Anybody have fibromyalgia?

[chicmom]

Gritsar, thank you for that info. My sister has some type of reumatoid arthritis, and I've always thought there might be something wrong with me because I have aches and pains all the time. I just power through them. I'm not the kind of person who likes to get all kinds of medical tests......I will definitely try some vitamins though!

 

[Boyd]

My wife has had Fibro for close to 15-16 years (diagnosed) now. Before she was preggers, she was taking a regular dose of Skalexan, and ibuprofen for it. Another thing that helped was a daily regimen of exercise. Nothing heavy duty, but enough to maintain the muscle already in place. It was a great way to keep her joints and muscles limber and actually seemed to reduce the pain.

 

[justbugged]

I was first diagnosed with Fibromyalgia in 1986. I have had the trigger point injections, and I can't say that it made any difference. I do like the vitamin D. I am going to have to look into V D3 I haven't tried that yet. The only thing I have found that helps some has been narcotics. It makes the doctors crazy. But every time I try the latest greatest cure all drug, I have bad reactions to them. They keep trying to tell me that I am depressed, but I don't believe them. I have too much to do and am very self entertaining. When I have rare days of feeling well, I just hope people can keep up with me. But most of the time now I can hardly move.

I can't remember not being in physical pain. I often wonder if it is more the simple muscle pain, my bones hurt. Exercise for me just seems to set other things off. I was exercising at a ladies only gym, and now I have bursitis in my hips. Every time something starts to hurt I can be fairly certain that it will hurt for what seems to be the rest of my life. I wish that I could be more upbeat about this, but this has been my experience. I am aware that most people find better ways of coping with FM.

The mental fog is a real pain to live with also. Not moving is the worst thing I can do. I can't exercise, but I can't be still. I stretch as much as I can. I also find that I have to change positions fairly often. It is sometimes a pain in the neck, but it is just the way it is.

Oh I almost forgot the feet thing. The nerves to my feet are not healthy. This makes walking feel like walking on knives and burning coal. The medication Lyrica helps some with this, but I can't count on it all the time. The pain won't kill you. It is just the way it is.

 

[cmjust0]

Quote:
You can absolutely get D3 supplements! The FDA recommended dose is still only like 400iu, but most supplements are >1000iu. Seems like 2000iu is pretty common, but they also make 5000iu's as well.

I just took one, as a matter of fact.

Bear in mind, though, that it's a FAT SOLUBLE substance...meaning, it builds up. You can O/D on it, though what I've read indicates that you'd have to take many hundreds of thousands of IU's a day for a long period of time. I would definitely suggest going to the doc, having them do a 25-hydroxyvitamin-d test (NOT a 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin-d, as that's the wrong test!) to get a baseline. If you don't supplement, and you don't get out in the sun much...or if you wear sunscreen, cosmetics with SPF, hats, sunglasses, long sleeves, long pants, and all the other stuff we've all been instructed to do...your levels are most likely deficient.

Personally, I believe Vit. D3 deficiency to be reaching epidemic proportions in this country. But, that's just an opinion.

Go get checked, though.

 

[cmjust0]

Quote:
Let me ask you this, if it's not too personal...

Did your wife notice any improvement in her fibro symptoms while she was pregnant?

 

[Frogtown]

I want to thank everybody for posting. I did go to a rheumatologist last year. After several MRIs, Xrays, nerve conduction study, she told me I had 1 bulging disc and mild arthritis, but nothing that would cause the pain I am in daily. She told me to my face "I don't know why you hurt, and there is nothing I can do for you". I then went to a chiropractor, after two hours of talking about all the tests and where I hurt, he also told me he could not help me. He didn't even charge me for the two hours. He recommended that I see a neurologist. Saw him in June. Told me to come back in 3 months becuase it was going to take that long to shift through all the tests I had done last year. I got to talked done to 1 month later. Went back, his nurse practioner concured with the rheumatologist, there was nothing in the mris that would be causing all my pain. She put me on Lyrica, which has helped ALOT!!! I take it and Nortriptyline that my regular doctor put me on. Both help, but I still hurt alot. I feel tired ALL the time. I hurt from my head to my feet. The nurse practioner mentioned target point injections, I can't stand for anybody to touch my back it just hurts too much. Would the shots not hurt worse?

I am a very outdoorsy person. I used to go horseback riding for 5 or 6 hours a day, three days a week. I love to go fishing, fourwheeling, hiking, and many more things. With all of this I have been able to ride a horse in two years now. Riding in a car for a few hours will put me out of commision for days. Not being able to do these things really works on my mind.

 

[AmyJ]

I was diagnosed with it about 5 years ago by my rheumatologist. I usually still have pain everyday, some days not so bad. I am taking vitamins and flexeril ( muscle relaxer) at night so I can sleep. It has helped alot from where I was in the beginning. I started symptoms a few months after my daughter was born. I couldnt get out of bed I was so tired and in so much pain. I just push through it, but try not to overdo as I feel worse afterwards. If I dont do anything, thats worse for me too. You just have to find a good medium, but its hard. I do feel bad when I cant do things with my kids because I'm not feeling well because of the pain or I am just too exhausted.

 

[schellie69]

I have it and it took me 3 and 1/2 years of pain to get to a pain specialist who figured out what was wrong, I have fibromyalgia and spinal arthritis and arthritis in my hips, I take pain medication a muscle relaxer and a anti-inflammatory, plus a pill to help me sleep. I have found that when I get a good night sleep it makes a big difference. I have tried all different vitamins the only ones I found that did any good was the b vitamins. I never tried the trigger point shots, but did get shots in the 2 bulging disks in my neck those helped a bunch. I am so thank full I found my doctor without him I don't think I would be here today. He gave me back my life. All the medications I take are generics so I can afford them without insurance.

 

[oesdog]

Yeap - I guess you can add my name.

I have been in so much pain that I have literally had to crawl on the floor to get the things done that I need to do.
I couldn’t walk the length of a room. 3 yrs ago I was not able to walk without a cane. My heart goes out to you all it is an incredibly painful thing and doesn’t seem to totally go away. I am better in warmer weather and less stress is good! Something that did come up though - My Mother had Polio when she was 16 yrs old she is now in her late 70s and has post polio syndrome. My sister who is in her 50s has MS. - we all complain of similar symptoms and I wonder if there is a connection? Though I have been told by the medical profession that there is not. I wonder if anyone else with Fibro has relatives with other things like it?????????


Oesdog -

 

[Whispering Winds]

When I started getting adjustments from the chiro, they suspected I had it because the massage therapist could barely put her fingers on a pressure point that wasn't making me draw up. I have a mild form, and God love those of you here that have it bad . . .my heart goes out to you. BUT, my chiro had vitamins that I took, they weren't cheap $28 a bottle but those things were wonderful. The adjustments helped it too. He told me that if I knew I was going to be doing something strenuous that day, to take 2-3 more before I did it, and it would help ease the aftereffects of it, and he was right. Would well be worth checking into with a chiro. They are much more down to earth about listening to us and our bodies and won't tell us its "a non-existence disease". What a jerk doctor.