Welcome Oregon Mom: Your descript
ion of a hip that gives out on you, and the numbness and tingling in hands and feet, and frozen shoulder, all are symptons which describe my experience of Fibro. As well, all over body achiness especially in the long muscles of the calves, thighs, and upper arms. I had a career a number of years back, as well I was a single mom, and had another PT job to make ends meet, and had Fibro, managed by amyltriptilene at bedtime 75 - 100 mgs. Also a brand of tylenol with 8mgs. of Codeine which is sold OTC here in Canada. That was it, until I was struck by a trck while crossing the road in a crosswalk in 2002. Then things got messed up. I had been managing, OK, then I was lying in bed, broken, unable to do housework, prepare meals (we ate a lot of Delivery Pizza, that year), heaven forbid, work. I tried to go back to work but I had just plain "given up". Like a form of learned helplessness. To shorten the story, I started to go downhill, fast. The hip giving out I began to notice while I worked as a post construction cleaner, I'd put in several hours of hard physical labor and after about
the third of forth hour, my hip would snap out of position, I'd be bent over to one side pretending to be cleaning but really waiting to get it back in place. A certain way I moved would get it back to normal, but then I'd have to be careful. So, as long as you pace yourself, don't try to "push through" the fatique and pain, you'll manage. Nice to meet you.