FIBROMYALGIA NO MORE! MY STORY

Recovery Is Real!

What is it like to have fibromyalgia? Millions of people could give countless stories of their struggles with this often Debilitating disorder. However, few people can give positive Accounts of the results of their recovery. My story, I feel ultimately does just that. As you read this account, please keep in mind that if you suffer from fibromyalgia, you needn't suffer any longer.

My name is Denise Hale a.k.a. Dee. I am 48 years old and married to a wonderful man named Phil. We have been married almost 27 years and have three children, Ryan 23, Tim 21, and Danielle 8 years old.

The Long Haul

I have had fibromyalgia for 29 years. My symptoms began long before doctors knew what fibromyalgia was. That doesn't negate the symptoms, they still existed. In 1974 shortly after entering nursing school, I was required to have much dental work done. At that time, I had to have several silver fillings placed in my teeth (a.k.a. amalgam fillings). Little did I know just how profoundly those 'little fillings' would affect my life! More on that later. Within a year, I began to experience chronic recurrent pain and muscle spasms in my head, neck, between my shoulder blades, and in my lower back and legs. To make matters worse, I suffered from chronic persistent sinus drainage, TMJ problems and chronic fatigue syndrome, a problem potentiated by a lack of sleep and stress due to the rigors of nursing school. Throughout my 3 years of school, I received massage therapy, ultrasound treatments and exercised by riding a bicycle everywhere I went. Nothing relieved the pain, only lessened it at times. "My muscles are at war with my body," I used to say. No one knew what was wrong with me. Tests for arthritis always came back negative despite my strong family history. Over the years, these nagging persistent aches continued, with ever increasing limited mobility. When the weather changed drastically, I knew it, because the way that I felt changed. I often wondered what the elderly folks meant when they said "the weathers changin', I can feel it in my body." I now know what they meant.
Exercise is truly the best thing for fibromyalgia, but it is no fun when you feel as if you've been hit by a 'Mack truck' a day later. I have found that water aerobics seems to be the least stressful form of exercise for fibromyalgia as well as for people with arthritis. It seems to work best on the muscles and the connective tissues.

The Journey Down The Wrong Road

On April 8, 2002, I had a root canal procedure performed on my right upper molar. Within one month, I began to have severe pain in my right hip and in both legs and feet. This type of pain was different from anything I had ever experienced before. It became difficult to go up and down stairs. The pain persisted throughout The day and night. At that time, there didn't seem to me to be a correlation between a root canal and hip and leg pain.

A Chance Meeting?

On may 30, 2002, I met a mother of one of my daughter's classmates named Debbie. As we talked, I informed her that I had fibromyalgia. Little did I know that my journey to wellness was about to begin. Debbie suggested that I read two very important books. The first one was titled 'it's all in your head - the truth about amalgams' and the second book 'uninformed consent - The root canal cover-up'. She told me about a holistic health care practitioner, master herbalist and dr. Of iridology in San Diego, California who is a well known fibromyalgia specialist who could help me. "people from all over the world go to San Diego to see him, not just for fibromyalgia, but for many health problems' she said. Well, I thought, I’ve been down so many 'rabbit trails' over the years, one more won't hurt!  His name is dr. Keith Barton and Debbie encouraged me to call him and talk with him. Why waste his time I thought and of course, it seemed easier to see a holistic health care practitioner/chiropractor closer to home. This soon proved to be another waste of time and money. Finally, after reading the previously mentioned books, I learned just how dangerous the mercury in my silver fillings had become to me. Mercury is poisonous and is known to be one of the most toxic substances known to man. 'Amalgam fillings have been in use since 1833. Each amalgam filling contains 52% mercury and for many years, they were believed to be one of the causes of many human ailments. However, it became the preferred treatment of choice for dental restorations due to its low cost and desirable and durable qualities.' (1)
Opinions vary from one end of the spectrum to the other.

Two Steps Closer

After calling and talking with dr. Barton, he asked that I give
Him a history of all illnesses, including childhood illnesses, current medications, past and present antibiotics taken and all dental work that I have had done in the past, along with any other pertinent family history. He requested that I send him a panorex x-ray of my teeth. Soon I began a program of herbs under Dr. Barton's close supervision. Every day he wanted to know how I felt on each of the herbs for approximately 2-3 weeks, until he was sure that my treatment plan was right for me. Because everyone has different needs, my treatment program was based according to my needs. After reviewing my history, it was determined that I most likely had four chronic ailments that contributed to my fibromyalgia symptoms: mercury and nickel toxicity (I also had a nickel crown and bridgework in my mouth), candidiasis (yeast overgrowth) and parasites. These conditions I later found out are fairly common in many people.

Change Is Good!!

As I began my treatment program, within months changes began to take place. Increased energy, weight loss of 17 pounds over 3 months, muscle aches began to diminish and 'fibro-fog' gave way to greater concentration levels. As hormone levels returned to normal, hot flashes went away. That is worth bundles to any woman going through menopause! My sugar cravings ceased as I began to educate myself more about the proper foods to eat. Abdominal bloating as well as irritable bowel syndrome went away as the parasite problem was resolved. Over the past nine months, I have seen 7-8 fatty lipomas disappear, and 2 rather large cysts are continually growing smaller after 20 years. These things, in and of themselves are very fascinating to me.

The Liver Cocktail - Nourishment For The Liver

Dr. Barton started me on a daily liver cocktail to nourish my liver. He refers to the liver as the "furnace filter" of the body. Everything filters through the liver. In essence, your liver is your lifeline. If your liver is not properly nourished, your body recycles the same old toxins, along with the ingestion of and addition of new environmental toxins. That gets old and so do we!! Through all my years of nursing, I’ve never known just how very important the liver really was. After drinking the liver cocktail for 6 months, my cholesterol readings went down from 197 to 160, triglycerides from 257 to 101, all well within normal limits. My hdl and ldl (good and bad cholesterol) were previously 'Out of wack" so to speak and are also normal now.
My husband did not get involved in the herbal treatment program right away, but he did drink the liver cocktail with me daily. His cholesterol had been elevated on and off for years. He has always been careful about his diet, but has not always been successful at keeping his cholesterol down. After 6 months on the liver cocktail recipe, his cholesterol is now normal. The liver cocktail recipe contains all natural vegetables, fruits and olive oil run through a juicer once a day. The recipe can be obtained from dr. Barton. (phone # later).

What About The Teeth?

Despite all efforts to help me, to be completely successful, my teeth had to be repaired. A dental revision was necessary. Dr. Barton works with numerous specialists in several fields of medicine as well as several herbal companies. Together, they are constantly striving to improve their methods of treatment. Some are dentists, holistic health care practitioners, medical doctors, chiropractors, chelation therapists and herbalists to name a few. Together, they comprise what I call “the holistic health care team", working toward a common goal, wellness for their patients.

The amazing results of dental revision

In November 2002, I went to san Diego to see dr. Barton. He referred me to one of many of his dental specialists and followed my course of treatment throughout the whole procedure. Following my dental revision, I saw one of his chelation specialists for a series of chelation treatments. The care I received was excellent. Chelation therapy removes a good amount of mercury and heavy metals from the body and aids in the healing process.
Mercury, nickel and other heavy metals attach to fatty tissue and become embedded in the muscles, as well as in major organs of the body. This can be a constant source of irritation to the body. It takes time to chelate heavy metals and toxins from the body, but over time it happens, with proper care.
the most amazing aspect of my dental revision came the same evening after the procedure. My right hip pain as well as the pain in both legs and feet went away within hours of the revision. It has not returned thank god!!

Nine Months Later

As of this writing, 9 months have passed since my dental revision.
Fifteen months since the start of my journey to health in may 2002.
For the first time in my life, my immune system is stronger than I can ever remember and I feel the best I have felt 8in years. Honestly, I cannot remember springtime without hay fever allergies. The pollen count was very high this year, or so I was told. Hayfever allergies did not affect me at all this year.
originally, dr. Barton informed me that I was an 'open-shut' case as he phrased it. For all the years I have suffered from this difficult disorder, 'open-shut case' seemed like a foreign language to me. Despites all of that, it does take time to remove all of the mercury and nickel from the body and there are no guarantees that we will be able to get rid of all of it. However, we can rid ourselves of a substantial amount of toxins, if done properly. Patience is key, coupled with family support.

Staying On The Trail

As I continue to adhere to my regiment of herbs, liver cocktail and proper eating practices, every day I see my symptoms diminishing. There is still much work to do, but a lot has been accomplished in a short amount of time. We live in a society where toxicity is all around us in many forms. It is virtually impossible to completely shield ourselves from environmental pollutants. But we can take steps to rid our bodies of these toxic pollutants on a daily basis if we remain diligent. Education is the key to understanding the healing process.

Glory To God

For years I had prayed and at times fasted, in hopes that god would heal 'my' fibromyalgia. God had other plans for me, I know that now. No longer will I embrace fibromyalgia as 'mine'. I believe in instantaneous healings as god can do all things, but in this instance, I might not have been able to help others had I been healed instantaneously. Healing often involves a process and that often involves others.
if you have fibromyalgia and have suffered from similar conditions and there are many symptoms, too many to mention, you really don't have to suffer any longer. You have to get to the point that you are sick and tired, of being sick and tired! There are those people out there who gain 'mileage' from being sick, i.e. they receive attention, pity, and an inordinate amount of help from others. In reality, they are in much need of help, but please understand that this can be the 'fibromyalgia syndrome emotional mentality'. Also, please do not misunderstand me, I don't mean to sound insensitive. I too have exhibited that emotional mentality at times. God bless the spouses & families of the fibromyalgia sufferer!

What's Next?

To get well you must be willing to do the necessary work, exercise patience and work hard at maintaining a positive mental attitude about recovery. There will be good days and bad days following the dental revision. However, as time progresses, there are more good days than bad days and it does get better. Many people have tried to 'go around the corner' so to speak, to obtain the same effect. I was one of them, I’m aware of how that works.
This can be dangerous if the people working with you are not familiar with the 'holistic team approach' I mentioned earlier, or if they are not familiar with the safe practice of amalgam removals. This can lead to mercury toxicity if not done properly.

Can You Identify With Me?

If you can identify with 'my story' and would like to know more, go to the library and get the books previously mentioned and read them. Research the dental/health connection through these books and determine for yourself that you can and will take charge of this disorder.

Then call dr. Keith Barton at (619) 303-9393  and begin your journey to wellness. My prayer is that many will also have their own success stories to tell. I thank god for Inspiring me to tell 'my story'. I look forward to hearing yours.

May god bless you and your families abundantly.

In His Service
Dee Hale


Bibliography
1) excerpt taken from:   Amalgam Toxicity: grand deception  by dr. Victor Penzer
Journal of the Massachusetts Dental Society