Winning at Fibromyalgia

Dr. Daniel Clauw is the leading researcher in the field of fibromyalgia and chronic pain at University of Michigan. HIs group was the first one to show that the pain of fibromyalgia was real. By using functional MRI of the brain (fMRI). We chatted about many things and today I am bringing you part 1 of the 2 part interview. Part 1 brings the following: - how it all came to be that he was leading t...

Welcome to part of my conversation with Dr. Lissa Rankin, a board certified Ob/Gyn who is now focusing most of her energy on healing work and just recently completed work on her newest book Sacred medicine (it can be pre-ordered on https://www.amazon.com/dp/B096NHG3M8/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1) . In the part two of our conversation, we talk about: - cancer (and any chronic a...

IN today's episode, I am reminded of how many chronic pain sufferers do not know what kind of pain they have when they first start off with having pain. I have been participating in a book club of WAY OUT authored by Alan Gordon (through Tell me about your pain community on FB) and through talking to other attendees with chronic pain I was startled by the finding that it takes a long time for huma...

  Welcome to episode #21 of the Winning at Fibromyalgia podcast!   We have a special guest today Dr. Tamara Beckford. She is a Mom, Wife, ER physician, Host of Docs Who Care Podcast, Speaker and Wellness Expert coach and CEO of the Ur Caring Docs.   I brought Dr. Beckford on today because she helps professional women put their health and wellness first without guilt. She talks the t...

WAF Episode 19   Hello! Welcome to episode 19 of the Winning at Fibromyalgia podcast! I feel a weird sense of pride that I am inching toward the number 20.   First of all, I want to acknowledge the tragedy and injustice going on in Ukraine. I am originally from Slovakia and during the era of Soviet union, Slovakia had Russian/Soviet military bases all over the country. We were still Czec...

Episode 18: Howard Schubiner, the Director of the Mind Body program and the best physician you can ask for when you have chronic pain Dr. Schubiner is a clinical professor, Founder and Director of the Mind Body Medicine Center at Ascension Providence Hospital in Southfield, MI. He treats patients with chronic pain and makes their lives better. By curing or reducing the pain. He is my role model, I...

Episode 17   Hello hello hello!  Welcome to episode #17 of Winning at Fibromyalgia podcast!   I just want to spend a moment expressing gratitude to those who tune in and listen – thank you. I appreciate you. My little website analytics gives me some stats on my podcast and among them is a list of countries where my listeners are. I am so humbled to see I have listeners in US, Canada, Ge...

Episode 16: On PTSD, Chronic pain approach and CBT compassion with Dr. Leigh Ann Dooley   I am so excited about presenting this episode to all of you. Dr. Dooley is a board certified practicing Psychiatrist and currently works at Charlie Norwood VA Medical Center in Augusta, GA. We chatted about so many things including what made her go into Psychiatry, who was her secret weapon in residency...

Hello my lovely listeners! Welcome to Episode 15 of the Winning at Fibromyalgia podcast! Today I continue to ponder question: Who are you without your pain? part 2 DO you listen to your intuition?   In one of the earlier episodes (episode 5) I outlined my approach to my patients and clients with chronic pain and summarized it in 5 steps: Be open to learning the concept of neuroplastic Believe...

Episode 14: Who are you without your pain? Part 1.   I would appreciate any feedback so hop online to facebook or www.winningatfibromyalgia.com and leave me an email    I have never considered the question fully, in reference to the pain until recently, when one of my young patients told me during a somatic tracking exercise we were doing in the office, that that’s her concern. She has...

Vulvar and vaginal pain, with and without sexual intercourse, is not particular or specific to fibromyalgia. However, it is not talked about often enough and it can be very disruptive to a woman's life. I am  chatting with Dr. Yasmin, a board Certified Gynecologist and Obstetrician who is specializing in intimate and sexual health of menopausal and postmenopausal women.  SOme highlights:...

Episode 12 notes   Hello! It was so insightful to chat with Dr. Jill Bailey about her new adventure as a psychotherapist. She transitioned from being a Family Medicine physician into a psychotherapist after getting some additional training in 2021.   I picked her brain about how to approach anxiety and Here are some highlights on what we hit in our segment today: Bailey shares a bit of h...

Course announcement   Well hello everyone!   I am Dr. Ziegenbein, your favorite Rheumatologist and fibromyalgia expert coach! Welcome to this bonus episode of WAF podcast! I have an exciting announcement and what a better time to announce it than at the end of the year?  Can you believe it is New year’s eve tomorrow??? As you notice today I don’t have the fancy music/so called “intro” b...

Hi. This is Dr. Ziegenbein, your favorite Rheumatologist, and fibromyalgia expert. Fibromyalgia has a capacity to rule, and even ruin your life. I am here to show you how to stand up to it, how to be your fibromyalgia boss. Once and for all.  Welcome to episode # 11 Of the Winning at Fibromyalgia podcast! I hope you LOVE my new intro and music as much as I do. I picked the music myself and th...

My special guest Dr. Alexandra Stockwell and I discuss important conversations in a relationship as it pertains to someone in pain. I learned an important detail about approaching this type of conversation, that may have held me back in my own life because I have NOT been doing it! Listen in and let me know what you think and whether approaching these conversations come to you naturally or you are...

I showcase 3 patients who all have neuroplastic pain/symptoms and all three have different situations they are dealing with Hello Friends and Winning at Fibromyalgia warriors!   Please know I mean the word “warrior” in the best possible sense of the word. My vision is to help a thousand women struggling with fibromyalgia every year. IN order to do that, I do have to become a warrior. Like a s...

Hello Hello Hello!   I am excited to be back for an episode # 8 of Winning At Fibromyalgia podcast! Title of today’s episode is: “ How I reached breakthroughs on my own fibromyalgia journey ”   I shared during an earlier episode on the podcast that I have fibromyalgia back pain. It is mostly in my upper and mid back. I have had it since 2010 or so. It has been really frustrating at times...

Welcome to Episode 7 of the (best ever) Winning at Fibromyalgia Podcast!!!   I am Dr. Martina Ziegenbein, a Rheumatologist and your Fibromyalgia expert and guide, bringing you news and all the things Fibromyalgia.   Timur and I spent some time with good friends in Boston and It was cold! I guess it is time for me to accept Cape Cod gets winter weather!   In the last episode, I talke...

In this episode I introduce the 5 core steps of my Winning at Fibromyalgia Method. I have worked hard to distill it to just the main 5 so that it is short and simple.  Today I am bringing you episode #6! It is so far my longest episode and possibly the most exciting.   I am explaining my “Method” how I approach fibromyalgia in my practice. It incorporates and summarizes things I learned...

Hello and Welcome everyone to episode #5! Today I am going to talk about another part of pain reprocessing therapy - Emotional Awareness and Expression therapy   Let me first briefly summarize the main teaching points of prior 4 episodes    Fibromyalgia pain – neuroplastic pain - misfiring neurons in the brain pain centers and pain pathways. They are misinterpreting safe or neutral sign...

In this episode I continue to delve into components of pain reprocessing therapy. The basic outline of this process include: 1. confirming the dg of Fibromyalgia, 2. being open to the concept of neuroplastic pain, 3. practice of self-compassion, somatic tracking, and emotional awareness and expression therapy. Today we talk about somatic tracking.

In this episode I give a summary of my approach to fibromyalgia pain. It has 3 main steps and we talk about the first two and one substep of the 3rd step :-)   Hello there!   Welcome to Winning at Fibromyalgia Podcast Episode #3: What can be done about fibromyalgia pain ?   I am Dr. Martina Ziegenbein, the executive producer of the podcast. I am so excited to be here today.   I...

Hello there my friends and fibromyalgia warriors! I mean warriors in the most loving way. Welcome to episode #2 of my podcast Winning at Fibromyalgia . I am Dr. Martina Ziegenbein, a rheumatologist and an executive producer of the podcast  Today’s episode title is: How does fibromyalgia pain come about?   One of my girlfriends just emailed me asking about the follow up episode to the first o...

In this first episode, I explain the difference between acute and chronic pain, or in in other words between the "regular" pain and "neuroplastic" or "brain" pain. The pain is always real, but it differs of where it comes from. Hello there! I am super excited to introduce you to my first Podcast ever called Winning At Fibromyalgia!  Episode #1: Where does the pain of fibromyalgia come from? &...