Glad to have found this group

[LornE1982]

I came across this group during the several month wait until I can get an appointment with a rheumatologist. I have had symptoms for about ten months. I started with pain and stiffness in my knees. It felt like there was one of those air filled arm bands that kids use for swimming inside my leg. There was a little bit of swelling but X-rays came out normal.

I've tried all kinds of random home treatments (paleo diet, physical therapy exercises, glucosamine) and nothing helps permanently. Right now my main symptoms are still knee pain (especially when climbing stairs) and some random pains that come and go in my upper back and right fingers and toes. The soles of my feet hurt a lot, too. The best way I can think to describe it is that my joints feel like they have the flu.

I'm hoping that fibromyalgia is my answer since I'm tired of chasing down dead ends and going for pointless tests that show that I'm perfectly healthy, yet feeling like I'm about 60 years older than I actually am (33). I'm looking forward to meeting some people who are dealing with the same day to day issues that I am and sharing understanding and good ideas.

 

[DK_engineer]

Hello LornE1982, welcome & glad to meet you

It is tough to wait for test results or appointments, all the while wondering what's going on with your body. My diagnosis went relatively fast, but I was still really impatient.

It's really great you are trying to do things to help improve your health. This illness affects each person a little differently; the folks on this forum should give you a pretty good cross section of experiences.

If you are not already I recommend keeping a written log of your symptoms. Especially as you are experimenting with home treatment - the written log will help you keep track of what is helpful.

Two of the biggest factors that affect fibromyalgia symptoms are sleep and stress. People with fibromyalgia tend to skip out of the deeper stage 3 and 4 sleep (they call it alpha wave intrusion) and that makes all the symptoms worse. Do everything you can to get good sleep. Stress control such as simple breathing exercises are helpful too.

Some people are too ill to exercise, but if you can it will help. I've always done sports - fibromyalgia has been a big adjustment for me because you have to go slow. I stick to mild and moderate exercise. Swimming is amazing in how much it helps me feel better. Walking is very good too.

Wow, this got pretty long. I hope this is helpful

 

[LornE1982]

Yes, thank you, that is definitely helpful. I have been keeping a log but will try to be more diligent in recording things. I have recently re-joined the gym that I quit largely due to the onset of whatever this is and I have gotten set up with a lot of senior citizen classes and exercise programs!

Thanks again for your input. It's helpful to know people out there are experiencing similar things and don't think I'm crazy!

 

[DK_engineer]

You are definitely not crazy

A lot of people with fibromyalgia have had people tell them they are nuts one way or the other, though. When you hurt and there is no physical injury people sometimes think the pain is somehow a personal failing on your part, but they are wrong. Fibromyalgia involves central nervous system sensitization, which means your spinal column and lower brain are processing nerve signals abnormally. Normally they filter out noise and dampen pain. In people with fibromyalgia they act as an amplifier, particularly for pain signals.

The exercise class is a great idea. Fibromyalgia slows down our recovery rate - that was hard for me to get used to. I try to pay close attention to my body - if I feel sharp pains that don't subside when I rest it is usually time to stop.