Dr. Depak Ravindran is a Consultant Pain and MSK Specialist at Circle Rehabilitation. He is also lead consultant in pain medicine at the Royal Berkshire Hospital in Reading.
One of his key areas of interest is Fibromyalgia. A Chronic pain condition which not only causes a significant amount of back pain but also makes the pain from other conditions much worse!
We talk today about the widespread problem that is Fibromyalgia, how common it is and its relationship to other pain conditions. Deepak is a world-renowned expert on this topic, so some takeaways for sufferers as well as healthcare professionals.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Fibromyalgia is a chronic widespread pain condition characterised by sleep deprivation, memory loss, extreme fatigue and widespread pain throughout the body.
- Listening is an important part of a consultation and helps to build a detailed picture of people’s lives.
- Fibromyalgia affects around 3 million people in the UK
- Younger people are now being diagnosed with fibromyalgia and this has an impact on both society and the economy.
- It’s a dysfunction of the nervous system and the question is what are the changes for young people that are leading to this dysfunction?
- The immune system and the nervous system are tied tightly together and they can both be profoundly affected by stress
- If you look closely at what you eat you can potentially make a huge difference to fibromyalgia
- Pain is not a signal something is wrong it’s an alarm system and then the brain decides how dangerous it is ‘it’s a danger signal’ the brain makes a decision based on prior experience
- Some patients will have both fibromyalgia and back pain and it is likely they will have an amplification as the body is wired to be more sensitive.
- When you have a sensitive system it’s important to reinforce the message that it alright and therapies can make a difference
BEST MOMENTS
‘Hurt does not equal harm, this is an important message to understand’
‘Any treatment approach must be tailored to the individual and we need to find multiple ways to calm the nerves’
‘Once a diagnosis is made moderating your lifestyle and completing activities routinely that help your body are key’
VALUABLE RESOURCES
The Back Pain Podcast
Free Sciatica guide: www.thebackpainpodcast.com
The Berkshire Pain Clinic website
ABOUT THE HOSTS
Dave Elliot
Dave is the owner of Advanced Chiropractic, a chain of Chiropractic and massage therapy clinics in Essex, UK. Dave still sees patients during the week but has been working hard to talk to as many experts in the field of back pain as possible to help distil all the information and bring it to you in this awesome podcast. You can find Dave on any of the Advanced Chiropractic social media platforms, or you can contact him @ hello@thebackpainpodcast.com if you have any questions for him.
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Rob Beaven
Rob owns and runs a multidisciplinary clinic, The Dyer St Clinic in Cirencester Gloucestershire. His team of Chiropractors, Physiotherapists, Osteopaths, Doctors and podiatrists all collaborate on thousands of back pain patients every year. Alongside Dave, he has worked hard to bring to the table experts across all industries to give you the low down on back pain, with steps you can implement today to start feeling better.
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