Jasmine Grace said...
Since I wasn't properly diagnosed with fibromyalgia and I'm having trouble getting doctors to run more tests, I've been looking for other possible causes by myself (although I would never self-diagnose).
I noticed that many of the symptoms of fibromyalgia and polymyalgia rheumatica are similar - except I normally hear of fibromyalgia being associated with weight gain (which I assume refers to those with thyroid problems, which I don't have); the other condition is associated with loss of appetite and weight loss.
I lost my appetite almost entirely when I became sick (I force feed myself most of the time) and I lost a lot of weight; I'm underweight, which is probably partly why I still look like a child rather than an adult. I just can't seem to put on more than a kilogram.
Also, polymyalgia rheumatica appears "suddenly and without warning" - which is EXACTLY what happened to me.
Also, many of my symptoms tend to be a lot worse in my upper body (stiffness, tight muscles and pain) which is a hallmark of the polymyalgia but not fibromyalgia.
But apparently polymyalgia rheumatica mostly occurs in people aged 50 or over.
My dad has been diagnosed with osteoarthritis and my mother suspects she has chronic fatigue syndrome... I don't know if this helps to figure it out in terms of information regarding genetic susceptibility to these kinds of things.
I'm wondering if I have one or both or neither... (If I have neither, then there is certainly something else I have because my whole system is stuffed up.)
Are some of these differences I've pointed out not actually differences at all? Do you guys ever have any of those symptoms: worse in the upper body, sudden onset, weight loss rather than weight gain?
You might need to do some google on Fibromyalgia GP (your state). You should be able to find some doctors who are very supportive of this condition. If you go to a pain specialist, they will threat the symptoms not the underlying condition, which is what happened to me for a long time until I went over to USA, and got it reconfirmed in UK but FMS specialist. I do owe it to the doctors in the USA to look into things holistically, whereas over here our GP are so busy, all they do is, so you're experiencing pain here and here right?? try take some panadol and come back and see me if it's still a problem. They they will run out of answer and start referring you to a pain specialist and the wait is a few months.
Change in appetite can be due to many other factors. For me depression is one of them. As I have to deal with the pain day in and day out and the visit to the pain specialist usually end up with them injecting lignocaine into my trigger point to provide temporary relieve, but the in between time is the killer. The pain just wouldn't go away. I have moments of self harm. And with depression, I never feel hungry, I'm always in the state of constant hopelessness. Even now, I only eat when I'm hungry, which is quite bad esp when I've to take care of someone else too. I'll make sure he has his meals, but I still have a tendency of skipping meals.
Unless you're in rural area, there's always more than one GP in your area. Do some shopping. I moved so much over last 18 years, everytime I go to a new state, I would have to start all over again for a new doctor. I try my best to talk to the doctor and compare their opinion on things that matters most to me, you'll be surprise that some doctor will suit you better than others.
If you happened to be in SA and live near the hills, I can refer you to my GP. I've also got a couple of good GPs I've been to in Perth and Sydney, I wouldn't mind sharing their names with you. Otherwise, good luck.