called neuroplasticity. We offer neurologically based therapy in our office, and have had great success with fibromyalgia and other types of chronic pain using these treatments.  Metabolically, we have to check blood sugar levels, adrenal function and thyroid function to make sure your chemistry is balanced.  Labs, and salivary panels may need to be ordered, and can be done through our clinic or your primary care physician.  We will analyze your lab results and determine if dietary, supplemental and lifestyle changes need to be made. Using this two-pronged approach, “fibro fog” and fibromyalgia can be treated with success.