Could it be?

[leezon]

Hey guys and girls, I'm going try to make this as short as possible but I need to throw it out there to see what you all think.

I'm a 30yr old male and around 5 years ago I started having chest and back pain with dizziness and foggy head. I ended up in the ER at least once every couple of months over the next 2 years thinking I was having a heart attack of some kind. Everything always came out fine and I had all the stress tests etc and tested for everything else (head scans etc).. all came back fine.. So over the next few years I just got super depressed with constantly having no energy, feeling tired and achy all the time etc... after about a year of just 'living with it' I stopped worrying about the symptoms and just dealt with them.

So now this is 5 years later and I'm just so dam sick of these symptoms. So I thought I'd go back into trying to figure out what is going on. Also I now have an 8 month old daughter and it upsets me a lot that I've got pain and feeling dizzy, tired all the time so I can't interact with her as much as I want to. My Fiancee has been great with me 'not feeling great' a lot of the time , but I can see she gets a little annoyed when I can't help her with some of the baby stuff because I have to lie down.

My symptoms are as follows: Chest pain, mostly around the pectoral areas, under arms, neck spreading down arms into hands. Numb tingly arms/hands. Pains in shoulders/shoulder blades and upper back. Pains in knees and general aching of the legs (worse in bed). Can't sleep, constantly tossing and turning lucky if I get a few hours per night. Itchy skin (more so lately, specially when trying to sleep) Always wake up feeling like I've been in 3 rounds with Mike Tyson.. no energy, achy muscles, Dizziness, foggy head etc. Occasionally memory sucks. Body (specially arms/legs) get very cold some times and then I can feel quite hot other times.

The pains come and go and change in area, although almost always there in some place.

I am self employed and pay $800 for my daughters child care alone, then I have my rent, other bills etc... so right now I cant afford health care. So I just wanted to get a general feeling of if this sounded familiar to those that have been diagnosed.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Forgetmenot]

Welcome lee. First off has your Pcp mention fibro to u.if not ask them what they think about it. Yes u do sound as you have fibro if all test are clear but I'm no Dr and only a train Dr can tell you.
Fibro pain tends to move around the body to. U can hurt for weeks in the arms then wake up one day with no pain at all and find the pain in your back. A lot of times theres more then one pain at a time.i get an all over flu.and body ach most of the day. Only pain killers take it away for a few hours.
It's there all the time 24/7.
A lot of men have this illness to. And I understand that work is something we have to do,I'm a stay at home mum of four.my OH has to work .it wasn't a choose I made easy but I just couldn't work anymore.apart from the fact it wasn't a career .but I do feel lost some days from being with other working ppl.
Depression is a big problem with any long term illness.i have to wait to find out I have bipolar .but even if I do or don't the depression of being in pain alone and miss understood is enough to make anyone feel at the end of there rope.
So first things first go ask the Dr what they think. And if your Dr is someone who don't believe in fibro find one who does. Getting the right meds to help u sleep and cope with pain are key to staying at work.for the first time in years I. Sleeping for six hours in one go. But if I forget my pills I. Awake all night. Sleep helps me cope with pain and depression. And pls read through what other have wrote here. And pl post the more of us stick together the better. It's a long road to getting a Dr to say yes u have this most ppl here took a few years. Good luck

 

[1sweed]

leezon,
First off hello and welcome to the forum. I think it would be best for you to ask your doctor to refer you to a Rheumatologist. These are the doctors that focus on muscle and joint, illnesses and pain. If you don't have insurance then try to find a government run healthcare building or free clinic. The gov ones often charge on a sliding scale going by your income and often care can be gotten for much less then going to a professional on your own. Look for Family Health Centers.
Otherwise your symptoms to sound like fibro, as pain that comes and goes, and generally when all tests are normal it stands out like a big red flag. But in the meantime please read through the general fibro posts, as well as, the chronic pain and alternative methods section. All through the forum members offer great tips and coping skills and thus makes this site worthwhile.
Please join in and ask more questions and post answers to other folks. This forum is a great place to make new cyber friends who will give you added comfort and support on the days you just can not take it anymore and need to vent, and on the days when relief comes as well.
Glad you found us and I hope you will come back often.

 

[cmetryme]

Lee, its good to see you are doing your research. There is a test you can do to see if its fibro.
There are pressure points that you can have someone touch for you. If you ave pain in I believe in right of them, you have fibro. Keep doing your research,its so important. The more you know the better the doctors and people around you will understand and help you.
Keep coming to the forum and ask questions.
I'm here if you need help n answers.