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Posted 7/25/2010 7:26 AM (GMT 0)
Hi Everyone,

My name is Jocelyn and I usually post on the Depression Forum but about a week ago I was told by my rheumy that he thought I also had fibro, I already have RA.  He said he thought it was fibro because of the pain in my shoulders when he touched  them.  He has asked for a bone density test to be done before I see him again in November.

What I am confused about is which symptons relate to the fibro and which relate to the RA?  I have tenderness around the ribs on the left side, tenderness in the shoulders and pain across the back of the neck (especially when I am at the computer), and I also have tenderness at the top of my insteps on both feet.  The doctor did say that they can go together or you can get one or the other.  Lately I have been so tired throughout the day as well.  Are these all symptons of fibro?

He has only added a slow release pain killer for me to take at night, it is very mild though and I don't think it is making any difference.  I am already on methatrexate, prednisone, celebrex for the RA and I also take calcium/Vit D capsules daily.

I would appreciate any advice any of you fellow sufferers could give.  Thank you for taking the time to read.

Posted 7/25/2010 12:01 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Jocelyn,

Yes, I am a mod over here too.  I am so glad that you posted here.  But sorry that you have fibromyalgia. 

There is a thread called fibro101.  It is the second thread on the forum.  Our sweet Sherrine put this together and did a wonderful job.  There is a section called "what else could it be?"  This might answer a lot of your questions, though the members will respond too.  But if you get the chance, read fibro101.  It is very informative. 

Living with fibro is just that.  Living with fibro.  It is a devistating disorder, but it doesn't have to control our lives.  We can keep the pain at bay with proper medications and exercise.  I know that you love to walk and walking really helps.  Keep moving around as much as you can.  This keeps the stiffness away. 

Keep asking questions, people here are so helpful.  And supportive.

Hugs, Karen

Posted 7/25/2010 12:35 PM (GMT 0)
Hey Jocelyn, sorry you have fibro. to deal with to. It is so difficult to deal with. I don't know how you tell the difference between RA and fibro. I hope the reheumy. can help with that. I hope that get all the help you need. Medication does help along with exercise. Exercise is tough for me and I try when I can but I know there are some here that do real well with exercise. A hot shower helps too.

Take care and I hope that you feel better soon.
Posted 7/25/2010 2:01 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Jocelyn, welcome to our forum! I have fibro and RA and there are times when
both are flaring at the same time. RA causes inflamation, my joints are usually
super sore, warm and red. Fibro does not cause inflamation and can't damage to
joints, although the joints and muscles can feel swollen. My RA is part of MCTD,
an overlap of connective tissue diseases. I take Methotrexate for it.

It is not uncommon to have fibro with an autoimmune disease. Exercise is very
important. Lack of exercise will make you hurt all the more. I have learned if you
have fibro, predisone usually doesn't help. There are meds your rheumy will
prescribe, and like everything else, it is trial and error. Good luck to you and I
hope you find great pain relief!

Hugs, Robin
Posted 7/25/2010 2:41 PM (GMT 0)
Hi, Jocelyn, and welcome!  It's tough figuring out what is causing pain.  Lots of times it feels like I have arthritis but it's the muscles, tendons, and ligaments around the joints that are really hurting.  That's more fibro!  We do have neck and shoulder pain...almost everyone with fibro.  I've dealt with foot pain, too.  I developed plantar fasciitis but found shoes that helped with that.  There are quite a few on this forum that have the foot pain.  You see, fibro has a myriad of symptoms.  It's a very strange illness and the doctors don't know what is causing it so that makes it difficult on us.  Also, what works for one with fibro might not work for another.  Don't have a clue why that happens either.

 

As Karen suggested, check out Fibro 101...the first thread on the forum.  There are links about fibromyalgia and you will learn a lot.  There is a link of symptoms that might interest you, too.

 

I see you take Celebrex.  I use Ibuprofen...another NSAID.  That has helped me along with extra strength Tylenol.  I also take some supplements.  One is malic acid/magnesium and this has helped me with pain and fatigue.  The other is vitamin D3.  I live in sunny Florida and was still very deficient in vitamin D.  I now take 5,200 IU of D3 a day.  This has helped me with pain, too.  There are links about these two supplements on Fibro 101, if you are interested.  Always check with your doctor first.  When I asked my doctor about the malic acid/magnesium supplements, he told me not to waste my money.  He didn't think they would help.  I then asked if they would hurt me and he said NO.  So I tried them and he was wrong!  They DO help me.

 

It is very important to keep moving.  If you sit or lay too much, you will be stiff as a board with this illness.  There are some good stretching exercises in Fibro 101 that can be done sitting down.  You should have a gentle exercise that you do daily.  I walk and swim as my exercise.  I start the day by walking my dog before breakfast.  Many times I don't want to go out but I make myself and then I feel much better and have more energy when I get back home.  Yesterday I developed a bad hip pain while out walking and had to shuffle back home.  Today I was coming up with sooo many reasons not to walk my dog but I didn't give in to it.  I did take my cane along just in case but didn't need it.  We had a great walk and my hip feels even better now!

 

I'm happy you came over here with your questions.  Don't stop asking, either.  We are here to help you.  It's good seeing you!  I hope to hear more from you soon.

 

Sherrine

Posted 7/25/2010 2:52 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Jocelyn! Just wanted to welcome you to the group. Sorry you may have fibro, but it really is possible to get hold over it and enjoy life yet. It takes time to figure out all the things that work for each of us - sometimes it can be a dozen very small changes that can make a difference - or one big thing. Keep calm, hang out here, get some tips and I think you'll be surprised that you can handle it all and take control of your life. :)
Posted 7/25/2010 3:55 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Jocelyn and welcome to our fibro family. We have a great bunch of people here and it is the first forum that I have felt comfortalble with in a long time. Sorry you have to have fibro along with the RA but it does seem like fibro always comes with something else. I have osteoarthritis and osteoporosis. I think Robin had some great advice on being able to tell the difference between the two. To me though pain is pain and I just want relief lol. Im sorry that you are hurting and I will add you to my fibro family prayers.
Gentle Hugs
Shirley
Posted 7/25/2010 10:04 PM (GMT 0)
Thankyou all so very much for making me feel so welcome and also for the great tips and advice. I will hang out here as Chicken Princess suggested and I will certainly take the time to read the information on Fibro 101.

Thanks again.
Posted 7/26/2010 1:45 PM (GMT 0)
Welcome Harrington49

I am new to the boards myself.

I also have pain in my ribs due to my fibro and can't stand it when someone pokes me.
My shoulders also bother me alot and I have headaches along the back of my neck and head alot. I have a desk job so I'm at the computer 40 hours a week.
All of these are symptoms of fibro along with the tiredness and fatigue.
Welcome to the fibro club.

Sending you soft gentle hugs and hoping you find some wonderful advice here along with the great support.
Posted 7/27/2010 1:04 PM (GMT 0)
Hi EML

Thanks very much for the welcome. You have my sincere sympathy having to sit at a computer all day. I did it for a lot of years also but I didn't have RA or Fibro then so I was lucky. I think you have to remember to give yourself a break every hour and have a stretch and walk around the office, if for nothing else, to relieve the tension in your neck. I get it just sitting here for a short time at home.

I wasn't sure what the pain in my ribs was from and I was a little concerned but after being told of the fibro it all fell into place.

Thanks again for you support and I too wish you all the best with your pain and I hope you find some relief from the meds.
Posted 7/27/2010 1:22 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Jocelyn, and welcome. This is a great place to come to for support and information.

I also want to tell you that "Jocelyn" is one of my favorite names. I've loved it ever since I saw "A Knight's Tale." (Hearing it spoken by Heath Ledger kind of sealed the deal for me. devil )

Hugs - Austen
Posted 7/27/2010 2:37 PM (GMT 0)
This is my first post to the forum. I also have both RA and Fibro and it can be confusing to tell the pain apart until you become familiar with the difference in symptoms. My RA causes pain largely focused in my joints, accompanied by redness, puffiness, swelling, and sometimes warmth along with fatigue. This pain responds to a prednisone burst when it gets too bad.

I associate "all-over" aches, pain in my neck, shoulders, back, sensitivity to touch in a variety of locations, fatigue, and a whole bunch of other weird symptoms I'm sure you will discover in your research, with my fibro. Prednisone has no effect on my fibro symptoms. My RA is relatively controlled with Methotrexate, but I'm still looking for answers for fibro. I was also a CFS patient in the 90's and have some recurring symptoms since becoming ill again. Sometimes it is hard to know what causes the hurt!

As other's have mentioned, medication can help but lifestyle modifications seem to be the best chance for living well. Good luck. I'm hoping we both can learn something from this forum. I'll be checking out the Depression/Anxiety, RA, CFS, and OA forums too!

Live well,
Nicole
Posted 7/27/2010 2:50 PM (GMT 0)
Jocelyn,

sitting at a desk all day isn't good for my rear either. LOL!
I do get up and down quite a bit and walk around and I'm always walking paperwork over to the other depts, so I get some stretching in .
I also do neck stretches while I'm at my desk.

My ribs are one of my most tender and touchiest points most of the time. If anyone pokes me or hits me or I bump against anything it will hurt for a very long time and stay sore.
Was out with some friends one night celebrating a bday and one guy was pretty snockered, lol.
He started poking me in my ribs and I politely asked him to stop.
well, he didn't. He kept on poking me and poking. Again, I asked him to stop and told him that it really hurt.
Again, he kept on doing it.
Try reasoning with a drunk.......yhea, right. lol
so finally, I took him down to the ground and said "are you gonna stop now?"
He finally quit. LOL!

Thank you for the well wishes.
Gentle hugs.
Posted 8/4/2010 1:53 AM (GMT 0)
I would like to suggest a book called "From Fatigue to Fabulous." They also have a website. It has helped me so much.
Posted 8/11/2010 10:40 AM (GMT 0)
Hi all

Thank you very much for the very warm welcome and all the advice, I will take it on board. I have just started a rehab session that goes for 8 weeks, so I have 7 weeks to go but it is really good. The dr got me into it and it involves, exercise, physio, massage, education and a session in the hydro pool which I really like. So hopefully I will get a lot of benefit from it, it is supposed to help with both RA and Fibro. I will keep you all informed how I am going.

Thanks again, you are really nice people for caring about each other so much. I am glad I am part of it too.
Posted 8/11/2010 12:37 PM (GMT 0)

The rehab sounds wonderful...a great mix of things that seem beneficial. yeah Do keep us posted to let us know how it is going. Good luck to you!

Hugs,Robin

Posted 8/11/2010 3:31 PM (GMT 0)
Jocelyn, this sounds like a wonderful program for you!  I'm really happy you have that and I do think it will help you.  Please let us know how you are doing because we really do care about you.

 

Sherrine

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