It's almost Flu Season!

It seems like just about everybody has come into contact with those winter illnesses such as the flu, so we’d thought it’d be a good idea to post some of our favorite home and all natural remedies to get your family on the road to feeling better faster!

1. At first-site of flu-like symptoms, come to the office and get some Congaplex. Congaplex is a natural immune booster, that has fantastic natural properties that stimulate the immune system and reduce inflammation.  Better yet, it doesn't have the side effects that flu medication often presents.

2. For a sore throat, make an old fashioned Lemon Honey Drink. Heat 1-cup water, add 1-Tbsp lemon juice, and 1&1/2-Tbsp honey

3. For an earache, find garlic oil capsules at your local store and pour just a few drops in the ear. Works every time to relieve the ache! To help the earache go away completely- come get your ear adjusted!

4. Remember B.R.A.T. for diarrhea. It stands for- Bananas, Rice, Applesauce, Toast. The combination will get you feeling more regular in no time.

5. Black licorice will cure constipation nine times out of ten! Who knew, right?!

6. For a headache, try these three things first: Drink a large class of water. Rub head/neck making sure to work out the knots. Find the pressure point between your thumb and pointer finger and press.

7. For teething kiddos, take a washcloth, wet the center with a little water, spread on a tablespoon of applesauce, roll it up, then freeze it. Babies love this because it’s sweet, chewy, & cold so it numbs their gums!

8. For an overall immune system booster, chiropractic works! We adjust your spine so that your nervous system can help other systems in your body (like immune system) work better and more efficiently, especially when it comes to the flu!

Can chiropractic help Fibromyalgia?

A better question might be: "Can ANYTHING help fibromyalgia?"

You know, everyone has aches and pains at some point. Everyone gets a little sore. Everyone has trouble sleeping sometimes. But what if these aches and pains ARE your life?

People who suffer from fibromyalgia don't need to be told that it's hard to find relief from the constant joint and muscle pain. There are no solid go-to therapies that are guaranteed to help fibromyalgia patients, and the research literature is iffy at best for just about everything. This means that fibromyalgia is a challenge to treat and to live with.

What is Fibromyalgia?

Chronic and persistent joint pain is officially called Fibromyalgia.  The diagnosis of fibromyalgia is made by a doctor after you have had demonstrated at least three months of demonstrable pain at 11 specific points or joints, and you have no other identifiable disease that could  cause the condition. In other words, the term "fibromyalgia" describes chronic pain that has an unknown cause.

The first and most important task for any doctor is to obtain the correct diagnosis. After all, if a doctor does not know what is wrong, how can he help to fix it? The problem with fibromyalgia is that, essentially, science still does not know what causes it. Some theories have been advanced, such as autoimmune disease or chronic inflammation, but nothing is certain.

We do know that fibromyalgia is sometimes associated with some types of arthritis, but not always. We do know that fibromyalgia usually is diagnosed in women over men, but not always (a 7-to-1 margin). We do know that fibromyalgia usually occurs during mid-life (ages 20 to 50), but not always.

The uncertainty surrounding the cause (or causes) of fibromyalgia makes it a difficult condition to treat. In fact, some women are told that "it's all in your head" because no definitive cause can be found. But fibromyalgia is a very real condition with very real consequences: headaches; stiffness; a loss of mental acuity;  psychological distress from chronic pain; and working adults with fibromyalgia miss 17 days of work per year compared to the average worker, who misses only 6.

How We Can Help Your Fibromyalgia

Your fibromyalgia is unlikely to be exactly the same as anyone else's fibromyalgia. That means personalized, empathetic, individualized health care is what you need. Personal care is especially important since no particular therapy has been proven more effective than any other therapy for the treatment of fibromyalgia. This means that a therapy that may work wonders for one person may not help another. Fibromyalgia demands flexibility in treatment.

Believe it or not, the best research-supported therapy for fibromyalgia relief is exercise! Although exercise may sound painful at first for a person with sore muscles and joints, clinical studies of low-impact exercise have been shown to help nearly a third of fibromyalgia patients.

Since proper motion seems to be essential in the joints of fibromyalgia patients (and, indeed, with everybody), the low-force chiropractic adjustment is an excellent way to restore proper motion to spinal and  extremity joints. The Activator is the most popular low-force adjusting instrument in the world, and for good reason. The soft rubber tip provides as gentle a chiropractic experience as possible.

Dr. Rikki follows the latest research on fibromyalgia and therapies, nutrition, resistance training, and exercise. We are here to help you find the best path towards relief and health! Call us today at 816-229-4949. Don’t live a life of pain- find the relief you need with WholeLife Health.