That's Fit

Fibromyalgia is a chronic disorder that causes extreme pain and tenderness in the muscles, tendons and ligaments, occurring mostly in women. A specific cause of the disorder has yet to be identified and there is no known cure. Until there is, it's good to know it's at least possible for some reprieve.

Researchers in Europe report that an exercise regimen that includes regular workouts in a heated pool provided significant relief from pain and associated symptoms for patients suffering from fibromyalgia. According to an article in BioMed Central, as study of 33 female patients -- 17 of whom took part in the exercise regimen and 16 who did not-- involved one hour of aquatic exercise three times a week for eight months. The workout group reported a reduction in pain and improved quality of life in general, while the non-workout group did not report any improvement.

This is just a teaser -- a more complete story will be on newsstands on Friday -- but PEOPLE magazine online reveals that Heather Locklear is currently seeking treatment for anxiety and depression at an Arizona facility.

Apparently, Locklear has requested an in-depth evaluation of her medication and is seeking a diagnosis and treatment for her health issues. With boyfriend Jack Wagner by her side, the 46-year-old actress, in my opinion, is making a brave and courageous move. It's up to each of us to lobby for our physical and mental health. It seems this is exactly what Locklear is doing. Good for her. And best wishes for a speedy recovery too.

Swimmer's ear is such a pain, literally. But it's really common, and it got me thinking about whether it's ever a serious condition, or just an annoyance.

You're more at risk to develop swimmer's ear if you have a skin condition that makes you scratch your ears, or if earwax buildup or blockage traps water in your ear. You're also more at risk if you have small ear canals that don't drain terribly well, or if you have another medical condition that impairs your immune system.

While not common, it is possible for swimmer's ear to have complications, including temporary hearing loss and more widespread infection, so it's important that you treat it right away. You can use an over-the-counter treatment, but if the problem persists (or if you have an impaired immune system), you should seek medical attention. Your doctor might clean your ears with a suction device or prescribe you a topical or oral medication.

There are a number of things you can do to prevent swimmer's ear. Check out the gallery to see a few of the suggestions the Mayo Clinic has for prevention.

Muscle cramps have been a problem for runners for, well, pretty much forever. Unfortunately, even though it's such a common issue, experts have yet to agree on a cause.

Some believe that sweating and dehydration are to blame, while others believe cramping is caused by running hard or for long-distances, or that insufficient stretching and training are at fault.

Regardless of what causes them, I think we can all agree that they are a seriously unpleasant side effect of running, and we'd like to prevent them from happening, especially on race days. Click through the gallery for some tips from Active on how to prevent and treat muscle cramps.

Could you ever imagine purposefully letting leeches suck on your blood? Yeah, me neither. But Demi Moore does, as a way to detox, according to this interview she had with Letterman a couple of weeks back. According to Demi, "I was in Austria doing a cleanse and part of the treatment was leech therapy. These aren't just swamp leeches though - we are talking about highly trained medical leeches." And does she feel better after the cleanse? She answers with a resounding yes, though she admits she didn't feel very good immediately following the procedure.

Using leeches for medical reasons was considered a legitimate, trustworthy cure ... in medieval times. But back then, redheads and people with freckles were thought to be witches too. So why revert back to that ancient way of thinking? I can't see any way this could possibly be healthy. Can you?

(For more celeb wellness tips, check out AOL Body).

I'm literally a sobbing crying mess as I write this. I fell in love with a dying man a few weeks ago when I caught wind of him giving an amazing gift to his students, colleagues, friends and family at Carnegie Mellon University. Randy Pausch, a computer science professor gave his Last Lecture now famous on YouTube, on September 18, 2007. Randy's lecture was called "Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams." Now, I have my own spectacular husband, but I imagine anyone who knows, or knows of Randy . . . would love him very much.

For a man whose pancreas is being destroyed by a cancer that could take his life within months . . . he was hysterical, energetic, inspirational, and relentless about the idea that life can be wonderful every day, and that his days still are. He told stories of his childhood and made one of the most insightful statements I've ever heard. "Are you a Tigger or an Eeyore? Choose!"

If you thought Russell Crowe in "Cinderella Man" was an underdog story, check out this bit of inspiration about Parkinson's disease patients fighting the battle of their lives -- literally. The story conveys what people are willing to do when diagnosed with an illness that could leave them debilitated.

For those unfamiliar, Parkinson's affects the central nervous system. Because it's a degenerative disease, it also takes away people's movement. This leaves patients immobile and helpless in a lot of ways. But one gym in Indianapolis is trying to provide an outlet for these people to train, and heal, using boxing!

Rock Steady Gym is non-profit, and the people there are using boxing as a therapy. A friend of the person who started it was diagnosed with Parkinson's, which helped conceive the original idea. Now, after months of training, he's regained movement and mitigated the tremors. Before that he couldn't even write his own name. Knowing there's a place like this fighting for those in need really puts volunteerism in perspective. Let's hope an idea like this gets contagious and spreads to other places!

Jenny Craig spokeswoman Valerie Bertinelli has been in the news a lot lately, announcing her 40-pound weight loss and high-fiving talk show hosts about her new lease on life. Bertinelli's ex-husband, Eddie Van Halen, is making news too. His story is not as bright and cheery as hers.

The band Van Halen has reportedly postponed four concerts while guitarist Eddie Van Halen undergoes medical treatment.

"The Van Halen concerts in Dallas, Cincinnati, Raleigh, and Baltimore have been postponed," reads a new message on the band's Web site. "According to Eddie Van Halen's physician, he is undergoing a battery of comprehensive medical tests to determine a defined diagnosis and recommended medical procedures."

In 2002, Eddie Van Halen announced he was cancer-free after a two-year battle with tongue cancer.

Insulin, as incredible as it is in terms of its ability to help regulate blood sugar levels, may be worthy of even greater praise. That's because scientists (A.K.A. those smart people who went to a better college than I did) have discovered that applying insulin directly to wounds my actually help them heal more quickly.

Tests performed first on rats and then on human skin cells in culture resulted in the interesting discovery that wounds treated topically with insulin healed faster than wounds left untreated. The scientists examined the molecular impact of the topical application of insulin on keratinocytes, which are the cells responsible for regenerating the epidermis after wounding. The scientists also looked at microvasular endothelial cells, which are the cells that restore blood flow to a wounded area.

The evidence from these examination is what lead the scientists to their conclusions. Further, they speculated that this apparent link between insulin and healing may work to explain why many people with diabetes heal very slowly when wounded. Given the fact that people with diabetes suffer from impaired production or utilization of insulin, it stands to reason that this may be one of the reasons behind why healing may be impaired.

At some point, most people have tried, or at least considered, a cure they thought unorthodox. I have a friend who swears you can stop hiccupping if you say, "One!" after the first hiccup. Go ahead, try it -- it doesn't work for me, but you never know.

Men's Health has come up with six seemingly crazy cures that they swear are effective. Suffer from sleep apnea? Trying to quit smoking? Click through the gallery and see if there's a cure for your ailment -- what do you have to lose?

We already know of some causes of headaches, whether it's from staring at a computer too long or smelling certain kinds of perfume. But what about something that your own body is contributing to cause a headache? This ABC News article points out why neck pain can directly lead to headaches, and how you can fix it.

The way you sleep and even hold a telephone can lead to posture which triggers pain the neck area. Most headaches linked to this symptom are caused due to strain on neck muscles located on the back. Posture where you lean forward too much is an example of a pain-causing position. Ever felt that tight, painful feeling behind the eyes when reading the computer screen too closely?

This posture strains the occipital nerve, which can lead to headaches. While this may not describe everyone's situation, it can pinpoint other people's habits. Stretching the neck carefully can help alleviate this pain, thus relieving headaches. But this example isn't the only tip they provide, so head on over to see other neck-related headache causes!

Cancer is a scary thing to tackle alone, so a lot of people reach out for help when they get news of this nature. Having someone in the family with this situation, I can attest to how dizzying it can make a person feel when advice is coming from every angle. However, "cancer coaches" are now starting to become more widespread that offer help with information, not advice.

These patient navigators are an outlet for someone to talk with about options and other help they may need to consider. The article says that an ideal candidate for this supporter should be someone who can lend support. This includes mental reinforcement, because not everyone has a strong family to lean on. The coaches should also be able to lend a hand with sorting through information and resources.

Objectivity is also important, because these people may have survivor experiences of their own. Either way, volunteers doing this (and paid workers alike) are turning out to be a valuable asset. Almost 90 locations have these coaches available, and the American Cancer Society wants to take it further. It's good to hear about straight-forward solutions to information overload that involve real people for once.

Living with pain every day of every week can take its toll on any person, but it's not just the constant effect of suffering. Scientists have compared brain patterns of healthy, pain-free test subjects to those of individuals who experience aching all the time. What they found is that suffering all day could adversely alter the wiring of their brains.

When a person is hurting, their brain constantly fires neurons that it would otherwise shut down when doing simple tasks like making a decision. So someone in chronic pain has this effect every day. In other words, the neurons fail to "quiet down."

Researchers argue that this constant firing of connections could permanently damage their wiring. If these areas don't shut down properly, the brain can't keep itself in equilibrium. Thus other problems like sleep and depression set in. Hopefully they can use this research to better treat chronic pain suffers in the future -- perhaps finding a way to medically quiet the neurons!

Perfectionists seem to always find something to fix about themselves. According to this article, a new aspect of perfection is being targeted more and more: pores on their skin! There is even a term for it called "porexia," the desire to get really tiny pores.

What's amazing is that these individuals probably have blemish-free skin anyway. But I can see where they are coming from. Pore size ranges from person to person based on genetics. They can be naturally tight, or alternately larger by comparison. Even though we're still talking about tiny pores here, dirt and oil can get inside and make it appear black.

This is why some people pursue flawless skin, right down the smallest element. But some treatments are far from cheap. For example, when the Lazr Deep Pore Therapy machine becomes more mainstream, it will cost about $500 for one session! Other less expensive treatment options include prescription creams which claim to tighten the skin and reduce pore size. Of course, doctors are quick to note that pores are a necessity and cannot be eliminated completely.

The practice of yoga is not always a cheap endeavor. There are classes, books, mats, and everything in between made available to enthusiasts. That's why it may be difficult for some people less fortunate to get on board with such a beneficial activity.

That's what inspired Sue Jones to spread the love and teach yoga to women in need. She started an organization that reaches out to homeless shelters, addiction programs and domestic-violence safe houses. The experience of helping these women was so rewarding that she says it makes her feel like a Christian missionary. Already there are volunteer practitioners in Boston, Seattle, Oakland, Los Angeles, and New York City.

As a treatment for substance abuse, yoga's effectiveness for overcoming such addiction is debatable. While it certainly doesn't hurt for that purpose, it helps relieve stress even better. That much is common knowledge! In fact, restorative yoga instilled a sense of pride in needy women after only one class. The results were right there for all to see, and that's what motivates people like Sue to continue spreading the practice.