It can also be caused by emotional or psychological stress and is known to have arisen following the breakdown of a relationship, being in an abusive relationship, or after the death of a loved one.
Fibromyalgia can affect people of all ages and backgrounds, but it is seven times more likely to be diagnosed in women than in men. The condition tends to develop between the ages of 30 and 50, however, it is not uncommon for it to occur in people of all ages – from the very young to the elderly.
Fibromyalgia is often referred to as an invisible illness – it is a pain syndrome of chronic widespread musculoskeletal pain and fatigue. The pain is thought to be caused by abnormalities in the pain pathways in the central nervous system. Other symptoms are believed to be caused by sleep abnormalities.
Fibromyalgia specifically means pain in the muscles, ligaments, and tendons, generally all the softer, more fibrous tissues in the body. There is a sense, according to most patients, of ‘aching all over, with the related symptoms of a chronic case of flu. Muscles often feel as if they have been pulled or worked too hard and there are instances where muscles may twitch or feel like they’re burning. Cognitive abilities can also be affected with many patients reporting having ‘Ronty-fog’, where they find functions such as concentration and memory to be impaired.
If your fibromyalgia symptoms were caused or were made worse, as a result of another person’s negligence, then you may be eligible for a fibromyalgia compensation claim. For example, if you were involved in a car accident that wasn’t your fault, had an accident at work, or had a slip/trip, you may be able to claim compensation for your losses.
In order to claim, you will need to be able to demonstrate that the negligence was the cause of your fibromyalgia symptoms. Additionally, the value of your claim will depend entirely on the severity of your symptoms and the effect it has had on your ability to work.
Medical experts will be instructed to assess your symptoms and provide their opinion on the effect your accident has had on your quality of life, and how that is likely to change in the future. If you are looking to make a claim, the general rule is that you must claim within three years of knowledge of the negligence which caused your symptoms, however, there are exceptions to this rule.
You’re sitting in the doctor’s office, being told you have an incurable illness. Maybe you have to leave your career, or pull back on your workload, with set accommodations. You can’t live up to being the involved wife, parent, sister, or daughter you planned on being. Travel becomes difficult, athletic ability falls off, and favorite hobbies or pastimes become more challenging. But mostly you just don’t feel like you. A period of grief ensues over your previous life, and it crashes over you in waves.
Eventually, you start asking the big questions. Can you live a good life despite pain? How do you find meaning again amidst all the change?
I don’t have THE answer, but I did find some answers. I had to understand what I’d found meaningful in life Before Fibro (B.F.). And then I had to find the meaning behind the meaning- why is something sustaining, nourishing, enjoyable? Finding meaning is epitomized by the quote “A life well lived is a life fully experienced.”
I was a very career-focused B.F., finding satisfaction in the field of global health (HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment). Once all that stopped, I felt stuck and lost. The one thing I had been certain of, my “calling”, was gone. Making a difference throughout my career had given me a sense of purpose.
Travelling was my favorite activity. I came to realize that experiencing different cultures and ways of life was important to me because it had made my own worldview expand. Broadening my horizons made me feel vital and alive.
How to replicate that feeling from my couch at home? An answer came surprisingly from the podcasts and audiobooks I listened to during my enforced rests. I found I enjoyed learning about history, as a way to travel from my armchair. Learning feels like time well spent, whether it’s listening to a historical mystery or an episode of a podcast on ancient Egypt. After all, curiosity keeps your brain healthy and young. What do you geek out about? It can be anything, from an academic subject to a hobby, to DIY project techniques. Intentionally find ways to learn about things you find interesting, from online classes, podcasts, audiobooks, or just connecting with interesting people online and asking them questions. The time that feels spent on rewarding things makes meaning.
Over time I came to see that there is a lot of life to live here, in ordinary life, without globetrotting or being career-driven. I never appreciated that B.F., assuming everyday life was boring and humdrum. But in learning to be mindful and still, I’ve found how much I missed before, and how much being present enriches my life. Being on autopilot, or always looking ahead, meant I whizzed past sunsets, birdsong, long hugs, savored meals, belly laughs and so many other moments. Connecting to the beauty and wonder all around us via our senses is possible, even while in pain, even at home. Finding ways to feel that makes life more worthwhile. Mindfulness as a practice, or just realizing the need to be present, means showing up for moments big, and small. Choose to stay with an experience instead of reaching for a distraction.
And the difficult experiences of chronic pain, surviving the limitations, still mean that you are living fully. I’ve grown in strength, resilience, compassion, self-confidence, and patience in ways I never would have before my illness. After all, what else really is the point of life other than to become a better, wiser version of ourselves on this journey? This is another way to have a purpose in life. I’ve come to value growing as a person as one of my most important accomplishments, instead of getting promotions, keeping up with the Joneses, or any of the other markers we are taught to measure our success by. Without fibro, I would have let external factors determine my self-worth. It’s not that I’m grateful for fibromyalgia, or that I’m glad I have it, but I have found a way to make meaning out of it, and find a silver lining. I’m developing as I go; it’s a work in progress, but a worthwhile one.
I’ve written before about the critical importance of our happiness of self–expression and contributing to something greater than ourselves. We are often taught that the only way to do this is to work and be a “productive citizen.” However, there are so many other ways to find connections, such as sharing your story and finding online relationships, to learn from and support others. Writing on my blog and now writing as a freelancer, has transformed my life. Volunteering, supporting others online, teaching, mentoring, and sharing your experience are all ways to contribute, big and small.
Fiction writing has engaged me again in a new way through imagination. (I’m writing a historical mystery set in Niagara Falls during the American civil war when the area was a hotbed of spies and intrigue). Creativity can be a form of salvation, as a craft, art, music, or interior decoration, in the kitchen, the garden, on the page, or anywhere else. We shift into an active mode, not passenger mode when creating. Yet we also refrain from intellectualizing, analyzing, number crunching, or any other left-brain thinking. Creativity is about engaging intuitively, emotionally, and symbolically with the world, through self-expression, using the right brain. It’s good for your heart; it’s good for your soul. Don’t disparage it as “unproductive” or unimportant, because it is a meaningful source of intrinsic pleasure. It’s meaningful because it’s a way of being open and engaging with the world around you (sensing a theme yet?), via your senses and interpretations, from your own unique perspective.
We find meaning in our relationships, in our faith, and in our philosophies. But we have to be present, open, and engaged to really benefit from these resources. That doesn’t happen overnight! But tuning in to our senses, our inner strengths, our creativity, our intrinsic interests and sources of pleasure allows us to connect to the world in ways that create and cultivate meaning in our lives. This is a form of strengths-based healing – leveraging your inner resources to create a life fully experienced, and well lived – in spite of adversity.
Doctors can be life savers. However, unfortunately, sometimes things can go very wrong. If a doctor or health professional is negligent when giving you medical treatment, this is called ‘clinical negligence.
Doctors and healthcare professionals have a duty of care to their patients. If the standard of care falls below what is considered to be the accepted standard, then negligence occurs as the duty of care from the doctor to the patient has been breached.
If, as a result of this breach of duty, the patient suffers injury or loss, whether by misdiagnosis, delay in diagnosis, or mistreatment, one may be entitled to compensation. Where the carelessness has been so severe that it is judged to be ‘gross’, the doctor may be subject to a charge of criminal negligence.
The effects of clinical negligence are varied, with each case having its own set of unique circumstances. In some cases, the damage done is relatively minor and is quickly resolved. However, in more severe circumstances, the patient can be left with life-altering injuries, and therefore it is important to ensure you get compensation for the negligence.
How do you prove clinical negligence?
If you believe you have been affected by clinical negligence, and that your life has been significantly impacted as a result, we will assess your case and instruct medical experts whose opinion will help determine whether negligence occurred and if so, the effect of any such negligence.
There are three key things that we will look at:
That the Defendant owed the Claimant a duty of care – this is generally the case in a claim against a medical professional;
There was a breach of the duty – i.e. the standard of care provided was below the accepted standard and therefore negligence occurred due to carelessness; and
Causation, e.g. the breach of duty caused injury and loss
Ronty Rhodes are specialist solicitors who deal with clinical negligence and personal injury cases. We, therefore, know how to investigate your case in detail and prove that you would not have suffered the injury but for the negligence of the medical professional(s) involved. Due to the nature of our practice dealing exclusively in this area, we have close connections with a variety of medical experts and will ensure that we engage with the right expert who has the specialist knowledge of the area of medicine relevant to your cases, such as psychologists, gynecologists or oncologists, and will always work hard to ensure that you are compensated for what you have lost due to the negligence.
It isn’t always easy to find someone to help you because there’s not just one type of doctor who treats fibromyalgia. But it’s important to find a doctor who understands your condition and will work closely with you to manage your symptoms and help you feel better. How do you find the right doctor for you?
Some people with fibromyalgia are treated by their primary care doctors or internal medicine doctors. However, you may want to ask whether you should see a specialist. Specialty doctors who most often treat the condition are rheumatologists. Rheumatologists treat inflammatory, often painful conditions that affect the joints, muscles, bones, and other organs. Pain specialists and neurologists may treat fibromyalgia, too.
There’s no rule as to what type of doctor you should use to help you manage fibromyalgia. However, make sure he or she has an interest in and knowledge of fibromyalgia treatment.
Finding a doctor who can lead your care and help you manage fibromyalgia is your first priority. But you may benefit from working with a team of healthcare providers that can help you manage specific symptoms. The team might include a physical therapist, sleep specialist, massage therapist, acupuncturist, cognitive-behavioral counselor, and others.
Getting recommendations from friends, family, other physicians and your insurance provider is one way to find a doctor. Another is to see whether you have a pain or rheumatology clinic in your area. Oftentimes, these clinics offer care from several members of the fibromyalgia treatment team all in one location.
Just because a doctor or other type of healthcare provider knows about fibromyalgia doesn’t mean he or she is the right doctor for you. A few questions you can ask to help you decide include:
Many people with fibromyalgia check out a number of doctors until they find the right one. It’s worth the effort. You can greatly improve your symptoms when you have a knowledgeable and focused doctor, along with your own participation and motivation. In addition to asking your insurance provider, you can search Healthgrades.com for providers who treat fibromyalgia.
A good night’s sleep is as important to your health as eating right and exercising regularly. That’s especially true when you have fibromyalgia. Getting enough quality sleep can ease the pain of this arthritis-related condition and help you feel refreshed.
Fibromyalgia can change your brain wave patterns, which can rob you of slow-wave sleep, the deepest stage of sleep. It can also bring on other problems, such as restless legs syndrome, which can make sleeping through the night a challenge. When you don’t sleep well, fibromyalgia can feel even more uncomfortable.
Don’t let fibromyalgia steal your sleep. There are strategies you can try to help yourself get the rest you need to feel your best:
Be as active as possible. Exercising during the day is one of the best ways to help you get a good night’s sleep. It is also one of the best things you can do to treat fibromyalgia. Start with walking. Gradually and over time, try going farther and faster. Avoid working out within three hours of bedtime, though, so you have enough time to wind down.
Darken your bedroom. Light can keep your brain awake, making it harder to sleep. If streetlamps, moonlight, or early morning sun peaks in through your windows, invest in room-darkening bedroom shades. If you get up during the night to use the bathroom, use a nightlight to show the way rather than turning on a bright overhead light.
Limit caffeine and alcohol. Avoid caffeine in the afternoon and evening. It can keep you from sleeping soundly. As for alcohol, you may be able to enjoy a glass of wine with dinner and still sleep well, but skip the nightcap. Alcohol around bedtime can make you drowsy, but cause you to wake up in the middle of the night.
Nix long naps. For some people, a short midafternoon nap can improve their day, but for others, it’s the recipe for lost sleep at night. If you’re among those who doze off during the day, don’t nap for long. To prevent your nap from affecting your sleep at night, set your alarm for an hour, and get up when it goes off.
Talk with your doctor. If you are having trouble sleeping despite all efforts, ask your doctor about participating in a sleep study. It can help identify any other disorders you have that may be disrupting your sleep. It’s thought, for example, that people with fibromyalgia may experience the same breathing pauses during sleep that affect people with sleep apnea. If this is the case for you, a CPAP machine (which increases air pressure in the throat to hold it open during sleep) may be helpful. Your doctor can also prescribe sleep medicine, if necessary.
Living with fibromyalgia can affect you physically and emotionally. Fibromyalgia is stressful. The pain and stress of fibromyalgia raise your body’s level of cortisol, a stress hormone. Adjusting to the disease and finding treatments that work can be frustrating. This fits with the fact that about 20% of people with fibromyalgia report feeling anxious or depressed.
Don’t let fibromyalgia bring you down. Instead, do what you can to reduce the psychic toll of the illness. Integrating various coping strategies can affect how your body responds to the disease and give you the tools you need to feel better emotionally and physically:
Set aside time each day for meditating or deep breathing exercises. These calming techniques can help you manage the stress hormones that make fibromyalgia symptoms worse. You might also try guided imagery, biofeedback, or progression relaxation. You can learn these mindfulness techniques from a trained practitioner, classes, books, and DVDs or audiotapes. Get into the habit of regularly practicing them on your own.
A recent study in the Journal of Pain Research found that women with fibromyalgia who practiced Hatha yoga (a gentle form of exercise) for 75 minutes twice weekly for eight weeks felt less pain and stress. Their bodies also produced less cortisol. Overall, the women were more accepting of their disease.
Another study revealed physical activity helps reduce depression in people with fibromyalgia. Whichever form of yoga you try, be sure to modify the poses in response to pain. For instance, don’t hold the pose as long, or use a yoga block for support.
If you have fibromyalgia, you may find it easy to put yourself down for not being able to do as much as you used to, for depending more on others or even blaming yourself for the disease. But negative self-talk is not helpful. Keep your self-talk as positive as possible. Tell yourself, “Fibromyalgia isn’t my fault,” and “I’m going to do all I can to control the disease.” Focus your self-talk on what you need to do to get better, not on what might have possibly caused your illness.
If you are overwhelmed by the illness, consider seeing a therapist who practices cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). This type of therapy can be helpful for people with fibromyalgia. It focuses on helping you think positively and redefining your beliefs about illness, to help you feel more hopeful.
In one study involving 22 fibromyalgia patients, those who listened to the music of their choice were able to function better physically than patients who didn’t. The study found that music can boost mood enough to overcome the perception of pain, especially before doing something physically taxing. If you don’t have one already, invest in a portable device so you can listen to your favorites at home and on the go.
Getting feedback from others with fibromyalgia can give you the inspiration you need to manage your illness better. Blogs and message boards can be safe places for you to get ideas and talk openly with others in the same situation. What are they doing to cope that you might try? How are they managing to get tasks done? What are they doing to thrive despite their condition?
Ask your doctor if there are support groups in your community that you can visit. You can also search for a support group online. The right support can give you the tips and encouragement you need to focus on feeling better.
Doctors often focus more on the physical symptoms of fibromyalgia, such as pain, fatigue, and stiffness. However, many people with the condition also have trouble focusing, concentrating, or thinking quickly in everyday situations. In a recent study, women with fibromyalgia ranked so-called ‘fibro fog’ among their five top complaints. Openly discussing these symptoms and how they affect you can help you and your doctor address them. Here are other ways to reduce the impact of fibro fog on your daily life.
Take note of any thinking or learning problems you have. You may want to write down when you experience them—and how severe they are—on a chart or calendar. Share this with your doctor. Together, you may be able to pinpoint what makes your fibro fog better or worse and develop strategies to minimize it.
In addition to easing pain, therapy for fibromyalgia often helps with brain-related symptoms, including depression. Your doctor may write you prescriptions for pain medications or antidepressants. When you have less pain to deal with, you can focus more on living your life and doing things you enjoy. Alternative and mind-body therapies, such as massage and tai chi, also show promise.
Trouble sleeping counts as a primary symptom of fibromyalgia. But the more restful your slumber, the clearer your thinking. Most adults need seven hours of restorative sleep to perform their best. Take steps to reach this goal by keeping a regular sleep schedule. Avoid alcohol and caffeine late in the afternoon and at night. Try to go to bed and get up at around the same time every day. And avoid daytime naps, especially in the afternoon. If you must take them, limit them to one hour.
Moving your body helps ease pain and stiffness—and also may benefit your mind. After working out, you may feel sharper and more alert. Physical activity also improves sleep, if you time it right. Schedule your gym session in the morning or during the day, if possible; working out at night can keep you awake. If you do work out later in the day, aim to finish about three hours before hitting the sack. This gives your body enough time to wind down.
Some studies suggest people with fibromyalgia perform just as well on memory tests that involve one problem at a time as do people without the condition. That means minimizing multitasking could boost your brainpower. Try and focus on completing one task at a time. Along with tracking your symptoms, make a ‘to-do list and update it every day or so to help stay on track. Each time you complete a task, cross it off the list and congratulate yourself. Take it one step at a time.
6. Make changes at work.
Many people with fibromyalgia can continue to work. But there may be times when you struggle with balancing work when you have chronic pain. You might find that working fewer hours or having flexible hours helps you better handle the demands of your job. Or you might need to switch your role to one that plays more to your strengths than your weaknesses.
Autoimmune diseases happen when the body’s natural defense system cannot tell the difference between your own cells and foreign cells, causing the body to mistakenly attack normal cells. There are more than 80 types of autoimmune diseases that affect a wide range of body parts, with the most popular being rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes type 1, lupus, multiple sclerosis (MS), and celiac disease.
Although numerous studies have shown that fibromyalgia is not an autoimmune disease, research does show that this condition does weaken your immune system by causing various abnormalities and irregularities. There are conflicting studies on fibromyalgia – some show that it originates in the Brain, but others show that fibromyalgia is actually a disease of the immune system and that many of the symptoms in fibromyalgia syndrome are caused by antibodies that increase the activity of pain-sensing nerves throughout the body.
Fibromyalgia is a condition that causes widespread pain and extreme tiredness. Symptoms of fibromyalgia vary from person to person, but tend to include:
irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), a digestive condition that causes stomach pain and bloating
Fibromyalgia can affect people of all ages and backgrounds, but it is seven times more likely to be diagnosed in women than in men. The condition tends to develop between the ages of 30 and 50, however, it is not uncommon for it to occur in people of all ages – from the very young to the elderly.
Fibromyalgia is a particularly difficult condition to diagnose and manage and can have a devastating impact on quality of life. Research is still ongoing, but various reports have proven that fibromyalgia does indeed weaken our immune system:
fibromyalgia patients tend to have high counts of white blood cells and cytokines (immune cells), which is often observed when a patient is suffering from an infection
studies show that fibromyalgia weakens the brain’s immune system by reducing the blood flow in the brain’s pain center, hence affecting the neuron receptors.
symptoms such as lack of sleep, fatigue, and loss of appetite, may weaken your immune system’s ability to defend your body and keep you healthy.
fibromyalgia usually leads to the decrease of a hormone known as cortisol, which in turn results in the increase of oestrogen levels in the body – this fluctuation of hormone levels in the body tends to weaken the immune system.
Whether fibromyalgia is classed as a neurological condition or an autoimmune disease can have a significant effect on how we view the condition and ultimately impact the recommended treatments for the millions of people affected.
The phrase “tender points” isn’t something you hear every day. But if you have fibromyalgia, you may be familiar with those words. In fact, your doctor may have used tender points to diagnose you.
In 1990, the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) introduced criteria for diagnosing people with fibromyalgia. Part of the criteria included 18 possible tender points throughout the body. Tender points are small spots located around your neck, shoulders, chest, hips, knees, and elbows.
To be diagnosed with fibromyalgia, patients had to experience pain in at least 11 of those 18 sites when their doctor pressed firmly on them. In addition to tender points, you had to have pain in all four quadrants of your body (left side; right side, above the waist; below the waist) lasting longer than three months.
A lot has changed since the original ACR criteria for diagnosis were released. A 2010 study found that approximately 25% of people diagnosed with fibromyalgia didn’t satisfy the ACR’s criteria for having the disease, even though their doctors believed they had fibromyalgia based on their other symptoms.
Tender points posed a significant issue for doctors and patients alike. For example, if a person experiences improvement and no longer has as many tender points, does that mean he or she no longer has fibromyalgia, even if the person still has other symptoms like widespread pain? The pain is often described as a dull, constant pain in the muscles.
In 2010, the ACR updated its criteria for diagnosing people with fibromyalgia. Among several changes, it removed tender points from the criteria. Today, diagnosis relies more on patients’ self-reported symptoms than a doctor’s physical examination of the tender points.
In addition to pain, doctors consider symptoms that weren’t included in the original criteria, such as fatigue, sleep problems, and cognitive issues like trouble concentrating. They also use a tool called the symptom severity scale. The scale acknowledges that with a chronic pain condition like fibromyalgia, your symptoms may change with time. Pain can be more or less severe under different circumstances, such as how tired you are, your stress level, and your level of physical activity.
As a result, making a diagnosis no longer relies on a fixed set of criteria, such as tender points, and gives more weight to your personal experience with the condition. The symptoms of fibromyalgia resemble other chronic pain conditions, such as rheumatoid arthritis. For this reason, doctors may use specific blood tests and other evaluations to rule out these conditions before making a fibromyalgia diagnosis.
Popular actress, writer, producer, and director, Lena Dunham, has recently revealed that she suffers from fibromyalgia.
Recently, the talented creator of the hit series, Girls, opened up about what it is like to suffer from a long-term chronic pain condition in an Instagram post, which immediately received over 50,000 likes. In this blog, we discuss why we think such a high-profile person has chosen to speak out about her health problems and how she has helped sufferers around the world by doing so. Read on to find out more.
With as many as 1-in-25 people thought to be affected by fibromyalgia, according to Arthritis UK, the decision made by Lena Dunham to speak out about her personal experience with the condition will have touched many. After having penned a heartfelt piece about her condition to her three million followers on Instagram, Lena immediately generated a huge reaction, with thousands of fellow sufferers thanking her for her searing honesty.
It began, “This is a post about chronic pain. I have it. I bet a lot of you do too. Some of us talk about it. Others are afraid to, as it could cost them their jobs or their relationships or their sense of control in a chaotic world.”
As a long-term condition, fibromyalgia is known to cause severe, widespread muscle pain all over the body, as well as fatigue, memory problems, and mood issues. The causes of the condition are still not entirely clear – something that Dunham highlighted in her recent Instagram post.
“It’s little understood and so even though I have a lot of knowledge and support, it’s hard to shake the feeling I am crazy. But I’m not (at least not this way!) and you’re not. Your pain, whatever shape it takes, is yours and so it is real.”
She reached out to fellow fibromyalgia sufferers by adding:
“I believe you when you say you hurt. I have learned time and time again how important it is to believe.” Dunham said she was aware that chronic pain can sometimes be associated with trauma and described the onset of her own symptoms. “It felt like every cell in my neck was singing,” she said. “My ankles and wrists were weak, and my fingers didn’t do their assigned job… I felt like I was suspended in gel, and when I meditated a line of pain zipped from my neck to my foot.
“I appear to be totally able-bodied but it’s complex, and I am just trying to do everything required to maintain a life of joy and service… This is fibromyalgia.”
Amongst the many replies to Dunham’s moving piece, there were some that stood out to us the most.
“Thank you for posting and bringing awareness to the stigma of the horrible condition many suffer but are misunderstood.”
“Thank you for sharing. I think the more open we can be about it the more people will feel they’re not alone. Pain is real, and it’s not easy dealing with it alone. There are many of us out there who can relate. Let’s support one another.”
As specialist fibromyalgia solicitors, we understand how chronic pain negatively affects its sufferers. It is refreshing to see people speaking about fibromyalgia, particularly someone with such a high profile, since it is still so misunderstood, and further awareness is needed. Unfortunately, we meet many people in the same situation as Lena Dunham, who is also suffering, and we do all that we can to help those people.
