New Member - New Fibromyalgia Diagnosis

Hi. I'm not sure exactly where to start as I've never used a forum like this, and especially not for something like this new illness I've been battling. I will try to keep it short and easy to read.

After years of shoulder pain I had always thought was because of a car accident I was in (roughly 8 years ago), I began experiencing other odd symptoms around June of 2012. It felt like I was having inflammation in my knees, hips, and ankles. After many tests, xrays, and MRIs with all nothing to report, a few months ago my doctor and I decided fibromyalgia was most likely what I had been experiencing.

Since the diagnosis, I've been put on 60 mg of cymbalta, 1 mg of xanax to be taken 3 times a day (if needed..I usually only have 1 and a half), zanaflex as needed, and vicodin 5-500 as needed. The most of the Vicodin I've taken in one day is 3 pills..I split them all in halves in an attempt to keep my tolerance from skyrocketing. I also began taking 500 mg of magnesium and mucinex. I don't know why but for some reason during very bad pain the mucinex helps so much with half a vicodin

All that being said, i thought I had a pretty good understanding of what was going on with me and what to expect. Wow I was definitely WRONG. I have had some pretty frightening symptoms that I was hoping to have input on.

To sum it up I had an episode today where I felt..I don't want to say dizzy, but almost as if I was in a very deep fog. I was feeling confused so I came up to my room to rest. Before I had the chance to get comfortable the pain in my right hip down through my leg became so intense. I began breathing quite heavily...I had no idea what to do..in a split second I was laying down in the most intense paralyzing pain I've ever felt. My muscles were spasming so much I couldn't talk because it was even affecting my throat muscles.

Has anyone experienced this??? I have never been to the point where I had to try so hard to get my body to do something. It was like there was a massive delay between my brain and the body part I wanted to move.

I apologize for rambling, I'm still quite stunned. Thank you in advance.

Welcome, Wellsie! The diagnosis is so hard and scary at first, it really is. It takes time and attention to figure out how to deal with the condition, and what collection of supplements and medications can make a difference, and what you can do/ not do, eat, sleep, live. And it flippin' changes, so you can get Tired of all this attention to your body, and the need to be constantly aware of pain. Very tiring.

I take: tramadol and hydrocodone 5-500 for pain, generic ambien for sleep, effexor for depression, plus tons of supplements. This particular formation is the latest; things can change, become less effective, or new meds tried, or new conditions necessitate the change.

One thing that is essential for me is exercise, being active. I feel far worse when I stay still, or rest. Some walk daily. I do deep
Water aerobics, and bike/walk/hike when I can.

Others swear by diet, and healthy eating. I eat fairly clean, but have some diet restrictions due to crohns. This is a fairly recent development, but I have personally not noticed any connections between my fibro and food.

Sleep is also key, for me. I decided fairly early on that if I was to continue working, I needed to sleep. When I sleep properly, life is better. Napping can make things harder for me. I do rest in bed with a book, but try not to nap unless super-busy, or flaring.

As far as your pain, who knows? Stress/Anxiety? A muscle
spasm? A weird combo of meds fkowing through your body? Not
enough hydration? Pinched nerve? Dunno. It happens.

Welcome again, and patience.

It is hard when the family doesn't get it. I was 'lucky', since my older sister had been diagnosed in the nineties, and the family was at least aware of the existence of the illness. My significant other did not necessarily believe in it, but he knew something was wrong, and that it wasn't in my head. Also, luckily, he is pretty helpful around the house. He carries groceries and laundry, when we are in the same house.

Sounds as if you are at flare levels. So, dial it back some, if you can.

Wellie- Sherri is right, it wouldn't hurt to look into your meds that might be causing some of your symptoms. I actually had serotonin syndrom when I took Cymbalta. It was no fun. I never want to experience that again. I do know zanaflex will drop your b/p and then you start to get up and you get very dizzy. You might want to really check all these out. Pharmacist are better then Dr's to review your meds and side effects. I have had Dr's order meds that interacted wrong with each other. They sometimes slip because they can't know all those drug interactions. Hope you feel better.