Diagnosed with fibromyalgia - any help!

Afternoon everyone,

I am new to this forum but have read many of the posting before today.

about 10 years ago I had my first bout of IBS and from that day have had fatigue , anemia and muscle pain , easy brusiing , carpel tunnel ( just diagnosed). My muscles contract involunarily and it can feel like I have something moving under my skin , my muscles in my stomach can contract sometimes to the point it feels like a baby kicking ( has anyone else had this happen) and I had numbness in my face and arms especially on amorning , chest pain ( has been investigated) and heart palpitations , troulbe remembering words , fogginess etc etc. I got tested for MS and Brain stuff and other STUFF ! but nothing came back except carpel tunnel. I also have trouble sleeping and easily wake up and NEVER feel refreshed in a morning

Does anyone else with fibro have these symptoms and if you had to give one tip that helps what would it be ?

Thank you for your help.

Fibro is such a PAIN!!! So many symptoms that u feel like a hypochondriac and those around you, even Drs think ure exaggerating! It's real and you have to be your own advocate or you will be left untreated and miserable! Find a Dr who has been trained in Fibro treatment and big on compassion!

Welcome to the forum yorkshire. Your symptoms are like Fibromalgia. Every one you listed I have had them all. You are not alone here and you found the right place to educate yourself on fibro. First read as much as possible on fibro. Then find a Dr. that works with fibro patients. Most of us have been through test and scans to rule out other diagnoses. It's important to find a Dr. that you feel supported and trust. I have gained a wealth of information from this site. Just remember some treatments work different on each individual. The things that work well for me is heat, light excercise, magnesium and calcium supplement, rest, subutex. and keeping stress down. I use to have bad muscle cramps, but I started magnesium and it made a huge difference. Always ask your Dr. before trying new meds or treatments. Even supplements can cause problems if taken to much or interact wrong with other meds. I guess my favorite thing for relief is heat. I own a large heating pad, heating blanket, and on the go I use those heat Warmers you shake up. I forgot to tell you I live in Alaska. Lol. I hope you can learn some great remedies from each of us.

Hi, Yorkshire, and welcome!  I'm so glad you found us and joined in.  Yes, most everything you mentioned I have had at some point.  If you don't know about fibromyalgia all these symptoms sound crazy, don't they!  But that's the nature of the beast so don't worry.  You will learn how to get a lot of this under control.  Just knowing it's not unsusal will lighten the burden of this illness and knock out anxiety from the "unknowns".

 

My one tip would be to keep moving.  Do gentle stretching exercises and a gentle daily exercise.  Walking is great!  This does help with pain and fatigue.  Of course I add moist heat, gentle massages, pacing myself, and keeping a positive outlook on life to the walking.  All of this combined has helped me a lot.

 

Have you had a chance to read Fibro 101...the second thread on the forum?  There you will find links to good info about fibro and you will learn a lot there.  Good starting links for you would be Symptoms and A Thorough Explanation of Fibromyalgia.  There is a ton of info in all the links so be sure to read them.  I've had fibro for decades and am still learning things about this illness.

 

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

Hi everyone - I've just joined this forum and can resonate and empathize with many of the comments posted. I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia about 2 years ago, when my previous doctor finally retired and I found a new one who sent me to a rheumatologist for inexplicable allover pain and extreme fatigue. Prior to that, I was experiencing pain for years before finding out what was causing it. What a relief to finally get a diagnosis!

I have been on several medications since my diagnosis to try to alleviate the pain, to no avail. Either they didn't work, or I couldn't tolerate the side effects. The worst one for side effects, for me, was Cymbalta. Some people have irritable bowel with Fibromyalgia, but I have irritable bladder so the Cymbalta was affecting it 24/7 - running to the bathroom every half hour or 45 minutes was no fun during the day, and even worse at night. I was already into interrupted sleep because of Fibro pain and restless leg syndrome, but the bladder issues made it impossible to get even a couple of hours in. I'm wondering if anyone else has experienced irritable bladder with their Fibromyalgia, or restless leg syndrome? I also can't tolerate lukewarm to cool water on my skin. A couple of months ago, I had to see a doctor at a walk-in clinic for something else when my regular doc was away, and I had to give her my medical history. When I said I have Fibromyalgia, she suggested I swim for exercise. When I explained to her that getting into a pool and experiencing that temperature change brings on more pain - which being in the water gradually eases it - but when I come out of the pool, the temperature change wreaks havoc with my fibromyalgia pain - she just didn't get it. I told her, I'll stick to my hot showers, thanks and she still insisted I go swimming.

Then I developed TMJ, but didn't know what the heck it was ... it started last June and was agony. I went to my dentist, who said it wasn't tooth-related, then to my doctor who checked it out by pressing on the jaw muscles (YOWCH!!) and diagnosed it. He recommended physiotherapy, which I went for several times and it subsided. I find that it reoccurs after I chew toffee or hard candy, or a chewy chocolate bar or peanuts - sometimes granola cereal will set it off. I'm still going for physiotherapy to deal with an old ankle injury, which my previous doctor neglected to deal with and which this new doctor is spot-on about, so the exercises my PT prescribes for that issue, are also good for Fibromyalgia. Despite the gentle exercising and using a recumbent bike every second day for 6 minutes (that's all the bad leg can tolerate right now), I am fatigued beyond belief and sore all over. I can barely get thru household chores most days. Has anyone tried alternative medicine (naturopathy, homeopathy?) for Fibromyalgia, and if so, has it worked? Thanks for reading ... :)

Thanks so much for your words of welcome, Acheybody :) I appreciate the suggestion to start a new thread - am just starting to find my way around here, so when I figure out how to do that thru the fibro-fog, will do!

I'm so sorry that you, too, have the same problem with warm water. Thanks for the empathy.