Many physicians categorize Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS), also known as Chronic Fatigue Immune Dysfunction Syndrome (CFIDS), and Fibromyalgia Syndrome (FMS) in the same general category because they are debilitating illnesses with no known cause, specific diagnostic test, or universal treatment. They are, however, identified by a constellation of symptoms, of which most sufferers experience in varying degrees for at least a six month duration.

These conditions are often marked with fatigue that is not improved with bed rest. Other symptoms include insomnia/sleep disturbances, joint pain without the characteristic swelling of arthritis, muscle pain, headaches, sore throats, and tenderness of the lymph nodes. With CFS, as the name suggests, fatigue is usually the main symptom. Researchers note that those with CFS/CFIDS often exhibit "postexertional fatigue" in which they have an increase in symptoms after a modest amount of physical, and even sometimes mental, exertion.

As its name suggests, the hallmark of Fibromyalgia is muscle and connective tissue pain. "Fibro" refers to the fibrous connective tissue that surrounds and connects the muscle tissue to the rest of the skeleton. "Myo" means muscle and "algia" means pain. Fibromyalgia simply means connective tissue and muscle pain. In fact, one of the ways health care providers will use to help diagnose FMS is by finding a specific number of tender points in the connective tissue and muscles located in each of several, specific regions of the body.

In both conditions, the severity of symptoms varies from patient to patient and many often go through cycles of relapse and remission. Meaning, there are times when those with these conditions are able to maintain fairly active lifestyles without significant symptoms, followed by a period of relapse where symptoms increase and then wane again to complete the pattern. Patients often need to establish activity boundaries so that they do not overdo it on days they feel better, only to suffer the consequences in the following days. This is called a "push-crash" phenomena by clinicians who treat patients with CFS/FMS. Patients will "push" themselves on days they feel better followed by "crashing" for several days due to postexertional pain and fatigue.

In both cases, patients with CFS and FMS often have other symptoms in addition to the main ones previously listed. Because many of the common symptoms are also symptoms of other diseases, it is often hard for healthcare providers to diagnose these conditions. Along the same lines, there is no biomarker, or specific entity that shows up in the blood work of those with these conditions, and no specific diagnostic test such as an MRI, diagnostic ultrasound, etc. that allows healthcare practitioners to visualize CFS/FMS or clearly identify them. Many patients are often diagnosed with Lyme disease, Lupus, Multiple Sclerosis, and mononucleosis because CFS/ FMS often resemble those diseases and can occur in conjunction with them. It is also common for patients to have depression/mood issues due to the impact their condition has on their lives.

CFS and FMS are more common in women and can strike any racial, ethnic, socioeconomic group, at any age. Most healthcare providers agree that the most common way to diagnose CFS/FMS is to rule out other conditions through the absence of disease biomarkers or other specific findings indicative of other diseases, as well as completing a comprehensive physical examination and health history, looking for positive findings that point to other diseases. Therefore, these conditions are often a diagnosis of "exclusion" in which the healthcare provider cannot find other treatable causes of the patient's symptoms and will then defer to placing the patient in the CFS/FMS category. As such, many patients often feel there is no help for their "ambiguous" condition and go from treatment to treatment without relief. They are often given prescription drugs and over the counter medications to try to relieve the individual symptoms they are having. However, few drugs offer effective relief and often present unwanted side effects.

Jacob Teitelbaum, MD, is a board certified internist and medical director of the Fibromyalgia and Fatigue Centers. He is a bestselling author of multiple books on pain and fatigue, has been a consultant for Oprah and the Dr. Oz show, and is the leading author of landmark research on treatments for CFS and FMS (Journal of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, volume 8, number 2, 2001). Dr. Teitelbaum was also featured in the April 2002 Journal of the American Academy of Pain Management for his work with CFS/FMS. He is a proponent of finding the "driving force" behind the CFS/FMS symptoms and addressing them through natural measures whenever possible. His work is based on the premise that most CFS/FMS patients suffer from a condition that short circuits the body's energy system. Energy-making "powerplants" of the body's cells, called "mitochondria," tire and the hypothalamus in the brain that controls multiple systems throughout the body gets overwhelmed. When the hypothalamus gets rundown, it short circuits and subsequently adversely affects the adrenal glands, the thyroid, the immune system, etc. As such, the immune system gets rundown and the body is unable to fight infections such as viruses and candida (yeast), which further perpetuate the symptoms. This process "drives" the fatigue and pain symptoms. By addressing the person as a whole through a process that Dr. Teitelbaum calls the "SHINE Protocol," the driving force behind the CFS/FMS symptoms is addressed and the patient finds relief.

The SHINE Protocol involves doing a comprehensive exam, blood work and addressing the specific mix of driving forces for each person's individual needs. According to Dr. Teitelbaum, most CFS/FMS patients suffer from Sleep disturbances, Hormonal imbalances (thyroid, adrenal, etc.), Infections (viruses, candida, bacteria, etc.), Nutritional deficiencies, and have a need to find an appropriate amount and type of Exercise that is right for them.

Millennium Medical is a healthcare facility that combines functional medicine, traditional medicine, and alternative therapies. It is a unique clinic that treats the whole person, not just their symptoms. As with any chronic disease patient, Millennium Medical providers will begin with blood work that addresses a patient's specific make up. Though there is no "CFS/FMS marker" that will show up in the blood, we, as with Dr. Teitelbaum, often find that patients with chronic diseases are deficient in different areas in varying degrees that makes them, as individuals, unique. By addressing these areas (i.e., specific types of sleep disturbances, hormone imbalances, infections or nutritional deficiencies) with specific treatments that include supplementation and high dose vitamin, mineral, and nutrient IVs, Millennium Medical helps treat the underlying issue that is "driving" the CFS/FMS.

In addition, supportive measures may be prescribed for the patient while other treatments are being utilized. Light massage to the patient's tolerance, acupuncture, and light physical therapist- directed exercise are all available. In addition, gentle movement and stretching of joints and tissues to the patient's tolerance by our chiropractic physicians are also employed.

Millennium Medical understands that patients with these conditions may be suffering with specific symptoms, but because there is no universal testing to diagnose CFS/Fibromyalgia, it is our experience that the driving cause of these symptoms may be different for each patient. Millennium Medical seeks to treat the person, not just the symptoms. An individualized program will be laid out for you by one of our medical providers and treatments proceed to the tolerance level of the patient. Call Millennium today for a consultation to see what Millennium Medical can do for you.

Dr. Danielle Mastrosimone is a graduate of New York Chiropractic College. She has an eclectic background in the neuromusculoskeletal field that includes experience in sports medicine , spinal rehabilitation, and a clinical research trial on herniated lumbar spinal discs. Her other concentrations include health sciences, exercise science, and sports biomechanics, with internships in orthopedic outpatient physical therapy, sports massage techniques, and corporate wellness. She enjoys working with both spinal and extremity conditions and has a special interest in manual therapies for soft tissue injuries.