Fibromyalgia: Meds and Supplements
© Fibromyalgia Friends' Support Group
Loni:
Someone asked what we take for fibromyalgia. Actually, I don't take anything for fibromyalgia per se, but do take a multi-vitamin without iron in it. I have found that if I stop taking the vitamins for a few days, my leg cramps seem to return with a vengeance. To help combat the leg cramps, I also drink orange juice every day, and when available, also eat a banana; these two things add more potassium, which may be a contributing factor to the elimination of leg cramps. Drinking quinine water doesn't seem to help me at all, as Carol once suggested. Apparently, there isn't enough quinine in it to help me. It just makes good sense to me to at least take a multi-vitamin daily.
One thing that I have found to help greatly with the fibromyalgia is the elimination of aspartame (found in many sugar-free items) and MSG. Since I have eliminated these two items from my consumption of food, the fibro has undergone a significant change for me. Sometimes, it is impossible to avoid MSG, so I make sure that it is pretty far down the ingredient list before purchasing said food item. The change? I feel better overall, and with much less pain.
Mare:
I've just started taking Chrondriton w/ MSM and a Vitamin Stress pill and I feel they are helping me. I know that the vitamin pill is giving me a bit more pep which is a bonus.
Don:
Right now I take store brand multivitamins, a B-Complex plus C, a Calcium/Magnesium/Zinc, Fish Oil (one form of Omega 3 Fatty Acids) and Flax Seed Oil (another form of Omega 3 Fatty Acids).
Two examples of why we need it:
St. John's Wort...When it first got all the hoopla it was thought to be a wonder and then it began to cause more trouble than it alleviated. Now, they have come to find out, ten percent of what they used to sell as a dose is actually safe and effective for many levels of depression and anxiety.
Ginseng...There are more varieties and potencies than anyone other than the most ardent researchers know about. In the US, even non-ginseng products that have been referred to as ginseng (Indian Ginseng isn't ginseng at all) anywhere and at any time can be sold as such.
Some ginsengs are weak poisons that are fantastic at rebuilding the immune system. Some are powerful stimulants that can cause strokes if used improperly. Some are no more than flavoring!
As with anything we take on our own, the problem with MSM is knowing how much to
