Rating: 
Summary: Revised, updated, improved, but at times exaggerated!
Review: I was impressed by the additional information that Dr. Teitelbaum has included on persistent infections in the revised and updated edition and numerous other abnormalities found in CFIDS and FMS plus a vast array of treatment options. This data is presented in a clear and easy to follow format and includes resources to products, services and organizations worth knowing about. However, I feel few people with these illnesses are in the financial position (many receiving only disability benefits) to gain the full benefits of this program. For many of the proposed tests are not covered under stringent HMO set-ups or by Medicare, the large assortment of supplements, and even the cost of office visits with doctors who practice integrative medicine - all of these will be out of pocket. The average internist is not familiar/agreeable with many of these specialized tests nor following many of these suggestions. In my opinion, just how fantastic this program may or may not be can only be appreciated by a minority of individuals with CFIDS/FMS who can afford to go outside their PCP for assistance. Lastly, towards the end of the book in Appendix F, I was rather surprised and disappointed in how Dr. Teitelbaum went off at a tangent into his proximate and evolutionary explanations of these illnesses while linking them to such issues as today's fast-paced way of life, stress, type-A personalities, adaptive function of emotions, role of fear, and existential/spiritual crisis. I really would have preferred if these digressions had been omitted for they bring back the old connotation about the illnesses, that its sufferers tend to have internal conflicts and fixations that need to be released and certain types of personalities cause certain people to burn out. A few specific remarks like ..."Since fibromyalgia is a fear response rooted in unresolved trauma and/or relentless stress", and ..." fibromyalgia is but one manifestation of a world out of control" ... really distracted me from all the good stuff he started out with. Despite all of the controversy and his support for psychotherapy, I still think the 2001 edition of "From Fatigued to Fantastic" offers worthwhile medical information - take whatever ideas/strategies that are doable for you and can help you gain a better understanding of your illness, as well as provide relief/improvement -- but I had to make an effort to turn a blind eye to some of the exaggerated claims and psycho-babble.
Rating: 
Summary: Incredible
Review: I was passed from doctor to doctor with the final diagnosis is well the good news is that we can identify what you have and the bad news is there is no cure. Here's some pain pills call me in three months. Totally exasparted I searched the web, NIH and finally found Dr. Teitlebaum. He did more for me in two weeks than any other Doctor in two years. Highly recommend this book and it you can't see Dr. T. make your doctor work with his program.
Rating:
Summary: Just excellent - very accessible
Review: I work as a primary care doctor and psychiatrist and I see a lot of ME & similar syndromes. I do use more alternative medicine than he suggests but the overview is really excellent - I just keep buying more to give away it is that good.
Rating:
Summary: READ THIS BOOK.
Review: if you have been diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome, read this book! the doctor has lots of knowledge on a subject that many doctors, including the one that diagnosed me, don't know anything about. my doctor simply gave me a patch to take care of the dizzy spells i had and sent me home. you can and WILL get better....but not without knowledge that most health care providers are not equipped to give. be ready to take lots of different types of supplements that you have been denying your body of for many years...it's the only way to heal the problems that are going on inside...i know i did not have a very good diet for a long time and i am paying for it now...but with the help from dr. teitelbaum i know i can beat this...you will too.
Rating:
Summary: Make Your Doctor Read This Book!
Review: If you have Fibromyalgia or Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, or suspect that you may have, this book can open medical doors for you. FMS/CFS/CFIDS are illnesses that are very misunderstood by the medical community at large. Normally this disease needs to be diagnosed by a rheumotologist. If you are having unexplained joint pain and unexplainable fatigue, make your doctor read this book. It outlines the illness, symptoms, tests that should be ordered and how to correctly interpret the results. My doctor and I follow Dr. Teitelbaum's program and I am improving. It is the best source of information on Fibromyalgia/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/Chronic Fatigue Immune Dysfunction Syndrome available. Dr. Jacob Teitelbaum is very passionate about this illness due to the fact that he has had it and knows what his patients feel. He writes compassionately and in a language that a non-medically trained reader can understand. It is less expensive than a trip to the doctor and you'll definately get more information
Rating:
Summary: This book is ideal for layman.
Review: If you want help on chronic fatigue and Fibromyalgia without all of the scientific terms, then this is the book. The author has simplified a very controversial and ignored disease. Unlike other books on fatigue, this book is divided into two sections. The first part is easy to understand layman terms and help for fatigue. The second part is a scientific analasys for doctors and health professionals. Enjoy
Rating:
Summary: Very good description of what can be done
Review: It was eye-opening for me to read about FMS. It is nice to know that I am not alone in my struggle. The book helps make the necessary decisions for diet and lifestyle in easy to understand terms.
Rating: 
Summary: How Can A CFIDS Patient Apply All Recommendations?
Review: Like other reviewers have noticed, applying the recommendations appears to be an obstacle course. Many patients with CFIDS who have been fortunate to obtain a valid diagnosis have financial constraints and many have health coverage through Medicare. Others suffering from CFIDS carry an ongoing struggle to obtain medical support and often have no insurance coverage. Again, like other reviewers noted: much of what is recommended will not be supported by most Primary Care Physicians. Most of the testing will not fall under coverage categories of insurance. Perhaps someday we will discover with certainty these recommendations work. However, for many of those afflicted with CFIDS most of the recommendations given are not presently obtainable.
Rating:
Summary: Very disappointing
Review: Like the cartoons in the book, Dr. Teitlebaum seems to take this devastating disease as something to be seen with humor. Indeed, humor is essential for surviving CFIDS, but only on the victims terms, not Dr. Teitlebaums. In addition, his suggestions for therapy are out of reach to most of us who have been economically ravaged by this illness. A large part of his recommended therapies require precription drugs that are controversial. Many of us find it hard enough to find M.D.s that accept CFIDS, let alone provide injections of hormones, etc.
Fatigued to fantastic? Yeah, right. Maybe some day fatigued to functional-that's all many of us realistically pray for. I felt like I had just walked out of another condescending doctors office, going home feeling small and misunderstood.
Rating:
Summary: Fanatastic, easy to understand.
Review: The book was very thorough regarding Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Fibromyalgia (FMS). It could have had more information about Myofascial Pain Syndrome and its interrelationship with FMS. It is a condition often associated with or preceding FMS. Dr. Teitelbaum reports about accompanying conditions encompassing CFS & FMS, and their symptoms, then spells out treatments clearly. When I realized Dr. Teitelbaum's office is only about 40 min. drive from my home, I became very excited and wanted to make an appointment to see him. Then I learned that he charges $1,500 for the initial 3 hour visit, and this didn't include lab tests, which would be another $1,500 to $2,000! I feel somewhat betrayed! It might be better to make the book a gift to your regular doctor, and work with him or her.
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