In honor of Oprah’s tearful announcement that she’s going to be – gasp – ending her talk show, we decided to see what her buddy Dr. Oz had to say about Fibromyalgia. Interestingly enough, Dr. Oz is on the same page as our very own Dr. Groshell, Jr. Both doctors recommend an alternative approach to treating and healing FM.

Dr. Oz insists that “because Western medicine was slow to accept fibromyalgia, it is behind in its work; this is an area where patients will want to take a serious look at alternative approaches.”

A recent article in O Magazine explored several of the different approaches we now have for treating Fibromyalgia today. They included what Dr. Oz refers to as the ‘Western Medicine Approach,’ where FM is mainly treated with medication and pills, a more nutritional-based approach, a psychological approach, and an energy-based approach.

Dr. Oz says that “energy-based medicine could offer some important advances in treatment over the next decade, but since it has yet to be tested by independent research, I think it’s premature to base your therapy solely on this approach. I’m more impressed by Teitelbaum’s supplement regimen, and not only because he has tested his theories: I’ve put patients on this program with very good results. I would add counseling, as it should always be a part of fibromyalgia treatment.”

It’s clear from these findings that the best alternative we currently have to treating FM is a combination of nutrition, energy, and psychology-based approaches to the illness.  Even doctors who practice Western medicine when treating Fibromyalgia patients are quick to admit that much more research needs to be done.

“Still, says Nancy Klimas, MD, director of the Allergy and Immunology Clinic at the University of Miami, ‘there is much more to treatment than a pill.’ Strategies are needed to improve sleep, stretch and restore symmetry to muscles that have been shortened by spasm, and raise overall conditioning through exercise.”