I just found out that my 24-year old neice (Erin) has been diagnosed with this. It has only been in the last couple of months that she started having the symptoms. Does anyone have any experience that they can share about this. I ask for prayers, because this looks to be quite a difficult disorder. Unfortunately, the medicine to treat it can cause other problems too, including depression. I am hoping that a renewed focus on diet and mild exercise will make things better.
i know one person with it and unfortunately it is an extremely painful condition for her. she is not living a healthy lifestyle at all though and has really kind of given up fighting it. prayers to your friend, but i'm sure she will fight and live healthier.
I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia in 2001 at the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale. I had spent the previous 5 months bouncing from specialist to specialist in Houston trying to figure out was was wrong with me. The doctors told me that it is diagnosed in women (75%) more often than men, but the majority of men that have fibro are shift workers (which I am). Fibromyalgia really sucks and I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy. It's basically Chronic Fatigue Syndrome coupled with constant musclular ache with a bunch of extra crap thrown in. There really isn't anyway to cure it or fix it. I took muscle relaxers and mild pain medication for awhile, but I stopped because it didn't help that much. Exercising helps somewhat. Its really about learning to live with the symptoms and not pushing yourself too hard. It really is a viscious cycle because the pain causes stress and depression which causes more pain etc etc.
My Mother has it for some years now. Brad descriped it pretty good. It is a difficult disease especially for the mind, like Brad sayd it can defenitly lead to depression. One of the main thing IMHO is the ability to accept that she has the disease and that is will limit her action. If she is able to accept it that can be a big step. Warmth can also help since the pain can be worse when it is cold. I do have to say, my mother is now better then she has been in years. so it can get better.
People who know someone with fibromyalgia might want to have them look into Dr. John E. Sarno. He's best known for his work on back pain and appears to have a very good success rate. One of his most popular books is Healing Back Pain: The Mind-Body Connection. My brother had chronic back pain that was so severe he was considering surgery when he read Sarno's book and was almost completely healed using Sarno's methods. Anyway, Sarno proposes that fibromyalgia is an extreme manifestation of the syndrome that causes a lot of back problems. It seems like even the best conventional treatment for fibromyalgia isn't very successful, so it couldn't hurt to look into Sarno's ideas.
