New member questions :-)

I've posted here about the "progressive" issue, and Sherrine is so well spoken that she reminded me of what it really means to have a progressive disease. I was so lost in my pain & frustration when I found this forum that I couldn't think clearly, and she and everyone else here helped me to think more clearly. I have a son with Cystic Fibrosis. That is a progressive disease, meaning it progressively worsens in symptoms AND in deterioration of the organs. Fibro does not destroy organs or tissue or muscle (at least that we know of at this point). That doesn't mean that we can't develop new or worsening symptoms of fibro. And, who knows what we will learn about fibro in years to come? The stress of a chronic illness of ANY kind takes a toll on a person.

It is frustrating, because we don't always know if it's fibro or some other illness. I didn't realize fibro could cause so many issues. I've always had the tenderness to touch, and some fatigue, but never fog or muscle cramps, etc. Now, I seem to have every fibro symptom on the list and then some.

I get a lot of tense muscles. I can't relax because of pain, so it probably comes from that. My muscles in my shoulders and neck cramp on me - probably from the OA.

Thanks Stacey. I get the distinction now. With issues and problems like these, it's important to keep the information correct. I would hate to inadvertently insult someone!

And thank you Julie for the info on Wellbutrin. When I mentioned the clarity to my docs, they all seemed surprised. As far as muscle relaxers go, because of my OA, I was compensating with opposite muscles, so I was prescribed Tizanidine to help relax them. All of the tensing from Fibro happened later, so the Tiz isn't doing much for that. I am thinking about trying a mouth guard. From what I've heard though, most people spit them out in their sleep. But, who knows? Maybe I won't!

Thanks again guys. Cheers!

Hi Bree. Your earlier post is what got me started today. Thanks! I didn't know about the knees being a tender point, but it makes sense to me too. My knees have been killing me, and I was surprised that they were one of the few places I didn't have OA. I feel like I have to massage them all the time.

So far the muscle tension is in my L foot and jaw. I hope that's it. The jaw thing is already creating collateral damage. My teeth have shifted and I keep biting my lower lip. I feel so bad for it. It wasn't doing anything wrong, and it's constantly getting mangled! :-(

I do it too. I try so hard to relax, and then in just a few minutes I'll find I'm tensing yet another muscle. I get headaches from doing it sometimes.

Thanks for the warm welcome. I have learned so much by reading the posts. It's great that the people are pretty cool too! I'll definitely be bouncing around a few of the forums.