Fibromyalgia Symptoms Explained

Fibromyalgia is a syndrome (fibromyalgia syndrome, or FMS), or a cluster of problems. People who have fibromyalgia suffer with pain, either all over or in particular places, have sleeping problems, are overwhelmingly tired and may have many other symptoms.

Five to ten per cent of the population has fibromyalgia. Most of them are women, but men and children do experience the symptoms, too.

Pain is the most distinguishing characteristic of fibromyalgia. Medically, it’s described as generalized musculoskeletal aches, pain and stiffness. For the pain to be diagnosed as fibromyalgia, it has to be present in all four body quadrants (arms and legs) for at least 3 months, and there has to be pain when pressure is applied to at least 11 of the 18 identified trigger points.

That’s the medical description. Here is how people with fibromyalgia describe it.

“I can hardly move because of the pain I’m in. I’m fighting to stay mobile.”

“There is no way to describe the pain. You live with it on a daily basis.”

“What people don’t realize is that I am in pain all the time, every day.”

“Sometimes you think, no big deal, it’s just pain. It’s not life threatening. Sometimes you wish it was. At least there’d be an end in sight.”

The pain waxes and wanes, varying in intensity. People have good days and bad days. Some days it’s not too bad; some days it’s pretty much disabling. The pain of fibromyalgia often gets worse on cold or humid days, when you haven’t slept well, when you are too inactive or too active, when you are stressed or when your hormones change.

The second most disabling characteristic of fibromyalgia is fatigue. Recent findings suggest that the fatigue is due to a stage four sleep disorder called alpha EEG anomaly. During deep stage four sleep, the brain has bursts of awake-like activity, so there is not enough undisturbed deep sleep for the body to get sufficient rest.

In addition to alpha EEG anomaly, many FMS sufferers also have sleep apnea, upper airway resistance syndrome, bruxism (teeth grinding during sleep), limb movement and jerking and restless leg syndrome. All of these contribute to the fatigue of fibromyalgia.

Again, this is how fibromyalgia sufferers describe their fatigue.

“The fatigue is worse than the pain.”

“Some days going to the bathroom feels like a ten-mile hike.”

“On bad days, all I can do is turn on the TV for the kiddies and veg with them.”

Pain and fatigue are the most disabling features of fibromyalgia, but there are other distressing symptoms, too. 40-70 per cent of fibromyalgia sufferers experience irritable bowel syndrome or other gastrointestinal problems. Constipation and diarrhea, abdominal pain, excessive gassiness, nausea and gastroesophageal reflux are common.

Many fibromyalgia sufferers are distressed by associated mental and emotional problems that manifest themselves alongside the physical ailments. Anxiety and depression are common. It’s not known whether they are independent factors, or if they are related to living in constant pain and fatigue and the social stigma of fibromyalgia. People also complain of confusion, experiencing difficulty thinking clearly and a reduction in ability to perform mental tasks. This overall mental fogginess has been termed “fibro fog.”

Other symptoms of fibromyalgia include headaches, restless leg syndrome, skin sensitivity and rashes, dry eyes and mouth, Reynaud’s syndrome, and various neurological problems.

Fibromyalgia is an invisible disease. Sufferers look fine on the surface. However, under their outward appearance they are often exhausted and in excruciating pain. Fibromyalgia is a chronic illness that is, at its worst, incredibly disabling. The symptoms have to be managed, and even then the pain and fatigue wax and wane. It’s a difficult disease to live with, but it’s not hopeless. Medical care and lifestyle management can make a big difference in how you feel if you are suffering from fibromyalgia.

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Getting Diagnosed With Fibromyalgia

The first step in getting suspected fibromyalgia diagnosed is to find a physician, nurse practitioner or other health care provider who is knowledgeable and compassionate. Maybe it should be the other way around: compassionate and knowledgeable.

The only sure way to find the right health care provider is by trial and error. You can narrow the field by talking to other people, especially people with fibromyalgia or who suffer some kind of chronic pain, and asking for recommendations. Rheumatologists are specialists in treating fibromyalgia, but many times an internist or family doctor is just as knowledgeable and helpful as a specialist.

Make an appointment with your chosen health care provider and tell him or her your story. Describe your pain and other symptoms and tell her how long you have had them. Answer their questions, and get a sense for how you are being treated. If you feel disrespected, or that you are not being taken seriously, make an appointment with a different health care provider. Keep going until you find a professional that you can relate to. Diagnosing and treating fibromyalgia is a partnership between you and your healthcare provider, and you need to be able to work together on this.

You can expect that a health care provider who is knowledgeable about fibromyalgia will take a health history, perform a physical examination, do some blood work and perform a point tenderness test. That’s the minimum.

The blood work will usually be to make sure there aren’t other problems, like rheumatoid arthritis, causing your symptoms. The real “test” for fibromyalgia is trigger point tenderness. The doctor will press on 18 specific areas of your body to test for tenderness. If you have achiness all over and are unusually tender over 11 or more of these trigger points, they will usually conclude that you have fibromyalgia.

Even this is a bit tenuous, though, because, as you know, the pain of fibromyalgia comes and goes. There are many other trigger points over your body that may be tender. The ones that are used for diagnosis were chosen by researchers as the ones most commonly affected.

Until recently, there have been no diagnostic tests for fibromyalgia, other than trigger point tenderness. A few tests are beginning to be used now, though. Your doctor may or may not order these tests; they are not widely used yet and their usefulness hasn’t been proven. The tests are:

 Cytokine levels, which are often abnormal in people with fibromyalgia.  APA assay (antipolymer antibody). APA levels are thought to be elevated in people with fibromyalgia.  Sleep study. This may be done both because most FMS patients have sleep abnormalities, so an abnormal sleep test makes the diagnosis clearer, and to identify and treat specific sleep problems.  MRI or PET scan. People with fibromyalgia have abnormalities in both MRI and PET scan.  EEG. Some researchers have discovered EEG abnormalities in people with fibromyalgia.

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Fibromyalgia and Exercise

Fibromyalgia and Exercise

The most effective treatment for fibromyalgia is exercise. Which seems totally weird, because most people with fibromyalgia hurt worse and are more fatigued after exercise, and they may feel that way for days. The key is the right amount of the right kinds of exercise.

If you are new to exercising within the constraints of fibromyalgia, it may be helpful to enlist the help of a trainer, physical therapist or exercise physiologist to design a program specifically for you. Every person with fibromyalgia has a different exercise capacity, so you need an individualized program.

Another important concept related to exercise is your “baseline.” Each person has a different baseline. It is the level of exercise that you can maintain over time. It does not mean that you are pain-free, but that the pain doesn’t interfere with your lifestyle. You also need to remember that you’ll always have good days and bad days. You don’t stop or reduce your exercise because of a bad day. (Although you may reduce it for a while if you have a bad flare-up that lasts days or weeks.)

Exercise training for someone with fibromyalgia begins with stretching. Stretching reduces the stiffness and keeps ligaments and tendons from shortening over time. Stretching should be gentle and it should feel good. It is usually a good idea to warm your muscles with mild aerobic activity, such as walking, for a few minutes before stretching.

Daily low-impact, gentle aerobic exercise is the next step. Aerobic exercise has tons of health benefits. It specifically helps reduce fibromyalgia symptoms because it improves flexibility, causes your body to release endorphins and other happy chemicals and reduces stress. Walking and bicycling are excellent low-impact exercises. It is important to start at a level suitable to where you are and increase your level of exercise slowly. If you get fatigued after five minutes of walking, start there and increase your time by a minute or two every week or two.

Some activities are especially good for fibromyalgia. Water aerobics and swimming are wonderful. The buoyancy of the water supports your sore muscles and allows you to exercise with less pain. Swimming has a double benefit of gentle stretching along with aerobic exercise.

Tai Chi and Qi Gong and Yoga emphasize slow, gentle movements that are ideal for people with fibromyalgia. All three exercises include breathing and focusing, which decrease stress. You also learn to be aware of your body and learn to recognize signs of stress.

Pilates is another exercise system where you work with your body, stretching and toning it. Pilates is a non-weight bearing exercise, like chair aerobics. It is a gentle way to tone your body, and gentle is the word for exercising with fibromyalgia.

People with fibromyalgia can add some strength training slowly as they build up exercise tolerance. Resistance bands provide plenty of strength training for a while. Strength training must be undertaken carefully and gently, and it might be wise to get help from an exercise professional before adding it. There are many benefits to strength training, and it could be a very beneficial addition to your exercise, especially when you are feeling well.

Whether we are talking about exercise or sleep, pacing and routine are important if you have fibromyalgia. Going to bed and getting up at the same time every day helps with sleep. Exercising at the same time every day helps with exercise. Your body begins to respond to routine.

Exercise must be paced, too. That means starting at a low level, increasing gradually, and incorporating rest into your routine. You exercise, then rest, then exercise some more. Over time, you can shorten the rest periods and/or lengthen the exercise periods. Rhythm and pacing make a big difference in how much exercise you can tolerate.

It is recommended that you consult your doctor before starting any new exercise regime.

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Diet Linked to Fibromyalgia?

With the controversy over Fibromyalgia, it can be hard to find a doctor who will diagnose you correctly, much less prescribe treatment options that will work for you. But thanks to secondary diagnostic options like the Internet and networks of educated and caring friends, treating your Fibromyalgia can be easier. One method of treating Fibromyalgia that many sufferers agree helps is changing your diet. While there is no ironclad recipe of foods to include and foods to avoid, you can use these tips as a starting point to easing your Fibromyalgia symptoms. The key here is remembering what works for some, doesn’t work for all. It will take some time and some experimentation to figure out the right diet modifications for your Fibromyalgia.

• Try to balance your diet. While there is no consensus as to the best diet for treating Fibromyalgia, the first goal of any sufferer is to get the body in as optimum condition as possible. Cut down on fatty foods and try to eat more veggies and fruit. Drink more water to help flush everything through your system. Cut down drastically on junk food. It will be much easier to make any further changes in your eating habits once you’ve started eating right to begin with.

• Take in more protein and less carbs. Even if you don’t suffer from Fibromyalgia, this is sound advice. Lean proteins, like skinless chicken, lean beef and fish, are an excellent and healthy way to fuel your body. They help keep energy levels high and can even help with hypoglycemia. The carbs, on the other hand, help the body to make insulin, which in small doses is good, but if your body makes too much, it can lead to your system storing fat. This isn’t healthy for anyone and can be even unhealthier for those suffering from Fibromyalgia.

• Avoid caffeine and anything that has caffeine in it. This may be close to impossible when you consider the popularity of coffee and soft drinks today, but caffeine is a diuretic and can exacerbate IBS symptoms that are common with Fibromyalgia. This means no caffeinated pop and also no chocolate or coffee. If you simply can’t live without these things, try to limit them the best you can or opt for caffeine-free varieties.

• Try to eliminate alcohol consumption. Not only can the combination of many common prescription medications and alcohol be very bad for you, even alcohol on its own can make symptoms worse. Alcohol can aggravate the stomach and digestive tract and cause increased bowel problems.

• Finally, try to reduce or eliminate refined white sugar from your diet. Again, this falls under the category of sound medical advice to anyone, but for Fibromyalgia sufferers, it’s an especially good idea. Not only can sugar disrupt sleep patters if too much is eaten, it can harm your immune system and tests have shown that Fibromyalgia patients report fewer symptoms and less severe symptoms when they decreased their sugar intake.

Treating your Fibromyalgia can be a chore, especially when some doctors won’t even admit it exists. But there are significant steps you can take at home to decrease your Fibromyalgia symptoms by changing what you eat for the better. While everyone may get different results, these tips will hopefully have you on your way to a healthier tomorrow.

THE FIBROMYALGIA-REVERSING BREAKTHROUGH - A SCIENTIFIC BREAKTHROUGH TECHNOLOGY FOR CURING FIBROMYALGIA

Discover How You Can Combat The Constant Fatigue & Debilitating Pain of Fibromyalgia With 6 All-Natural Simple Methods. Click text below

Eliminate/Reverse Fibromyalgia Now