Dear Fibromyalgia

Category: Fibromyalgia Symptoms

A detailed guide to understanding Fibromyalgia symptoms, early warning signs, and how they are diagnosed.

  • Duloxetine (Cymbalta) Side Effects & Withdrawal. Must Read You Just Cannot Ignore

    We have received so many complaints about duloxetine side effects that we have lost count. Far more disturbing is the number of people who tell us how hard it is to discontinue this drug.

    Decades ago doctors might have told patients taking a drug like Cymbalta that if they experienced anxiety, irritability, or strange sensations after stopping the drug, it was probably their underlying psychological problem returning. Now we know it is withdrawal from the medicine.

    The History of Cymbalta:

    Cymbalta was originally approved by the FDA in 2004 for the treatment of major depression. It is officially an SNRI-type antidepressant. In doctorspeak, that means it is a serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor and is somewhat similar to other antidepressants such as Effexor (venlafaxine) and Pristiq (desvenlafaxine).

    The FDA also approved Cymbalta to treat nerve pain associated with diabetes in 2004. In 2007 the drug got a green light for anxiety and in 2008 the FDA agreed that it could ease the discomfort associated with fibromyalgia. It was also approved to treat musculoskeletal pain associated with arthritis and lower back pain in 2010.

    In other words, there was a drug that could relieve your blues and your aches and pains. And the drug company that makes Cymbalta (Lilly) has been aggressively marketing it as a good way to deal with chronic low back pain and osteoarthritis. Perhaps you have seen the commercials on TV promoting the pain-relieving power of the drug with the slogan “Cymbalta can help.” It sounds almost too good to be true.

    Ah…and there is the rub. Although there is a long list of serious side effects mentioned during the commercial, the video images seem quite reassuring and trump the scary message the FDA requires for this medication. So, let’s set the record straight. Here, without visual interference, are a list of potential complications associated with this medication.

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    Cymbalta (Duloxetine) Side Effects

    • Nausea, stomach pain, constipation, diarrhea, decreased appetite, vomiting
    • Dry mouth
    • Insomnia, anxiety, tremor
    • Dizziness, fatigue, sleepiness
    • Sweating, hot flashes
    • Blurred vision
    • Headache
    • Sexual dysfunction, lowered libido, erection difficulties, lack of orgasm
    • Liver damage
    • Serious skin reactions, rash, hives (requires immediate MD assistance!)
    • Glaucoma
    • Irregular heart rhythms
    • Bleeding problems
    • Blood pressure problems
    • Interaction with other drugs (leading to serotonin syndrome among other reactions)
    • Pneumonia
    • Seizures
    • Depressed mood, suicidal thoughts and behavior, suicide

    Such a long list of side effects makes your eyes glaze over after the top 3 or 4. That is why we have included stories from real people so you can better understand what these complications feel like.

    Stopping Cymbalta:

    Even though such side effects are scary, there is another problem with Cymbalta. When people try to stop taking this drug they frequently report unpleasant withdrawal symptoms. An organization (QuarterWatch) that monitors the FDA’s database of serious adverse drug events has noted that:

    “We observed a signal for serious drug withdrawal symptoms associated with duloxetine (CYMBALTA), a widely used antidepressant that is also approved to treat arthritis and back pain, anxiety, and fibromyalgia. In the first quarter of 2012, the FDA received 48 case reports of drug withdrawal identifying duloxetine as the suspect drug. They described a wide spectrum of withdrawal effects that began when the patients stopped the drug, including blackouts, suicidal thoughts, tremors, and nausea. Several cases involved hospitalization.

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    Probing deeper into the scientific record for duloxetine we found that withdrawal symptoms were reported in 44-50% of patients abruptly discontinuing duloxetine at the end of clinical studies for depression, and more than half of this total did not resolve within a week or two. In addition, we identified a serious breakdown at both the FDA and the manufacturer, Eli Lilly, and Company, in providing adequate warnings and instructions about how to manage this common adverse effect.”

    Doctors have taken to calling this “discontinuation syndrome.” These clinical words do not do justice to what it is like to stop antidepressants like Cymbalta, Effexor(venlafaxine), Paxil (paroxetine), Pristiq (desvenlafaxine), or Zoloft (sertraline) suddenly.

    Sudden Withdrawal Symptoms

    Again, a list of symptoms does not do this problem justice. Below you will read some stories from people who have posted their comments to this website. We would love to hear your story, positive or negative. Share your experience with Cymbalta or any other antidepressant below.

    Should you wish to learn more about dealing with depression through some other strategies, we offer our Guide to Dealing with Depression. You will also find a whole chapter on prescribing mistakes doctors make when treating depression and fibromyalgia in our book, Top Screwups Doctors Make and How to Avoid Them.

    Cymbalta Withdrawal Stories from Readers

    – D.G. shares a tragic story:

    “My lovely, young daughter-in law, who was about to celebrate her 29th birthday, was prescribed Cymbalta, Klonopin, and Ambien and has committed suicide.
    “She told her physician and her therapist that she’d had thoughts of suicide but no one took her seriously. She suffered from depression, as well as an eating disorder, and had very low body weight. She also used alcohol.
    “Please remind your readers of the potentially disastrous effects these chemicals can cause when taken carelessly or in combination with alcohol.”

    This from – P.J.:
    “I have been on Prozac over the last 20 years off and on and it finally stopped working. The last time I took it about 2 years ago I was taking the generic from Barr – the blue and white capsule. I was feeling as if I were in the deepest dark hole there ever was.

    “My doctor put me on Cymbalta from which I had a lot of side effects such as palpitations, feeling constant dread, panic attacks, sweats, lightheadedness, and a general feeling of not being well.

    “She added Abilify which put me over the edge. I was in the worst depression I have ever been in. Finally, after living like this for several months, I asked to be put back on Prozac. I was taking the generic from Sandoz. When the prescription ran out I ended up on the big blue and white capsules from Barr.

    “Over the last couple of weeks, it has been constant crying spells, arguing with everyone, and feeling pretty low. I talked to my doctor and she wrote the prescription for Sandoz only generic. The blue and white capsules are like taking a placebo. My doctor said she had had other patients who complained of the same thing and she had to write prescriptions for a certain generic or name brand.”

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    – R.P. says:
    “I took Cymbalta for 3 days and thought I’d go nuts. I’m off it now and refuse to try any other drug like this. My main complaint was extreme hot flashes that estrogen wouldn’t help. I thought I’d be given Prozac but was given Cymbalta instead. It was a rough 3 days and I stopped it last night. I am extremely tired yet cannot sleep at night. I think I was sweating even worse and my legs started feeling like I had Lyme disease again. And to be honest, within those 3 days of taking it, I didn’t contemplate suicide, but I had this crappy attitude of “who would care?”
    – Nancy relates how hard it was to get off Cymbalta:
    “It took me 18 months to get off Cymbalta, with no doctor’s help. I can hardly believe that doctors have no exit strategy for this dangerous drug. I had to find this out on my own from reading and as soon as I weaned off that – about a month, the tinnitus that had occurred decreased almost completely. No doctor told me this.”
    — J.K. shares a parent perspective:
    “My daughter experienced severe side effects when trying to come off Cymbalta – she had nausea, vomiting, lost peripheral vision for 24-48 hours, had to shake, etc. This was while she was doing a clinical in a hospital for college. Had she known she would have stayed on it until after clinical. I called the manufacturer and they acted like there were no such side effects from withdrawal.

    “She too took apart the capsules and it took a while, but finally she is free from that drug. I think it is a crime that the manufacturers don’t publish more detailed information concerning withdrawal. They could even make money selling a one-month or two-month step-down prescription so individuals aren’t taking the capsules apart themselves.”
    – P.C. Tells what it is like to switch around from one drug to another:
    “I just turned 52 today. I went on a very low dose of Zoloft about 8 years ago to treat generalized anxiety disorder. It really did help for a long time. I recently have been pretty depressed (however I can cover it up really well) and my psychiatrist switched me to Effexor which was terrible for me. Now I’m trying Cymbalta which has not done anything either except make me feel more anxious and headachy and weird.”

    “I am a registered nurse and I do not understand what the long-term effects of these meds are and I am concerned. I really want to get off and see what I can do naturally for myself.”
    – K.T. tells what it is like to try to stop Cymbalta:
    “Getting off Cymbalta is challenging but not impossible. I, too, experienced light-headedness, dizziness, and “brain zaps.” I described it as being able to “hear my eyes move.” It sounded like the light sabers on Star Wars. Very strange and disconcerting.

    “The key is to do it very very slowly. Take the capsules apart and begin by removing 5 or 10 of the tiny balls inside. Do this for a week or so, then slowly increase the amount you remove each week or two as you can tolerate it.

    “Your doctor will probably be no help at all. Mine wasn’t. He instructed me to wean off over a two to three-week period and I almost lost my mind. I did it myself over about a YEAR or more. Be patient. I am completely off now and feeling GOOD.”
    – Karen’s story:
    “I was prescribed Cymbalta ‘off-label’ to manage fibromyalgia pain When I stopped taking it because it wasn’t delivering on the promised effect of reducing my pain, I became so horribly depressed that I required hospitalization as I had become SUICIDAL!

    “I will NEVER take another anti-depressant for an off-label purpose….such as Elavil/amitriptyline as a “sleep aid” which is very commonly prescribed.

    “I believe it should be criminal to prescribe ANY drug for a purpose other than the one it was approved to treat.”
    – R.H. and Erectile Dysfunction:
    “I’m a 76-year-old man, my libido was very low. Taking Cymbalta for peripheral neuropathy added ED as a side effect of the drug. I had a testosterone blood test; it was 1/3 what the minimum should be. So I’m taking Androgel to raise testosterone levels and it is magic. I have great libido now and am working on minimizing the Cymbalta pills. In the meantime, I have been prescribed Cialis for the ED. Each pill solves the sex problem for a couple of days.”
    – M.O. on stopping Cymbalta:

    “I have the exact symptoms as everyone else and it’s been a week. I only took Cymbalta for 2 months, but the side effects from stopping it are horrible. My doctor didn’t, nor did anyone else tell me, about any side effects and I did read the insert. Most of the time the listed side effects of meds don’t bother me, so I figured no problem.
    “From reading other posts on this website and on other sites, the drug seems to affect every person the same way. I would never have taken it for my neck pain if I had known about the likelihood of side effects. The worst part for me is the dizziness, the brain zings and the sudden burst of tears for no reason. I would never take this drug again. I think the FDA needs to do longer studies on all drugs and be honest with their findings and that doctors should be honest and tell their patients what really happens when you take Cymbalta.”

    Please add your own experience below in the comment section.

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    For More Information Related to Fibromyalgia Visit below sites:

    References:

    Fibromyalgia Contact Us Directly

    Click here to Contact us Directly on Inbox

    Official Fibromyalgia Blogs

    Click here to Get the latest Chronic illness Updates

    Fibromyalgia Stores

    Click here to Visit Fibromyalgia Store

  • How Shoulder Pain and Fibromyalgia are Related

    Shoulder pain is really just pain in the joints and muscles in the shoulder area that may or may not limit what your arm can do.

    Much of this pain originates in the tissues and bones in the shoulder, and you might also only feel the pain in the middle of physical activity or when you move your arms.  Other times you might feel pain in your shoulder nonstop.

    There are multiple questions you probably have if you suffer from shoulder pain, one of which is if there is any relation between fibromyalgia and shoulder pain.  But in order to understand this correlation, it’s also critically important to understand what the causes of shoulder pain are what it is exactly.

    The Causes of Shoulder Pain

    The shoulder consists of three different bones. The upper arm bone, the shoulder blade, and the collar bone.  The arm bone sits in a socket in your shoulder blade, and the muscles and tendons ensure that the arm is secure in this socket. When we feel pain in our shoulder(s), it is usually due to inflammation or a tear in the tendons, arthritis, nerve damage, an infection, a fracture, or a broken bone.

    Tendons are the cords that hold our muscles to our bones, but just like nearly anything else, they can and do wear down over time. People who are regularly involved in physical activity will see that their tendons will wear down much faster than people who don’t.

    As our tendons wear down, it is much more likely for them to be torn or suffer injury.  This injury can develop over time or can happen all of a sudden, and if they are bad, the tendon can be completely split.

    Something else that can cause shoulder pain is when the shoulder blade puts pressure on the tissues. When the arm lifts or is involved in any physical activity, the tissues rub against the top of the shoulder blade, which can, in turn, contribute to pain in the tendons as well.  This type of pain is especially painful and severely limits what movement you can do in your arm.

    For example, maybe you enjoy playing baseball and regularly lift and move your arm by pitching the ball above your head.  This type of injury here, known as shoulder impingement, will eliminate your ability to perform that type of motion altogether.

    One of the most common reasons behind shoulder pain is arthritis, and there are many variations of it as well. The reason why there are very many different types of arthritis is that it can occur in various parts of the body.

    The type of arthritis that happens in the shoulder is called osteoarthritis, and common symptoms include pain and stiffness in the shoulder and swelling.

    If you are displaying the symptoms of osteoarthritis, you should have it looked at immediately, since the pain will only worsen the longer it goes on without any substantial treatment.  Osteoarthritis usually occurs in people who are middle-aged and is due to a variety of different factors including inflammation in the joints, infection, trauma, or sports.

    The most common reaction with people who have osteoarthritis is to not move their shoulder in order to lessen the pain, but this will really make things worse since it will result in further stiffening of the shoulder.

    The last major cause of shoulder pain that we are going to talk about is a fracture. A fracture is when bones in the body are broken, so common broken bones that can cause shoulder pain are the collarbone, shoulder blade, and upper arm bone.

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    Shoulder fractures and broken bones almost always are the result of physical trauma, such as suffering a sports injury, falling down, or being involved in an accident.

    A fracture will lead to severe swelling in the affected area and cause intense pain.  If you have suffered a fracture, you should secure medical attention from your doctor as soon as you can.  Your doctor will give you a list of treatment options and officially diagnose where the fracture has occurred.

    Fibromyalgia and Shoulder Pain

    Fibromyalgia is one of the great mysteries of the medical world, as we still do not yet know all of the causes of it or even how it happens. It is estimated that between five to ten million Americans alone suffer from fibromyalgia, the overwhelming majority of them women.  Fibromyalgia is also believed to run in the family, as people with a family history of fibromyalgia are far more likely to develop it themselves.  In addition, middle-aged women are the most likely to develop fibromyalgia, but it has been known to occur in young adults, teenagers, and even young children too.

    The primary symptom of fibromyalgia is a combination of muscle pain and fatigue. This pain and fatigue will have to be enough to greatly limit what the sufferer is able to accomplish in a day, as many fibromyalgia patients are reduced to laying down in bed for much of the day.  The muscle pain usually occurs in the neck, back, chest, rib cage, thighs, and shoulders, and will worsen over time.

    There are eighteen pressure points throughout the body, and it takes a person to feel pain in eleven of these pressure points to be officially diagnosed with fibromyalgia. A couple of these pressure points are located in the shoulders.  If you feel pain in your shoulders, there are two options as to how it is related to fibromyalgia:

    1. You aren’t feeling pain in any or very many of the other tender points, so you don’t have fibromyalgia and the pain is due to the causes that we have already discussed,

    2. You are feeling pain in the other pressure points in addition to your shoulder, so the shoulder pain you feel could be a part of fibromyalgia.

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    For More Information Related to Fibromyalgia Visit below sites:

    References:

    Fibromyalgia Contact Us Directly

    Click here to Contact us Directly on Inbox

    Official Fibromyalgia Blogs

    Click here to Get the latest Chronic illness Updates

    Fibromyalgia Stores

    Click here to Visit Fibromyalgia Store

  • I’m A Doctor With Fibromyalgia. Here’s What I Wish People Understood About It

    Fibromyalgia, a widely misunderstood illness, confuses and frustrates both patients and doctors alike. I know because I’ve seen it from both sides—as both a physician and a woman with the illness myself.

    This common chronic disease is characterized by widespread muscle pain, fatigue, and brain fog. It’s estimated that 5 million Americans currently suffer from the disorder, and close to 90 percent of those diagnosed are women.

    Still, there remains a lot of confusion about what the illness really is and how it’s treated. Here are five truths about fibromyalgia that are not widely known, even by most doctors:

    1. Fibromyalgia is real and can be treated—but it requires a holistic approach.

    Research on fibromyalgia has lagged far behind other diseases, bogged down by controversy and a century of arguments about whether it’s a “real” illness.

    This changed in 2002 when a groundbreaking study showed abnormalities in how the brain processes pain in fibromyalgia. These brain-imaging studies gave the objective data to prove fibromyalgia was “real” and triggered a decade of intensive research resulting in three drugs approved by the FDA that dull pain signals.

    But those medications don’t treat the often more debilitating symptoms of fatigue and fuzzy thinking called “fibrofog.” To do that, doctors and patients have to be knowledgeable about different treatment options—especially holistic approaches such as making dietary changes to reduce inflammation or adding supplements to boost cellular energy production.

    2. It’s no longer a complete mystery.

    I often hear the myth repeated that “we don’t know what causes fibromyalgia.” Recent physician surveys reveal that most doctors still don’t know how to help their fibromyalgia patients—in spite of the existence of some very effective treatments. Fibromyalgia is often described in medical journals as “perplexing,” “mysterious,” and “confusing.”

    The TV commercials that say fibromyalgia is a condition of hyperactive pain nerves don’t tell the whole story. In fact, pain-processing problems are only the tip of the iceberg. A much bigger factor is a stress (or danger) response that has gone haywire and is constantly on “red alert,” leading to a chain reaction that results in fatigue, brain fog, and muscle pain.

    The only way to get lasting improvement in all of these symptoms is to systematically address the negative effects on the body of a chronic hyperactive stress response. A chronically activated stress response wreaks havoc by preventing deep sleep and keeping muscles tense, leading to pain and tenderness; impairing digestion and energy production; and throwing hormones out of balance. It also ultimately causes the pain-sensing nerves to increase the volume of their signals.

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    3. Fibromyalgia is primarily a sleep disorder.

    Unfortunately, many doctors, even sleep specialists, are not aware of the sleep issues that come with fibromyalgia. But fibromyalgia is in many ways a sleep disorder, a state of chronic deep sleep deprivation. Studies have demonstrated over and over that patients experience inadequate deep sleep that is frequently interrupted by “wakeful” brain waves. This deep-sleep starvation contributes to the fatigue, muscle pain, and foggy thinking characteristic of the condition.

    Treating sleep is the key to treating fibromyalgia, and it’s where I see the most benefit in reducing pain, fatigue, and brain fog. Sleep must always be improved before any other treatment will work, so it’s vital to address this with your health care provider to treat hidden sleep problems like obstructive sleep apnea and then add medications and supplements to help restore normal deep sleep.

    4. Most doctors don’t know much about fibromyalgia—and it’s not their fault.

    Fibromyalgia is an orphan disease that is not claimed by any specialty and instead awkwardly straddles the fields of rheumatology, neurology, sleep, and pain medicine. The majority of care falls to overwhelmed primary care doctors who don’t have time to go searching for new treatment ideas among the sea of medical publications. The big medical journals neglect fibromyalgia. In fact, since 1987, only one fibromyalgia study has been published in the New England Journal of Medicine, the most widely read medical publication in the world.

    Since the busy primary care provider does not have time to actively search out new treatments for fibromyalgia, research has to be brought to their attention in some other way—namely by their patients. So in my new book, The FibroManual, I included a health care provider guide with research-supported medical guidance for patients to bring to their doctor’s attention.

    5. There is no cure for fibromyalgia, but there are effective treatments.

    There is no cure for fibromyalgia—yet. But we don’t have cures for many chronic illnesses, like diabetes and high blood pressure. What we do have are effective treatments that manage those diseases well enough that they are minimally detrimental to one’s health. And powerful treatments for fibromyalgia are out there as well.

    When people ask me if I have recovered from fibromyalgia, I say, “Yes.” I’ve found ways to feel much better and minimize its impact on my life. Ultimately, I do still have fibromyalgia, and there is no magic bullet that completely eliminates all symptoms. It requires work, and I have learned that consistency in my self-care routine is essential to keeping my symptoms under control.

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    For More Information Related to Fibromyalgia Visit below sites:

    References:

    Fibromyalgia Contact Us Directly

    Click here to Contact us Directly on Inbox

    Official Fibromyalgia Blogs

    Click here to Get the latest Chronic illness Updates

    Fibromyalgia Stores

    Click here to Visit Fibromyalgia Store

  • Why Fibromyalgia Makes Bras Painful to Wear

    Anyone with chronic pain knows that there are certain things that will make the pain flare-up. Those who have fibromyalgia are particularly vulnerable to this, as there are a lot of things they can’t do.

    Sleeping becomes increasingly difficult, as it is painful to lay down and sleep. Going out and tending to the garden becomes out of the question, as leaning over is too painful.

    The same thing goes for the clothing you wear. Likely, the looser the clothing is, the better. Therefore, bras become out of the question.

    It doesn’t matter if they are soft, sports bras or ones with a wire in the front, they will hurt. They press in some of the most painful spots for those with fibromyalgia.

    Many people who have fibromyalgia have had a very difficult time finding the right bra for them. They have likely spent a lot of money trying to find the perfect bras for their needs, but have been unable to. It takes a lot of time and effort to find the perfect bra.

    There are a few things you should always keep in mind when you are going to look for a new bra. These are all essentials for those who have fibromyalgia and can no longer wear the bras they love.

    Things to Keep in Mind

    If you are a sufferer of fibromyalgia, you might find it hard to pick out the right bras. Some of them might seem to work, but then don’t. Others you know will never work.

    However, it’s always good to have a list of things to remember when you are out shopping for that new bra.

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    No Synthetic Material

    It’s true that synthetic bras are not only cheaper but extremely easy to find. However, they are not good when you sweat.

    They don’t wick away the moisture but instead keep it where it is. For those who already have fibromyalgia, this makes wearing a bra that much more painful.

    This brings you to wear primarily cotton or silk bras. They can’t have any synthetic material in them if you can help it, as they need to be able to breathe as much as possible.

    If you absolutely can’t get away from synthetic materials due to budget or allergies, then try something that is a microfiber blend.

    Microfiber is made to wick away the sweat that accumulates, making you less likely to have more pain than you need.

    No Back Closures

    For those who have fibromyalgia, you likely already have noticed that having closures in the back makes everything more painful.

    Joints are among the main things that are painful with fibromyalgia, so reaching behind you to clasp your bra shut is hard.

    Even if you generally clasp it in the front and then move it to the back, it is still likely painful to put the straps upon your shoulders.

    Therefore, you should look for front closing bras over everything else. It is much easier to close a bra in the front with all the pain you are being subjected to. The pain you might have is lessened dramatically when done this way.

    A great thing that comes with that is the fact the bras with front closures are generally much smoother in the back.

    This will help if your main source of pain from bras is on your back. Even if it isn’t, it will still prevent some pain from coming.

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    Are Underwires Bad?

    This comes down to something that is more a personal preference than anything else. Some people like them.

    They give a good amount of support and they hold your breasts where you want them to be. They don’t feel like they are falling out and could go anywhere.

    However, others don’t like them, as they can be very uncomfortable. Even the ones that are padded over the wire might be too uncomfortable. They might feel as though they are stabbing some people, even if they aren’t.

    For those with fibromyalgia, it comes down to whether these make the pain worse or don’t change anything.

    If you can find a front clasping bra that is made of natural material, getting one with or without an underwire depends on what you believe feels the best. Try ones with and ones without to see if one feels more comfortable.

    Make Sure It’s the Right Size

    It’s surprising that so many women still don’t know their size when it comes to bras. Many just go with whatever they think feels right. However, if you aren’t wearing the right size bra, there might be problems that arise later on.

    Anyone who has fibromyalgia can probably say that a bra that is too small will be extremely painful. Therefore, if you have the correct size, it might relieve some of the more intense pain.

    To figure out what your size is, there are plenty of sites online that will take the information you give them and convert them into the right size.

    These are measurements that either you or someone else can take of your breasts, including how long it is all around your torso and how big your breasts are.

    Go to a Professional

    If you want to make sure that you have the right size, you should go to a store where someone can size you.

    Not only can they size you, but if you tell them the issues you are having trying to find a bra, they can give you bras to try out.

    Through this, you will have someone who is actively helping you figure out what ones are the best and what ones to skip over.

    If you have a local store that can help you with this, you should definitely go and try it out. You might be surprised at how easy it is to find the bras you need.

    Conclusion

    It’s crazy to think how much a single disease can affect your life. Fibromyalgia not only is painful but can make a lot of the things you do on a daily basis impossible.

    Wearing a bra is something many women do, but if it is painful, they might be forced to not wear one.

    Depending on your choice, you might have to find the perfect bra to wear. Hopefully, some of these might help you figure out exactly what bra you should be buying and what one you will buy.

    https://fibromyalgia-6.creator-spring.com/
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    Click Here to Visit the Store and find Much More….

    For More Information Related to Fibromyalgia Visit below sites:

    References:

    Fibromyalgia Contact Us Directly

    Click here to Contact us Directly on Inbox

    Official Fibromyalgia Blogs

    Click here to Get the latest Chronic illness Updates

    Fibromyalgia Stores

    Click here to Visit Fibromyalgia Store

  • Surprising Causes Of Fibromyalgia Your Doctor Doesn’t Know About

    1. Vitamin deficiencies Cause Of Fibromyalgia

    Magnesium, vitamin D, and B12 deficiency are the most common vitamin deficiencies I see in those who have been diagnosed with fibromyalgia. I’ve had several patients completely reverse their fibromyalgia symptoms with magnesium alone. The best way to measure magnesium is a red blood cell (RBC) magnesium level, which can be tested through any conventional lab.

    2. Gluten intolerance

    Gluten has been liked to more than 55 diseases and is often called the “big masquerader.” The reason for this is that the majority of gluten intolerance symptoms are not digestive in nature, but are instead neurological, such as pain, cognitive impairment, sleep disturbances, behavioral issues, fatigue, and depression.

    3. Candida overgrowth

    Candida is a fungus or yeast, and a very small amount of it lives in your intestines. When overproduced, Candida breaks down the wall of the intestines and penetrates the bloodstream, releasing toxic byproducts into your body and causing a host of unpleasant symptoms such as brain fog, fatigue, digestive issues, and pain. Virtually every one of my patients with fibromyalgia has had Candida overgrowth.

    4. Thyroid

    It’s vital that your doctor check all six blood markers to accurately measure your thyroid gland’s function. It’s also imperative that your doctor use the optimal levels rather than the standard reference range when assessing and diagnosing thyroid disorders. Getting my patient’s thyroid levels into an optimal range typically alleviates their fatigue, brain fog, sleep disturbances, and depression.

    5. Small Intestine Bacterial Overgrowth (SIBO) and Leaky gut

    There are more bacteria in us and on us than there are of our own cells. When these bacteria get out of balance through the use of antibiotics or a sugar-rich diet, we can lose our ability to digest and absorb nutrients, particularly B12. Gluten can cause SIBO and leaky gut and SIBO and leaky gut can lead to gluten and other food intolerances. It’s a catch-22 and a vicious cycle. You must “fix the gut” first in anyone with fibromyalgia.

    Mycotoxins are very toxic substances produced by molds. Conventional environmental mold testing only tests for levels of mold spores and does not test for mycotoxins. I use a urine mycotoxin test in my clinic to determine if someone has been exposed to toxic molds.

    7. Mercury toxicity

    I recommend that all my patients find a biological dentist and have their mercury amalgam fillings removed. Mercury is toxic to our bodies and can be one piece of the puzzle for those with fibromyalgia. I then recommend heavy metal testing using a pre-and-post-DMPS urine challenge test.

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    For More Information Related to Fibromyalgia Visit below sites:

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  • Fibromyalgia Disease Patient’s Difficulty Smelling Linked to Decreased Olfactory Bulb Volume

    Patients with Fibromyalgia Disease may have reduced volume of the olfactory bulb, a key structure in how we perceive and distinguish smell, a study found. That finding may help explain why some patients report impairments in olfactory perception.

    The study, “Decreased olfactory bulb volumes in patients with Fibromyalgia Disease,” was published in the journal Clinical Rheumatology. Olfactory perception, including being able to identify and distinguish different types of odors, is a feature often reported to be impaired in Fibromyalgia Disease patients.

    The olfactory bulb is the first structure involved in our perception of a smell. It is composed of two types of nerve cells that receive input from cells in the nasal cavity. But, while “self-reported olfactory functions have been studied with olfactory tests, olfactory bulb volumes have not been studied” in Fibromyalgia Disease patients, the research team wrote.

    The volume of the olfactory bulb is known to be reduced in other diseases, too, including Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, schizophrenia, and depression. Some of these patients also experience olfactory dysfunction.

    To determine the volume of the olfactory bulb in a group of Fibromyalgia Disease patients, researchers used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). In total, the study enrolled 62 female participants — 30 with FM and 32 healthy controls — with mean ages of 44.2 and 41.7, respectively.

    MRI analyses showed that the olfactory bulbs of patients with Fibromyalgia Disease had a reduced volume compared to healthy controls. Specifically, the mean volumes of the right olfactory bulbs were 74.9 mm3 in the Fibromyalgia Disease group and 92.6 mm3 in the control group. The mean volumes of the left olfactory bulbs were 74.3 mm3 and 92.8 mm3, respectively.

    The mean of total olfactory bulb volume (the volume of both right and left) was 146.6 mm3 in the Fibromyalgia Disease group and 186.5 mm3 in the healthy control group, a 1.2 ratio difference.

    The team suggested that the decrease detected in Fibromyalgia Disease patients is the potential result of alterations in neuronal structures in patients’ brains, evidence that may support the notion defended by some that Fibromyalgia Disease is a brain disorder.

    Overall, the team concluded that patients with Fibromyalgia Disease are at risk of having decreased olfactory bulb volumes.“Outcomes of the present study should be kept in mind for proper and reasonable management of this tough syndrome and for future studies,” the team wrote.

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  • Showering with Fibromyalgia: Why Causing more Pain?

    When you are first told that the pain and tiredness that you have is due to having fibromyalgia, it can be devastating.

    You are going to find that this new diagnosis could mean that you have to change the way in which you live your life.

    Everything that you do, even the most mundane of activities, can make a difference in how you feel later.

    Even a shower could be something that causes more pain or even makes the symptoms of fibromyalgia flare up more than they already are.

    Fibromyalgia is something that affects numerous people. The key to having this illness is learning what you can do to lessen the symptoms while still maintaining the life that you have always dreamed of having.

    There are numerous people in the world who are functioning with fibromyalgia easily and they are still doing what they always want to do. How can you be one of these people?

    Realize There are Obstacles

    One of the first things that the person needs to realize is that there are going to be obstacles that you must learn to deal with.

    Whether you attack these obstacles head-on or you learn what you can do and what you need to pace yourself with, you will find that your life is going to be better for learning this control.

    There are several obstacles that you may have to come to realize in order to gain more control over your life. Some of these obstacles may include:

    • What was your regular workout routine like? It could be you have to change this.
    • Did you work in a physically demanding job? If so, it may be time to look for something else.
    • You may have to start getting more sleep–in order to give your body the rest that it needs

    These are the most common obstacles that people think of when they are told that they do have fibromyalgia.

    However, did you know that something as mundane as taking a shower could require that you change your way of doing this?

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    A Shower Means Exertion

    When you step into the shower, most often you are not thinking about how much exertion this is going to require, but it does.

    We often link a shower with relaxation, but if you look at all that you do in the shower, it does take some exertion.

    For example, you are standing the entire time, you are going to be doing a fair amount of bending stretching, and reaching while you are lathering and washing your body.

    Those who have fibromyalgia often find that these repetitive movements are almost as if they have run a marathon.

    While it should not make a person tired, this is just one of the issues that fibromyalgia patients have to deal with.

    Showers can Promote Too Much Relaxation

    Is too much relaxation something that a person should worry about? If you have fibromyalgia, then yes this is something that you need to worry about.

    This is especially true if you are taking a shower in the morning before your day gets going. Why is this?

    Those who have fibromyalgia often find that they are tired constantly. This tired feeling is normal when dealing with fibromyalgia, but a shower can make this tired feeling even more pronounced due to the way it makes a person relax.

    If you are taking a shower first thing in the morning, you want to be woken up, not relaxed, and falling to sleep all day long.

    The Temperature can be an Issue

    Who doesn’t like to take a nice, hot, soothing shower to relax those muscles and basically rejuvenate us? Most everyone!

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  • Swelling and Fibromyalgia: How Fibromyalgia Swelling Hurts

    Osteoarthritis is the most common musculoskeletal condition, followed by fibromyalgia. More often than not, fibromyalgia is misunderstood and misdiagnosed. Characteristics of this disorder/condition include muscle and joint pain/tingling, fatigue, and many other symptoms. Quite often, individuals who have fibromyalgia also experience social isolation and depression. Many also experience both swelling and fibromyalgia.

    Fibromyalgia is very difficult to diagnose. The main reason for this is that the symptoms of fibromyalgia are often in line with the symptoms of other illnesses, which leads to the individual being misdiagnosed. One of the most basic symptoms of fibromyalgia is swelling and inflammation. Due to this fibromyalgia swelling, can sometimes be confused with arthritis. This is due to the fact that both fibromyalgia and arthritis affect the joints.

    Fibromyalgia and Arthritis Compared

    Though fibromyalgia does exhibit many of the same symptoms of arthritis and the two conditions are often confused, there are some differences.

    Individuals who have fibromyalgia typically experience more of a feeling that their joints are swelling rather than the joints actually swelling. Additionally, an individual who has fibromyalgia may actually experience what is known as a “creepy-crawly” sensation on their bodies, which is very uncomfortable for them. Though it’s almost the same as with arthritis, the “swelling” of the joints that is part of fibromyalgia isn’t actually swelling at all, but a feeling of swelling.

    Arthritis is actually swelling and damage within the joints. Individuals who are affected by arthritis can also be affected by fibromyalgia. The swelling that is caused by fibromyalgia in this case is typically in the feet and hands.

    This can be used to find out if the individual is suffering from fibromyalgia or arthritis. The swelling of the hands and feet in those suffering from fibromyalgia actually resembles edema, while the swelling in those suffering from arthritis is primarily located in the joints.

    There is no specific cause of fibromyalgia. However, there are several risk factors that contribute to the occurrence of arthritis in individuals.

    Genetic variations could possibly contribute to arthritis, though researchers don’t completely understand the role played by genetics in this disorder. Due to the fact that as individuals age, the cartilage becomes much more brittle and loses its capacity to repair itself.

    Joint damage depends on the amount of weight that the joints must support, so body weight can cause an individual to develop arthritis. These factors and others can all contribute to arthritis, but don’t necessarily have anything to do with individuals developing fibromyalgia.

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    How to Control Fibromyalgia Swelling

    One of the most important things to remember is that the swelling in individuals with fibromyalgia will never be located in the areas that are painful. The amount of swelling and fibromyalgia is actually directly related to the amount of stress that the affected individual is currently undergoing.

    If the individual is under very minimum emotional stress, the swelling on their body will be barely noticeable. If the individual is under a lot of emotional stress, then the swelling will be obvious. Therefore, the amount of swelling on the individual’s body indicates their present emotional condition. This exacerbates swelling and fibromyalgia.

    If you find that as a fibromyalgia patient, you are experiencing swelling and fibromyalgia, do what you can to calm down and relax. The more stressed out you get, the more you will begin to swell. The calmer you are, the more that swelling is going to go away.

    Swelling is one of the most common symptoms that an individual with fibromyalgia will experience. Both swelling and inflammation are one of the first things an individual will notice when there is a diagnosis of fibromyalgia. This is what makes it so difficult to diagnose- the swelling takes on the appearance of arthritis. The swelling can actually occur at any time and almost anywhere in your body. It can last a short time or a long time.

    Understanding Swelling and Fibromyalgia

    Many times, medical professionals will diagnose arthritis, when actually the swelling and inflammation are actually because of fibromyalgia. However, as mentioned earlier, there is a major difference between the two: arthritis affects the joints, while the swelling and inflammation due to fibromyalgia do not. 

    Since the swelling in individuals with fibromyalgia is not in the joints, it can actually look more like edema. Most of the time, those who are experiencing this type of swelling also complain that the skin in those swollen areas turns red- but this is not always the case.

    Though fibromyalgia swelling can occur almost anywhere on the body, it is most commonly found in the feet and hands. Most of the time, those who report swelling in their feet often report that the swelling extends up toward their lower legs. Some individuals even report that their swelling is only on some of their toes.

    Swelling related to fibromyalgia can disappear and appear without even a warning. It can last for a few hours, days, or weeks at a time. Sometimes, individuals will even report that their feet swell so large that they cannot wear their shoes. If you are experiencing this level of swelling, you must know that there are some things that you can do to counteract this.

    As mentioned before, many people believe that inflammation and swelling related to fibromyalgia are directly linked to the level of stress in an individual’s life. So, if you have fibromyalgia and you’re suffering from swelling due to your disorder, you will want to do what you can to reduce- or even totally avoid- stress in your personal life. Additionally, getting lots of rest may prove to help reduce or prevent swelling.

    Though swelling and fibromyalgia are very common for those suffering from the disorder, it is not the same inflammation and swelling that is present with arthritis. Additionally, though there really isn’t a specific cause or cure that can be pointed to, researchers do hold hope that a few simple changes in lifestyle can help to control it.

    By simply making sure to get lots of rest and relaxation, and eliminating as much stress as possible from your life, you can make sure that the swelling and inflammation don’t keep occurring.

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  • Evidence of Nerve Damage in About Half of Fibromyalgia Patients

    Summary: About half of a small group of patients with fibromyalgia — a common syndrome that causes chronic pain and other symptoms — was found to have damage to nerve fibers in their skin and other evidence of a disease called small-fiber polyneuropathy (SFPN). Unlike fibromyalgia, SFPN has a clear pathology and is known to be caused by specific medical conditions, some of which can be treated and sometimes cured.

    About half of a small group of patients with fibromyalgia — a common syndrome that causes chronic pain and other symptoms — was found to have damage to nerve fibers in their skin and other evidence of a disease called small-fiber polyneuropathy (SFPN).

    Unlike fibromyalgia, which has had no known causes and few effective treatments, SFPN has a clear pathology and is known to be caused by specific medical conditions, some of which can be treated and sometimes cured. The study from Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) researchers will appear in the journal PAIN and has been released online.

    “This provides some of the first objective evidence of a mechanism behind some cases of fibromyalgia, and identifying an underlying cause is the first step towards finding better treatments,” says Anne Louise Oaklander, MD, Ph.D., director of the Nerve Injury Unit in the MGH Department of Neurology and corresponding author of the Pain paper.

    The term fibromyalgia describes a set of symptoms — including chronic widespread pain, increased sensitivity to pressure, and fatigue — that is believed to affect 1 to 5 percent of individuals in Western countries, more frequently women.

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    While a diagnosis of fibromyalgia has been recognized by the National Institutes of Health and the American College of Rheumatology, its biological basis has remained unknown. Fibromyalgia shares many symptoms with SFPN, a recognized cause of chronic widespread pain for which there are accepted, objective tests.

    Designed to investigate possible connections between the two conditions, the current study enrolled 27 adult patients with fibromyalgia diagnoses and 30 healthy volunteers. Participants went through a battery of tests used to diagnose SFPN, including assessments of neuropathy based on a physical examination and responses to a questionnaire, skin biopsies to evaluate the number of nerve fibers in their lower legs, and tests of autonomic functions such as heart rate, blood pressure, and sweating.

    The questionnaires, exam assessments, and skin biopsies all found significant levels of neuropathy in the fibromyalgia patients but not in the control group. Of the 27 fibromyalgia patients, 13 had a marked reduction in nerve fiber density, abnormal autonomic function tests, or both, indicating the presence of SFPN.

    Participants who met criteria for SFPN also underwent blood tests for known causes of the disorder, and while none of them had results suggestive of diabetes, a common cause of SFPN, two were found to have hepatitis C virus infection, which can be successfully treated, and more than half had evidence of some type of immune system dysfunction.

    “Until now, there has been no good idea about what causes fibromyalgia, but now we have evidence for some but not all patients. Fibromyalgia is too complex for a ‘one size fits all’ explanation,” says Oaklander, an associate professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School.

    “The next step of independent confirmation of our findings from other laboratories is already happening, and we also need to follow those patients who didn’t meet SFPN criteria to see if we can find other causes. Helping any of these people receive definitive diagnoses and better treatment would be a great accomplishment.”

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  • Even Doctors Are Amazed by This Remedy: It Prevents Heart Attack, Lowers Cholesterol And Boost Your Immune System

    Even Doctors Are Amazed by This Remedy: It Prevents Heart Attack, Lowers Cholesterol And Boost Your Immune System

    Scientists, doctors, and other medical experts claim that regular consumption of honey in combination with cinnamon is a powerful remedy that can be used against many diseases.

    For more than 4000 years, honey has been used as a traditional remedy for almost every disease. The Egyptians used it to treat wounds, the Greeks for long life, and the Indians to maintain balance in the body. Modern medicine shows us that these beliefs were true.

    They all knew about cinnamon healing purposes as they did for the honey. Cinnamon was considered a great gift for the Monarchs cause of its usefulness in treating many diseases.

    Here are some combinations of these powerful natural ingredients which can be used in the treatment of certain diseases, including chronic health conditions such as arthritis.

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    Reduces Cholesterol

    Add two tablespoons of honey and three teaspoons of cinnamon in a large cup. Regular consumption of this mixture will reduce cholesterol levels by 10 % within two hours.

    Remedy for Cardiovascular Disease

    In the morning, instead of marmalade or jam, put a little honey and cinnamon on a slice of bread. If you regularly consume this combination, it will help you reduce your blood cholesterol levels and prevent the risk of having a heart attack.

    Against Arthritis

    In a cup filled with boiled water, mix two tablespoons of honey and a tablespoon of cinnamon. Drink this drink in the morning and evening. With regular use, this drink will help in the treatment of chronic arthritis.

    Against Infections of Gallbladder

    If you have any infection of the gallbladder, you can consume the above-mentioned mixture, but this time change the amount of honey and cinnamon. In the cup of boiling water, put two teaspoons of cinnamon and a large spoonful of honey.

    Against Colds

    If you have a problem with frequent colds, make a mixture of a large tablespoon of honey and a quarter teaspoon of cinnamon. This habit will help with your cold treatment, chronic cough, and sinus congestion.

    Strengthens the Immune System

    It is recommended that you use these ingredients on daily basis. They protect your body naturally from bacteria and viruses.

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