Depression is back after diagnosis

You need to find a doc who cares, but there are very few of them. Luckily my PCP is one I've been seeing for 20 years... he's very stoic and people don't seem to like him, but if I ask for a med to try, he has no issues and writes the script.

Anyway, I try to stay off of meds, but right now I could not get through my 60-hour work weeks without Lyrica and Tramadol. It provides energy and pain relief for me.

The bottom line is that with a job and five kids, you stress level is not going down anytime soon. Meds will have to help until the kids are grown up or you win the lottery.

Also, an SSRI can help with both anxiety and depression. You should be on one of those and most everyone is these days.

As noted above, my PCP understands the stress of life and how none of us can just quit our jobs and do yoga, meditation, exercise, and massages for hours a day...

I take pristiq and it works well for me. I also take abilify which is a mood stabilizer and that helps the pristiq work better.

There are a lot of antidepressants that help with pain too.

You might want to talk to a mind and body psychiatrist, mine helped me a lot.

Hugs, Karen...

Hi, Dreamsoftravel, and welcome! My goodness! You have a three hour commute, work full time, and come home to 5 children and you wonder why you are exhausted? Anyone would! That is a huge load even for a healthy person and I find you totally amazing that you can do this, even with exhaustion! You have to lighten things up. Your body is telling you this is too much to handle. I honestly don't think pills will help you with that workload and the stress it must bring. Stress will increase your pain.

I don't have a workload like that but I have found magnesium malate and vitamin D3 helps with pain and fatigue. I also take a muscle relaxer that made a significant difference in my pain. I only take half of what was prescribed so I wouldn't be sleepy, dizzy, and such. It's called Robaxin. I do have a disease of my spine called ankylosing spondylitis that does cause a lot of pain and the muscle relaxer helped with that a lot. So you might look into these things to see if they help you some.

It's not unusual to have depression with fibro. It's a frightening illness but I'll tell you that once you find what helps you, you will be well on your way to a full and enjoyable life in spite of this illness. I sure have. I see from your name you have dreams of traveling. Well, I have done a lot of traveling with fibro...even to Europe with those long flights. You will learn how to work around this illness to do what you want but never give up on your dreams! Always try things first. I have done so many things I didn't think I would be able to do with fibro.

Be sure to read Fibro 101...the first thread on the forum. There are links to good info about fibro and you will learn a lot there. There are links about vitamin D3 and magnesium malate and how these work in the body so you might want to check that out, along with a link about how to maintain a positive attitude when you have chronic pain. This has helped me a bunch.

I'm looking forward to getting to know you better. Don't hesitate to ask questions because we are here to help you. Hope to hear more from you soon.

Sherrine

Hello dreamsoftravel,
Holy Cow, You need a medal of some type, Perhaps a national holiday named after you!!!!! That is a crazy schedule, but yet you do what you have to do because there are bills to pay and mouths to feed and the kids depend on mom. First, I just think your'e amazing and you should too. I work Full time as a store manager and I could not imagine that kind of commute and then coming home and being a parent. Kudos to you.
Now with that said, yes you need to find a new doctor. I know it is tough when the INS. company loves to make it next to impossible, but it can be done.

You are a person in pain, and you need to be treated with respect and believed by your doctor. You need some one whom is going to listen to you and be willing to try multiple things until something works for you. The important part is never stop searching. Something WILL work for you. Believe it or not I do not see my regular Dr. I fell in love with his nurse practitioner!!!! not literally of course LOL, but she is the one whom is willing to try different things for me. She listens, she suggests and then lets me decide. She always gives me a hug at the end of a visit. Talk about someone with bedside manner, she is amazing.

I take Tramadol for my pain which helps take the edge off and Sherrine whom you met above suggested the magnesium malate. I also stretch my muscles a lot during the day at work and I keep moving. I must have the cleanest at&t store in ohio!!!!! So do NOT give up the search, the pain of this illness as you know can be almost unbearable at times, Pain causes anxiety, anxiety and pain cause depression and depression causes more pain. It is just one big giant Ferris Wheel of misery until you find out what works for you. One good book I would like to suggest is Fibromyalgia Up Close and Personal. written by Dr. Mark Pellegrino whom has it himself. It is a great read, I think you would like it.

I do wish your job was closer, that has to be soooo exhausting alone and I see you live in Seattle, correct me if I am wrong , but it RAINS there a lot right? something else that is not fibro friendly, but you can not control some of these obstacles at the moment. Just know that you really can have a good life with this condition. I have not let this condition stop me from doing anything. I keep going and doing what I want. I call the shots and you will be able to as well. I am getting ready to go to South Carolina next week and I plan on boogie boarding, going to shops and having a BLAST. So first step for you. FIRE that DR. and search search search til you get a good one, use meds, supplements, stretching, walking talking to us and believe that you can feel better. Try to keep your stress to a minimum. When there is stress and drama going on around you feel free to use my new Mantra that I use at work. "Not my circus, not my monkeys" it makes me chuckle and puts me in a better mood. LOL

Do take care and please keep posting because we REALLY do care about each other here!!!

HUGS XXXX to you

Hi TheFifthElement! Thanks for your reply. I've never heard of JC Tonic. I'll look into that! The Rheumatologist I was referred to was ignorant. She told me that because I could touch my toes I couldn't have fibro! She denied saying that in an email I sent after our visit, but she did say it. Fortunately she did refer me to the pain clinic doc who gave me an accurate diagnosis. I take Baclofen at night, which helps me sleep-along with Tylenol PM. I wish you well on your journey to healing!

Hi Michael1968. Thank you for your kind words. :) You know, that's a great idea about a Nurse Practitioner. When I've seen them, I've almost always found them more attentive and compassionate than the doctors I've seen. I've wanted to try Tramadol, but I need to find a doc willing to prescribe it, which was a problem with the pain doc. I'll keep trying, though!
Hi Debbie. :) I emailed the pain doc about Gabapentin, but she hasn't bothered to reply. Ugh...
Just want to express again that I'm thankful I found this place. You're all more than welcoming, and it's much appreciated. I look forward to getting to know you all. :)

Your plate is very full. When your working a lot and a mom too the fibro will really show its face. Then the pain consumes you with the fatigue. When one sufferes with pain so much depression can kick in. It a viscious cycle one can get in. I know because it happen to me and I am sure many others.

I know you need to work to provide for your family. I would look at my situation and see what stressers that may be reduced in your life. I know for me I had to not over extend myself. I had to say NO to people that wanted me to make something or bring something at an event or etc. As women we can over extend ourselves sometimes.

I believe in a well rounded treatment plan for fibro. Many of us suffer from chronic depression. Mine is caused by my chronic pain. I see a therapist and psychologist. They really can help your situation by offering help and suggestions plus meds for depression. Mine psychologist really delt with my pain and led me to the right Dr. For pain management. Many offer classes for chronic pain and anxiety too.

Once I got my pain under controlled the depression got manageable. My life has turned around to the best. I now can say I have peace and joy in my life. I found this forum a few years ago. I learned how to managed my fibro from others on the forum. It was a trial and error method, but I finally got a great treatment plan for myself.

I do the following for my fibro. Exercise, eat healthy, limit stress, heat, vitamin D, calcium, magnesium, muscle relaxer, remron, and subutex for pain. I hope we see you on the forum again. This is a great place for support.