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Fibromyalgia, What is it Really?

Updated on September 26, 2021
Author Cheryl profile image

I have been in healthcare for 33 years and my knowledge is wealth.

It Really Does Hurt

No One Understands This Horrible Disease

Being diagnosed with fibromyalgia has left me with the feeling of no one really knowing what it is. Some doctors say its over firing of nerves causing muscle pain and spasms. Some say it's an auto immune response and one doctor in Belgium even went as far to say it is a host of infections in the blood stream and people with fibromyalgia should not donate blood because it would cause a disasterous outbreak among the nation.

This horrible disease has not recieved the proper research and is most of the time shoved aside because doctors don't want to deal with it. It's of unknown origin or where it comes from. It's diblitating but not to the point where it causes damage so they say.

More and more women are becoming disabled from this disease and some men to the point that they just can't work anymore. Scientist spend many years researching cures for cancer, HIV, MS, MD and every other disorder but this disease needs to be studied more then it has to provide a true answer.

If a muscle biopsie is obtained from a patient with fibromyalgia it looks normal, yet the muscles are in chronic spasms. It mimics MS with the numbness of limbs and muscle weakenss. It mimics many muscle disorders but yet there is no other way of diagnosing it but through pressure points that are tender to the touch.

No blood test, MRI, or CT scan can diagnose fibromyalgia. We live each day looking healthy, yet can barely get by. I believe in time since so many people each year are being diagnosed with this disease that it will force science to research this horrible disaster and bring relief to the millions of people that have it.

It's depressing to say the least when people look at you differently like you are lazy or just wanting to complain but they don't realize the struggle we go through daily just to go to work, get dressed or even bend down to tie our shoes. One day and a lot of hope I must believe that they will find a cure or treatment that will free us from this disease.

Until then it's just a wait and see game.


We Live In Pain Everyday

How if Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Are Related

The Symptoms

Fibromyalgia is a disorder that causes muscle pain and fatigue (feeling tired). People with fibromyalgia have “tender points” on the body. Tender points are specific places on the neck, shoulders, back, hips, arms, and legs. These points hurt when pressure is put on them.

People with fibromyalgia may also have other symptoms, such as:

  • Trouble sleeping
  • Morning stiffness
  • Headaches
  • Painful menstrual periods
  • Tingling or numbness in hands and feet
  • Problems with thinking and memory (sometimes called “fibro fog”).

A person may have two or more coexisting chronic pain conditions. Such conditions can include chronic fatigue syndrome, endometriosis, fibromyalgia, inflammatory bowel disease, interstitial cystitis, temporomandibular joint dysfunction, and vulvodynia. It is not known whether these disorders share a common cause.

What You Can Do To Help Yourself

Treating yourself well when you have been diagnosed is one of the best things you can do for yourself and also getting your loved ones educated so that they can know what is going on with you and be able to help you not hinder you. These are some of the things that have worked for me.

Resting is one of the best things you can do.

Sleeping well at night makes a big difference in how your day is going to go.

Taking medication as needed and taking it at the same time every day.

Using low heat such as a heating pad or electric blanket.

Moving/activity you just have to keep moving even if it hurts.

Being aware of how you feel and not deny the pain.

Limiting social activities and having a quiet home life.

Planning for work by having everything you need for the day.

Scheduling in recovery time .

Seeking help from outside sources.

Praying/meditation.

What Helps and What Doesnt

Until We Find a Cure

Until we find a cure, we will suffer even with medication it is disabling. People tell you to stop stressing but this whole disease process is stressful because no one knows and they only speculate why it happens and how. There really is no answer to this disease, but I pray before I take my last breath that they will find a cure so that others can live a pain free life.

This content is accurate and true to the best of the author’s knowledge and is not meant to substitute for formal and individualized advice from a qualified professional.

© 2013 Cheryl A Whitsett

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