so you're sitting here wondering what on god's green earth is fibromyalgia?
fibromyalgia is chronic, widespread pain, extreme fatigue, and heightened sensitivity to pain and pressure points.
the most common symptoms are:
- severe fatigue, weakness
- muscle pain, sore to the touch (like a bruise)
- nerve pain, tingling skin
- problems concentrating
- insomnia
- digestive problems (ibs)
- migraines
- systematic hypoglycemia
the cause of fibro is unknown.
the treatment plan is really just symptom management, and giving yourself time to adjust to your new body.
while there are a few fibromyalgia medications on the market (lyrica, cymbalta, etc.), how much they actually help varies.
some people's lives are back to normal on meds, and some people (yours truly) aren't helped at all by them.
the doctor might try to prescribe narcotics, but i don't really recommend that... ever seen house?
i do, however, recomment supplements. they have given me the ability to get out of bed again! i can't recommend them enough. i take the ones listed here, plus this organic, plant-based multivitamin. this article also does an incredible job explaining the science behind the supplements.
i do, however, recomment supplements. they have given me the ability to get out of bed again! i can't recommend them enough. i take the ones listed here, plus this organic, plant-based multivitamin. this article also does an incredible job explaining the science behind the supplements.
so what can you do?
go to the library and research. google.
learn to listen to your body. don't push yourself farther than you should.
exercise frequently, but gently.
eat right. give your body what it needs.
sleep. a lot.
pray, and never give up.
rebekah's notes:
since my diagnosis, i have learned so much.
things i took for granted i now realize are a precious gift of god.
life is difficult, but it is beautiful.
i am blessed beyond what i deserve. when the pain gets unbearable, i am quickly reminded what those blessings are - a family who is understands and encourages me, a God who sustains me, a place to stay while i sort out my future, and a body that amazes me daily.
fibromyalgia might fight me, but nothing is going to hold me back.
"i can do all things through christ, who strengthens me."
phil 4:13
fibromyalgia rescources:
need help?
please ask me anything! nelsonrr[at]mymail[dot]vcu[dot]edu.
Thank you for sharing your story.
ReplyDeleteYou are so strong and honest.
My mom has fibromyalgia as well and she has good days and bad days.
Best of luck reaching your degree goals. You are such an inspiration!
i have seen commercials for fibro meds and I never knew what it was. I love your honesty. Good luck with all you are working towards!
ReplyDeleteHey Rebekah!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for your comments on my blog. I'm especially grateful because they have led me to your lovely site! I am incredibly touched by your story. It's actually the first about me page I've read that I feel I can relate to on a deeper level.
I know how difficult and frustrating dealing with a painful health condition can be, especially when the docs can't seem to help. I think your philosophy is quite similar to mine - "pray and never give up!".
Anyways, I wanted to let you know you are BEAUTIFUL and BRAVE and I can't wait to "follow" your journey!
Much love,
Susan
Hi, Rebekah. I just found your blog. I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia too (as well as chronic migraine syndrome... bad, bad combo). I eat healthy the same way you do. While my symptoms aren't completely gone, they've gotten so much better since I started eating a healthy, all-natural diet and began exercising.
ReplyDeleteI really hate talking about it because I feel like I'm complaining and I hate being pitied (and being treated like I'm a baby just because I have an illness), so I really admire that you're comfortable talking about it. You rock. :)
Hey! It's a bummer your email isn't working. :\
ReplyDeleteI think I'm doing as well as I can. Thank you for asking. :) I started getting sick around 2007 and at that point I could barely get out of bed, and people touching me was, like you said, as painful as someone touching a bruise. I was tested out the yin-yang for everything imaginable, especially Lyme-disease (which I got a spinal tap to find, yay :|) and the final diagnosis was fibromyalgia with chronic migraine syndrome, as well as a little bit of chronic fatigue syndrome, and all the meds I've been put on have either made me sick or just didn't do anything. I ended up seeing a CFS specialist at Johns Hopkins for a study he was a conducting and he said I didn't have ALL of the symptoms for it so I probably only have the first two. But, the specialist recommended me to a physiotherapist whose office is just a few minutes away from where I live, and I've been seeing her for over a year now. Since she got me moving and then I decided on my own to follow a natural diet, I've improved a lot. Not 100% better but way better than before. I used to see my PT once a week and she just recently told me I only need to see her once a month! :D Sorry for ranting, haha...
About lunch - that'd be great! I'm not sure when I can. My cousins live in Richmond too but I'm almost never down there. I do visit my grandparent every few months in Fluvanna so it'd probably be easy to stop by. :)
Sorry for the length of this! :O
Thanks for stopping by my blog. I have fibromyalgia too and know just how you feel. I have been blaming myself for being lazy or eating the wrong things for YEARS until I got my diagnosis a few months ago. It was honestly a relief just to know what is wrong. I have some articles I could send you about the new research going on about FM, they are finding real chemicals it is associated with, etc, which proves even more that its not all in our head (something some members of my family still think that really hurts my feelings!) Anyway, sorry I was a Biology major and am a science nerd but let me know if you are interested (or if you already know all that stuff and I am just being redundant) :)
ReplyDeleteHAHAHA I love the new picture here.
ReplyDeleteOh my gosh I just read this page again and never realized that all of this...
ReplyDelete"The most common complaints are:
- severe fatigue, weakness
- muscle pain, sore to the touch (like a bruise)
- nerve pain, tingling skin
- problems concentrating
- insomnia
- digestive problems (ibs)
- migraines
- systematic hypoglycemia"
could be related. What I mean specifically is that I am thinking more and more that maybe all of my nerve pain is the same thing as my fibro pain...and I didn't know that about hypoglycemia, something that I also have. I have never met anyone else with fibro and I want to know how awesome it is to be able to talk to you through blogging!
Rebekah,
ReplyDeleteThanks for your encouraging words about my Rest Ministries devotionals. That you would think I am optimistic amazes me, since I struggle so much with seeing the negative side of things, so if that is coming through, that is definitely God's work!
One of my daughters went to VCU for awhile. I don't get to Richmond much, but I love the Ginter Gardens, Art Musum, and Maymont.
I enjoyed looking at your blog and you have a wealth of helpeful information. I learned a few things myself, since I can definitely see the correlation between what I eat and my pain.
I pray God's blessings on your school and health and help to others. Thanks again!
Blessings,
Bronlynn
Hi! I was wondering if you wouldn't mind emailing me with any tips you have for running with fibro. I need help!
ReplyDeleteAlso, what sort of diet do you follow? I'm being overloaded with so much info and none of it makes sense and all contradicts one another. Do you avoid gluten? Sugar? Dairy? Help
melissanibbles@gmail.com
Thank you so much!!!!