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What is Fibromylagia? The medical definition is a disease of the nervous system. It is a muscular disease that, on a bad day, can often be described as feeling like you have arthritis throughout the entire body. What Does This Mean? To sum it up, having Fibromyalgia basically means a lot of unpredictable, severe pain. It doesn't always warn you, it is not always consistant often changing not only the area of pain but the level of pain as well. The central nervous system has been sensitized, allowing an increase of pain. This severe pain can cause poor sleep patterns (which can worsen the pain) as well as depression from feeling hopeless being unable to escape the pain. What Is It Like Living With It? You have to be a little extra careful not to hurt yourself. It doesn't matter if it's just a scratch, bruise or a broken bone; it takes at least twice the time to heal than a 'typical' person. It is a fair bit easier to have injuries, especially bruises and that type of thing. A simple pin prick can be felt for hours. It can be rather stressful trying not to be stressed as silly as that sounds because you know how important it is to your physical health to be stress-free. Working can be a stress factor of it's own. I can't tell you how many jobs I've gone through because of my body not being able to handle the demands not just physically but also because of the fatigue and how easy it is to not get the rest your body requires to restore. Keeping an eye on the weather can be very benefical and help plan the days ahead; it can play a bit part in how you are feeling some days. Sizing up the Symptoms: Many people with fibro report that they have at least several of following symptoms, if not all of them. Symptoms include; Flu-like pain that can be severe, A constant feeling of exhaustion, specific tender points that hurt, overall body aches, depression, muscle stiffness and pain, insomnia or other sleep disorders, extreme fatigue, mental malaise and confusion (often referred to as fibro fog). Many Fibro sufferers experience medical conditions on top of the fibro such as Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Interstitial Cystitis, Arthritis, Headaches, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. Because Fibromyalgia mimics so many other things it is very hard to diagnose. For starters, you have to go through the elimination process to make sure it is not any of the other things. Some examples of things to be eliminated are, Arthritis, Lyme Disease, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. It is possible however to have Fibro as well as other serious medical problems. Secondly you have to have a doctor that believes in it as many of the older doctors do not. It is also a hard disease to diagnose because it effects everyone differently. I have found from experience of talking with other people who suffer from "Fibro" there is usually a "trigger" area. An area in which you have the most pain or problems with. I refer to it as a "trigger" area because if you don't notice and take care of that area when pain is starting it will spread to the rest of your body through the nervous system. For me; my "trigger" area is my lower rib cage. I get inflammation all around my ribs that causes pain if I take a deep breath, cough, laugh or sneeze, and often leads to a full flare up leaving me unable to do anything for at least a week. The common factor for Fibro is the tenderpoints Getting Control: There are ways to get control and live close to a normal life. Medication is one way that works for many. Getting the rest your body requires (no matter how long it may be) to restore is crutial. It can be difficult some days, but finding a balanced excercise such as walking is important to keep mobility. Personally for me Epsom Salt baths are a huge help. Keeping an eye on the weather can be to your benefit as well. |
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