Musculoskeletal: Pain and generalized morning stiffness could arise from muscles, tendons, ligaments and fascia of the shoulders, neck, entire back, hips, thighs, knees, ankles, feet, inner and outer elbows, wrists, fingers, and chest. Injured or old operative sites are commonly affected. Though fibromyalgia is described as a “non-articular” disease many know better: Joint pains with or without swelling, redness and heat are frequent. The litany includes foot or calf cramps, numbness and tingling of the face or extremities.
Irritable Bowel: (Often called leaky gut, spastic colon or mucous colitis). Symptoms include nausea (often brief, repetitive waves), indigestion, gas, bloating, pain, cramps, constipation alternating with diarrhea and sometimes mucous stools.
Genitourinary: Common are pungent urine, frequent urination, bladder spasms, burning urination (dysuria) with or without repeated bladder infections and interstitial cystitis. Vulvodynia (vulvar pain syndrome) includes vaginal spasms, irritation of the vaginal lips (vulvitis) or opening (vestibulitis) and painful intercourse (dyspareunia). It typically mimics a yeast infection but without the cottage-cheese discharge. Intense PMS and uterine cramping are common. Symptoms of fibromyalgia are worse premenstrual.
Dermatological: Various rashes may appear with or without itching: Hives, red blotches, itchy bumps or blisters, eczema, seborrheic or neurodermatitis, and rosacea. Nails are often brittle and of poor quality and hair falls out prematurely. Strange sensations are common such as cold, heat (especially palms, soles and thighs), crawling, electric vibrations, prickling, super-sensitivity to touch, and flushing that is sometimes accompanied by sweating.
Head, Eye, Ear, Nose, and Throat: Headaches (migraines), dizziness, vertigo (spinning) or imbalance; dry eyes as well as itching and burning with or without sticky or crusty discharge upon awakening; blurred vision; nasal congestion and post-nasal drip; painful, burning tongue, mouth and abnormal tastes (scalded, bad or metallic); ringing in the ears (tinnitus) or lower-pitched sounds; ear and eyeball pain; sensitivity to light, sounds and odors.
- abdominal pain
- bladder irritability or spasms
- blurred vision
- chest pains and pressure beneath the breast bone
- cramps
- dizziness
- dry eyes and mouth
- falling
- fatigue
- gastroesophogeal reflux (GERD) – sometimes called heartburn or acid stomach
- general aches and pains
- hearing loss
- intermittent hearing problems and low-frequency hearing loss
- memory and reasoning problems ("brain fog")
- migraine or tension headaches
- morning stiffness
- muscle twitching
- nighttime grinding of teeth (bruxism)
- pelvic pain
- pre-menstrual syndrome
- skin sensitivity to temperature
- sleep problems, insomnia
- temporomandibular joint disorder (TMJ)
- tingling or numbness in arms, legs, feet or face
- water retention and swelling; especially in the hands, face and feet
Symptoms can be made worse or triggered by:
- anxiety
- cold or drafty environments
- depression
- hormonal changes, before periods or during menopause
- physical overexertion
- stress
- weather changes
Pain is the most prominent and common symptom. It can be all over, or in just one main region. Some people describe it as "knife-like" or a "muscle cramp." Some say it’s like having a persistent flu and can be quite severe in some. Other factors that effect pain are level of activity, the weather, a person’s sleep patterns and stress. Most people with FMS say that at least some degree of pain is always present. The pain generally is present in all four quadrants of the body, for at least three months. That means pain is present on both the right and left sides of the body, and above and below the waist.
Another common symptom is mood changes. Many people with FMS report feeling "blue" or "down," but only about 25% of these people are clinically depressed according to past studies. Some people also report being anxious, with difficulty concentrating. They complain of decreased short-term memory and trouble performing simple tasks. Many of these symptoms are also common in anyone whose sleep is disturbed.
Cognitive function can be considered the ability to think, reason, image, remember, or learn words. The available research on cognition in fibromyalgia suggests that cognitive actions are faulty. This impact on cognition may cause some patients with fibromyalgia the most disability.
The lack of mental alertness, or a sort of brain fog, sometimes called "fibro-fog," which can include confusion and forgetfulness, an inability to concentrate and recall simple words and numbers, and the transposition of words and numbers.
Cognitive functions are often so impaired that patients cannot perform the activities of daily living (ADL), getting lost in familiar places or losing the ability to communicate effectively. Patients who work may fear losing their job, and many pediatric patients drop out of school because of their inability to complete their schoolwork.
Standard medical tests come back negative, and often a person "looks" just fine. In addition, symptoms can change from day to day, and even hour to hour. They can also change with illness, stress and increased physical exertion.
Sometimes people are sent for physical therapy, psychological counseling or other inappropriate treatments. Unfortunately, some treatments can actually aggravate FMS.
There seems to be a link between depression, anxiety and FMS but researchers still are not sure if it’s a cause or an effect.
Major symptoms of FMS can sometimes be traced to a triggering event such as:
- prolonged grief
- body trauma, such as an automobile accident
- infection – viral, bacterial or otherwise
- difficulty in pregnancy, labor and delivery
- open-heart surgery
*It is very important to note that even if you have one or more signs and symptoms, it doesn’t mean you have fibromyalgia. You should get a thorough medical exam and rule out any other possible causes for your symptoms.
!!!!!!!!!WARNING!!!!!!!!
Things NOT to say to someone with a disabling chronic condition:
...but you don’t look sick
...if you’d get out more
...if you’d get more exercise
...everybody gets tired
...it can’t be that bad
...you are just lazy
...you are just depressed
...you’ll just have to tough it out
...I wish I had time to take a nap too
...you just need a more positive attitude
...stop whining!
...it‘s all in your head
I would not wish what I have on anyone, but unless you get it, you just don‘t get it. YOU have NO IDEA the amount of suffering I have to endure every single day.
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