FIBRO TYPE OF PAIN

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I do hate how this disease progresses and seems to look for new opportunities to make bad situations worse. I just had my ACL replaced last week. It's painful enough, but we've already determined my pain is much greater thanks to fibro. It has been unbearable at times, and I've always handled pain pretty well. This is the first time in my life that pain caused me to be nauseated.

Fibro mostly affects my upper body - chest, back, arms. I have chronic costochondritis (inflammation of the chest cartilage) that creates constant pain in my chest and shoots lightning bolts across my torso and up and down my arms. I also have arthritis in my ribs (and other joints) that give me daily pain. The fibro takes those pains and magnifies them, rides down my nerves and digs its claws in. Adding insult to injury, I have genetic heart disease and am dying of that disease as it is progressing in my LAD. I've had 3 heart attacks. Think about it. My chest hurts all the time and I get shooting pains down my arms. This causes me a lot of anxiety and depression, as my heart is always the first thing that pops into my head when I feel those things. It's torture. And of course, anxiety can ramp up the fibromyalgia and create more anxiety, which isn't healthy for the heart. It can be a vicious cycle.

Hi Rummy,
Since you know that the anxiety is making the symptoms you have worse, and you are in a vicious cycle, you must break that cycle. I know it's hard. I know it feels impossible at times. But you can. I have suffered from anxiety and panic attacks for a long time. You may not ever be able to stop them from coming but you can change how you deal with them. Learn different ways of responding to your anxiety. Research it, find a bunch of different possibilities, and try them one at a time. Don't expect a quick fix, as I said above to Roxana. But you are the only person who can manage it; unfortunately no one can do it for you. I still have anxiety attacks and the occasional panic attack. But now I know exactly what to do when that happens. I do it, and the anxiety eases off. Not in one minute. Sometimes it takes many minutes. Sometimes it takes an hour. But I can and do manage it with techniques I have learned from my research and then practiced diligently. Easing an anxiety attack even if it takes an hour is better than having anxiety all day.

I strongly suggest you do the same. Learning to manage your anxiety more effectively may also help with your depression, as they feed into each other. Best of luck.
 
Hi Roxana,

I have understood all too well the horror you are going through, and many of us on this forum can also. Your case is not at all unusual, I am sorry to say. Many if not most of us have had the experience of having no success with multiple pain medications. This is one of the reasons that I believe so strongly in the other things that you can do to help yourself, and do not ever recommend relying on medication.

I know it is scary. I was terrified at first. It took me a long time to come around to where I am now, and be able to give advice to others.

One problem is that we in the western world have been trained to expect a quick solution to everything, especially to pain. Advertising has done this, as well as the proliferation of narcotic pain drugs, which do give a high frequency of relief. But for a condition such as this, those drugs are not the answer.

If you have a simple headache and take an OTC drug and it makes the headache go away, that's one thing. But when you have a systemic syndrome, treating it with drugs and expecting that to solve your problem is not realistic. You have to approach the entire health of your body and make changes in how you handle that on a day-to-day basis in order to have a better quality of life.

This takes time. It is not an easy or quick fix. there is no easy of quick fix for Fibromyalgia. It will benefit you if you stop expecting one. Understand that this is something that will take time, but that you can learn to manage and you can lesson the effect it has on your life.

If you were in an accident and lost a leg, you would not expect to be able to run in a prosthetic leg in a month. It takes time. But it's possible to learn to do that; thousands have. This is similar.

Take heart. You can learn how to manage this. I have. I spent three years taking narcotic prescription drugs and hardly being able to get out of bed many days. Now I can lead what has become for me a reasonably normal life, even if it is not what I used to have before fibro. Are there still days I am in abject pain and cannot accomplish a single thing? Yes! Are there days I am racked with pain and nothing helps? Yes.
But those days are not the majority of my days any more.

I am glad you are going to try medical grade cannabis. I found it helps me a lot, and you don't have to worry about addiction. Let us know how it goes for you.

My last piece of advice, and I hope you take it to heart, is do not take narcotic drugs like Tramadol. It will seem like a miracle at first if it works for you (that's how I felt at first). But soon one pill won't be enough and you'll have to take two. Then three. And then soon you are addicted and for most people coming off that addiction is like coming off heroin. Just don't go there.
I'll not take Tramadol. I'm trying as much as possible to stay away from meds.
I even tried a homeopatic treatment e few months ago. Unfortunately it didn't work for me.
My fam dr has prescribed Cymbalta today.
This is another dangerous med, as l read about it on line...
I'd like to hear your opinion but l'm sure no one with Fibro can be happy with antidepressants.
They're bad for the brain, right? as they give long term side effects.
I'll start these days (soon) taking the Yellow and the Blue cannabis oils and l'll definitely let you all know how l feel.
I want to fix my night sleep first. There are months since l haven't had a good relaxing sleep... i feel sooo tired!!
The thing is that in two weeks l have to restart my job, at the office. My disability leave is ending and l don't want to apply for LTD.
I believe that being active and going back to work can help me psychologicaly.
I have at least to try...

Thank you so much, Sunkacola.
I'm looking forward to read your responses on this forum.

Love you all. You're my family now. ❤
 
The cannabis tincture may help a lot with getting enough good sleep. Let us know how it goes for you.
Cymbalta never helped me but I hear it helps some people.
 
Hi. Just wanted to say I recently upped my dose of Cymbalta to 60mg and it is definitely helping my depression, anxiety, and pain. I was on 30mg for three months before moving up to 60mg because I experienced less start up side effects you get with these drugs. So I hope it helps you a little as well. Smile and keep your chin up. :)
 
Cymbalta didn’t agree with me, I take lyrica instead. It helps me with anxiety as well.
 
Hi Rummy,
Since you know that the anxiety is making the symptoms you have worse, and you are in a vicious cycle, you must break that cycle. I know it's hard. I know it feels impossible at times. But you can. I have suffered from anxiety and panic attacks for a long time. You may not ever be able to stop them from coming but you can change how you deal with them. Learn different ways of responding to your anxiety. Research it, find a bunch of different possibilities, and try them one at a time. Don't expect a quick fix, as I said above to Roxana. But you are the only person who can manage it; unfortunately no one can do it for you. I still have anxiety attacks and the occasional panic attack. But now I know exactly what to do when that happens. I do it, and the anxiety eases off. Not in one minute. Sometimes it takes many minutes. Sometimes it takes an hour. But I can and do manage it with techniques I have learned from my research and then practiced diligently. Easing an anxiety attack even if it takes an hour is better than having anxiety all day.

I strongly suggest you do the same. Learning to manage your anxiety more effectively may also help with your depression, as they feed into each other. Best of luck.

Thanks for the response. I would like to point out that there is a difference between anxiety and an anxiety / panic attack. I have learned how to deal with attacks. Anxiety can last hours to days. An attack is sudden and can be debilitating, if you let it. However, an attack is actually less harmful than long periods of anxiety. (ask any cardiologist) You are right, though. Only I can control it and learn to deal with it.
 
Thanks for the response. I would like to point out that there is a difference between anxiety and an anxiety / panic attack. I have learned how to deal with attacks. Anxiety can last hours to days. An attack is sudden and can be debilitating, if you let it. However, an attack is actually less harmful than long periods of anxiety. (ask any cardiologist) You are right, though. Only I can control it and learn to deal with it.
Hi rummy, Having dealt with anxiety most of my life I do of course know that there are different kinds of anxiety and just like you I have long term anxiety that goes on for days or weeks at a time as well. My advice was specific to how to manage anxiety attacks, which most people who have anxiety issues also have. I didn't mean to imply that there is only one kind of anxiety. I agree with you that probably long-term anxiety is more harmful overall. I am certain, in fact, that it along with many other factors has had a role in my developing Fibro. I know that by taking the best care possible of myself, which has included getting rid of as many stress factors in my life as possible, I have somewhat reduced the duration and severity of my long-grade anxiety, although have not removed it unfortunately. Remember too that there are many kinds of stress, not just mental stress. All of them are harmful to the body. I am still learning about this, myself.
 
Hi rummy, Having dealt with anxiety most of my life I do of course know that there are different kinds of anxiety and just like you I have long term anxiety that goes on for days or weeks at a time as well. My advice was specific to how to manage anxiety attacks, which most people who have anxiety issues also have. I didn't mean to imply that there is only one kind of anxiety. I agree with you that probably long-term anxiety is more harmful overall. I am certain, in fact, that it along with many other factors has had a role in my developing Fibro. I know that by taking the best care possible of myself, which has included getting rid of as many stress factors in my life as possible, I have somewhat reduced the duration and severity of my long-grade anxiety, although have not removed it unfortunately. Remember too that there are many kinds of stress, not just mental stress. All of them are harmful to the body. I am still learning about this, myself.

I totally agree. In fact, I just resigned from my job and I'm not sure I'll ever be able to handle another 8-5. That job showed me I can't handle stress well mentally or physically anymore - that mixed with all my physical ailments. I am feel much better since leaving, but I still have plenty of fibro symptoms that aren't stress-related.
 
The thing is, I don't think we can know what is stress related and what is not, for certain with FM.
There are many kinds of stress. Eating unhealthy food for your particular body puts stress on the body. A body may be stressed by something that we don't think in our minds is stressful. Just a certain noise can be stressful.

If you are eating a carefully balanced and entirely healthy diet, you are eliminating a whole lot of body stress right there. If you are eating refined sugar (which is in everything packaged), or drinking alcohol, or eating something that your body doesn't like, or are not taking care of your gut biome, that stresses the body.

I am not saying you are doing any of those things but if you are, you might want to consider changing things.
It is important to remember that stress is not only what makes us consciously feel mentally stressed.
 
I'll not take Tramadol. I'm trying as much as possible to stay away from meds.
I even tried a homeopatic treatment e few months ago. Unfortunately it didn't work for me.
Cymbalta ... dangerous med... I'd like to hear your opinion but l'm sure no one with Fibro can be happy with antidepressants.
They're bad for the brain, right? as they give long term side effects.
... I believe that being active and going back to work can help me psychologicaly.
Hi - I've never believed in meds, so I tried all herbs I could find first, to no avail, whether pain, ache or sleep. (A few herb things for gut & stuff do help.) I tried homeopathy a bit and bioresonance, all to no avail (the practitioner had 2 helpful ideas for odd symptoms tho, sicca- and heart-related). I was relieved, in a way, that either the meds the docs tried were immediately detrimental (skin & seizures) or didn't help (diclo).
Antidepressants: I took amitriptyline for about 4 months, with 7+ adverse effects (seizures, weight, heart rate, eye accommodation, drowsiness, tiredness, having to sleep longer without much benefit, dry mouth, dry cough) and am happy to have been able to compensate it's help with sleep and thus feel much the better now. But I think maybe it needed to be for a while.
I actually honestly don't think I *need to go back to work, I am very active without and can self-care better and more freely. But I will try it carefully, starting with 1 hour a day, and see how it goes. Despite continuing sick leave, I am working 'home office' now, 1-2 hours a day, organizing things for my colleagues, which is a lot of fun, but I know when I go there (school) it will be taxing to self-care with the eustress I get there, because my cortisol will only let me feel the ache afterwards.
 
I second that on the painkillers! I have an entire bottle of tramadol and only took one right after my first car accident. Don't need to add addiction to my list of issues. Considering the cannibas.
 
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