Jasmine (Perth, Wa, Australia) on 05/08/2013:

I slowly developed some of the symptoms of fibromyalgia (IBS, dermatitis, allodynia, aneamia, low immunity, PMS and irregular, painful menses, etc. ) throughout my childhood until I became very ill at the age of 16, also developing chronic muscular and joint pain, extreme fatigue, brain fog, weakness and a host of other symptoms. I now believe the onset was gradual due to a slowly worsening condition of my gut, partially thanks to the frequent use of antibiotics (as I was often very sick as a child) without probiotics (my parents gave me Yakult to drink for probiotics, unaware of the fact that I was lactose-intolerant and never drank the stuff because it made me feel sick).

Over the next 2 years, I slowly began figuring out which treatments help me to manage the condition: occupational therapy, physiotherapy, not eating foods I was intolerant to, using the right skincare products, gentle exercise and mindfulness meditation. I highly recommend all these treatments. I experimented with fluoride toothpaste and fluoride-free toothpaste for a few months and decided that fluoride definitely brought on intense flare-ups. I now use organic toothpaste, which is expensive but worth it. A cheaper alternative is one of the Sensodyne toothpastes - the one which uses strontium chloride instead of fluoride. I noticed no negative effects from using that. I grew up drinking rain water but whenever I drink tap water I have to filter it or it makes me sick. As far as skincare products go, I recommend MooGoo or ecopure.

BUT in the last couple months, I have discovered the most helpful remedy yet: the Leaky Gut Cure Program by Karen Brimeyer. She proposes that leaky gut can cause fibromyalgia, and that by following her program leaky gut can be healed. (This is a similar theory and treatment to GAPS, but it is a lot cheaper to buy Karen's program than to follow the GAPS program. )The program involves eating certain foods, avoiding certain foods, reducing toxins in your household products and clothing, and following healthy lifestyle practices, such as observing appropriate sleep hygiene and many other things. It also involves supporting your adrenal glands, ridding your body of pathogens and healing the lining of the gut through supplementation. I had read and tried many other similar programs in naturopath books, which only seemed to make me sicker. But this program makes me feel better, not worse, and I can assure you that it is perfectly nutritionally balanced. My pain has decreased (I no longer take pain medications), I can think more clearly, I am sleeping much more soundly and feel refreshed when I awake (rather than stiff, sore and exhausted), I have been feeling a lot more energetic and people are saying that I look really well. And I tell them that it is because I feel really well! I have never felt so alive in all my life!

I cannot give exact details of the program here due to copyright issues, but I will tell you that Karen Brimeyer's program is surprisingly cheap and can be found at www.leakygutcure.com. Anyone with fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue or IBS should google GAPS to see if they think that they suffer from it - and if they think it likely that they do, they should try the leaky gut cure for at least a week. Even if it can not cure everyone with FMS, I am sure that it can help many people with it - so it is definitely worth a try!

I now feel confident that I am healthy enough to continue with my university degree and work a part-time job too!

I hope that at least one person reads my post, tries the leaky gut cure and becomes healthy and energetic!