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FIBROMYALGIA....
more than just a pain in the....butt. |
Fibromyalgia is an elusive syndrome that is quite
frequently not diagnosed at all or only diagnosed after years of treatment
for a dozen other diseases that you didn't have. A lot of doctors
still will not diagnose or treat Fibromyalgia because they are still not
sure there is such a thing. Fibromyalgia syndrome or FMS is a widespread
musculoskeletal pain and fatigue disorder. No one knows what causes
it. Fibromyalgia means pain, lots of it, in the muscles, ligaments
and tendons - the fibrous tissues in the body.
And it's a nasty little disease. Your muscles feel like you have pulled
them or strained them. Sometimes the muscles twitch or twist in spasm.
Sometimes they burn. It can be best described as the
feeling you have when you had the flu. Every muscles in your body
ached and ached and you hurt all over.
The Symptoms
Pain
Pain, pain and more pain. FMS is quite often described as a deep
muscular aching, burning, throbbing, shooting, stabbing, white hot pain
that goes on and on and on. Quite often, the pain and stiffness are worse
in the morning. I quite often feel that I need new grease fittings
in all the joints.
Fatigue
Gosh, I'm whipped! Totally drained. Brain drain,
that foggy feeling that prevents you from concentrating on things.
Your arms and legs are heavy and feel like you're wearing cement shoes
and gloves. Some people have sever, debilitating fatigue. Some
hardly have any at all. It just depends on the person.
Even my Bones are tired!! |
Sleep disorder
I'm tired, I'm cranky and at the end of my rope. And I don't
feel much like "bouncing" through my day. Sound familiar. Most
of us with FMS have a bit of trouble sleeping. We fall asleep okay
but wake up feeling like we just got run over by a Mack truck. Apparently
this is because we don't get enough deep sleep or level 4 sleep.
Instead of sleeping sounding we keep getting bursts of brain activity that
keeps us popping up from that level time and again. It's like having
one half of you awake while the other half is sleeping soundly. We
tend to have restless legs as well, a chronic jerking or moving of the
legs and sometimes the arms too, during sleep. Sort of a "walk a
mile in my sleep" thing. |
Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Constipation, diarrhea, frequent abdominal pain, abdominal gas and
nausea represent symptoms frequently found in roughly 40% to 70% of Fibromyalgia
patients. You can watch your diet, take drugs etc, etc but
you still have IBS. No rhyme, no reason. An that's a real pain
in the patootie, especially if you are going out and don't want to spend
50% of your evening in the bathroom.
Headaches
About 50% of FMS sufferers also have migraines or recurrent tension
like headaches. Nasty things. Just makes your day all the worse.
Now along with all those aches and pains, your head hurts. I don't
know about all of you folks out there, but I would rather have almost any
other pain than and migraine. That's just the worst pain in the world.
When you're hurting all over you can at least try and get comfy in
that big easy chair, hot cuppa tea on the side and a really great mystery
book. But with the headache, forget it. You are just going
to be miserable. And there's not a cuppa in the world that's going
to help you out.
Temporomandibular Joint Dysfunction Syndrome
Isn't that a biggie! TMJ is easier. This syndrome, sometimes
referred to as TMJD, causes tremendous face and head pain in 25% of FMS
patients. It's not really the joint that is involved, or so they
think, but the muscles and tendons surrounding the jaw. This can
flare up and last for a couple of hours, days or weeks or you can just
have it almost all the time. My face is very sensitive to cold wind
and if I am out in the wind in the winter my TMJ kicks into overtime.
Hot compresses sometimes help a lot. Other times I use a cold pack
on the jaws and that helps. You just can never predict ahead of time
which one will work.
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Multiple Chemical Sensitivity Syndrome
Sensitivities to odors, noise, bright lights, medications and various
foods is common in roughly 50% of FMS sufferers. In other words,
little things irritate the heck out of you. When the cat padding
across the carpet sounds like Simba the elephant breaking through
the jungle, then you have a sensitivity to noise. Likewise when hubby
turns on the overhead and your eyes feel like somebody just shot hot shards
of glass into them, you are sensitive to light. Some foods give you
a rash or gas and the cold medicine you used to be fond of causes heartburn
and hot flashes. These are sensitivities. And they can show
themselves in ten thousand different ways. And your sensitivities
probably won't be like anyone else's either. |
Other common symptoms
Having your period hurts, you might have chest pain, morning stiffness,
cognitive or memory impairment, numbness and tingling sensations, muscle
twitching, irritable bladder, the feeling of swollen extremities, skin
sensitivities, dry eyes and mouth, frequent changes in eye prescription,
dizziness, and impaired coordination can occur. I have a really hard
time with word associations. I know what the object is, I just can't
remember what it's called. It's just the most frustrating thing in
the world.
Things that Aggravate
Changes in weather, cold or drafty environments, premenstrual and menopausal
states, stress, depression, anxiety and over-exertion can all contribute
to symptom flare-ups. The kids having sleepovers, birthday
parties, going to weddings or other crowded functions, even shopping especially
in grocery stores where the frozen food isles are like the arctic in winter.
Waiting in a hot car, getting overheated while shopping or working outside.
All sorts of thing can affect the way you feel. You have to learn
to recognize what things will bother you and avoid them like the plague.
What causes FMS
Since no one really knows what causes it and
most doctors, specialists etc are just guessing, I won't even include any
possibles here. If you have it you have it and it's far too late
to worry about why or how. So why frustrate yourself with the what
ifs and the how comes.
What to do, what to do!
First off, you need to get a good nights sleep. Usually you need
help with this. Some of the commonly prescribed drugs are:
Elavil, Flexeril, Sinequan, Paxil, Luvox, Serzone, Xanax and Klonopin.
These are usually prescribed in a low dose and may be of help. In addition,
nonsteroidal, anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) like ibuprofen may help
with the aches and pains. There are quite a few other treatment methods
as well that could help make life a lot easier, such as trigger point injections
with lidocaine, physical therapy, acupuncture, acupressure, relaxation
techniques, osteopathic manipulation, chiropractic care, therapeutic massage,
a gentle exercise program, relaxation therapy and self-hypnosis.
Having a good therapist that you can see on a regular basis who can help
you with the self-hypnosis is a big plus for me. Also just having
someone there you can unload on helps too.
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What does the future hold?
FMS is chronic but the symptoms may come and go like the wind.
Up this week and down the next. Some people are completely disabled
while some others are quite able to hold down a regular full time job.
Each person is unique in their symptoms, down time, pain thresholds and
functioning abilities. Whatever the case, non of use are going
to be quite as mobile as my friend Tigger here. What medication works
for your neighbour may not even begin to work for you. Learning to
live with FMS is a full time job in itself for a lot of people and in a
lot of cases concentrating on coping strategies is the number one priority.
Only you and your doctor can decided what road is best for you. |
My heart goes out to all of you, I empathize and sympathize with your
plight I also suffer from AS, anklosing spondylitis.
For more information on it, please go HERE.
Thanks for visiting. Please come back again.
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