Hi, I'm new here and the last month has been a real struggle! Have recently changed doctor's and explained to him that I really am lost at the minute and really struggling to cope with the symptoms, which he replied there's not much you can do with fibromyalgia! Luckily I have a referral to the pain clinic. I've tried gabapentin/ pregabalin/amitriptyline etc. In the past with no luck. I have read about Milnacipran and LDN, just seeing if anyone has any advice? I'm currently managing pain with the usual recommended supplements and paracetamol/codeine. Any help would be much appreciated!
Hi Chase,
Welcome to the forum!
Sorry to hear that you've been having such a hard time. I also found conventional meds useless, and have now learned to manage my symptoms really well without them. For a long time, I was in a really bad way - mostly bed bound with a
lot of pain, fog, and even blackouts. The turning point was learning really effective stress management, getting pacing/lifestyle down, accepting my condition - including that it isn't a threat to my safety - and experimenting until I had s stack of supplements that help.
Now I'd say my symptoms have settled at about 30-40% of what they used to be. My brain is functioning, and I can work again. The point is, it can be done!
If have a really good read through here in the forum of what people are doing to manage fibro. Sunkacola's linked post above is great.
Do you feel stressed by your symptoms, and afraid of them? If so, getting on top of this is a must. When you're constantly in a stress response, your symptoms will be retriggered endlessly. Mediation, mental body scans, and breathing exercises - all with the "no threat" idea in mind - helped me sort that out.
For supplements, I take CoQ10, ALA, and acetyl-L-carnatine for fog/energy; boswellia for pain/edema, magnesium glycinate for sleep/anxiety, and lithium orotate for depression. A lot, I know! Others take things like GABA, melatonin, and more - very personal, but if you're interested to experiment, best to read up and then try one thing at a time, sticking with what works!
I'm also really curious about LDN, but haven't managed to get in front of my doctor recently. If you use the search function here in the forum to look for "LDN" you'll find lots a lot of discussion about it.
GrumpyGit mentioned tramadol above. Some people find it really useful, but keep in mind that - like any opiate - it's addictive, so be careful if you go down that road!