Muscle pain and itching

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Patricia Ericks

New member
Joined
Feb 18, 2020
Messages
4
Reason
DX FIBRO
Diagnosis
11/2018
Country
US
State
MA
Hi everyone, I was finally diagnosed 4 months ago by a wonderful nurse practitioner. It took 2 years and dealing with three doctors to finally get a correct diagnosis. She gave me Cymbalta for night pain and it is helping. However I am always tired, my body itches and I have fibrofog which is worse than the pain. O do not know anyone who has fibromyalgia or even knows about this disease. I try to not be down in the dumps, but it is tough.
 
Hi Patricia - yeah the fog can be horrid at times. I was only diagnosed about a month ago but had been dealing with "something" for over a year and a half. Alot of "odd" symptoms. I took gabapentin for a short time with no help other than making me feel dungy. Now have been prescribed Cymbalta but not ready to try it yet. I went through alot of tests and dr visits, ER visits etc before getting my diagnosis. I only know a few people who have it but based on forums and support groups we all seem to have similair symptoms but treatment is very individual on what works. This is a hard illness for sure but I try to stay as proactive as I can and as positive as I can. I get down in the dumps too, I believe its all part of processing this illness.
 
Hi Patricia, -------- I understand about it getting you down. I have been there, quite thoroughly. The way I tend to look at it now is this:
It is as if you (any of us) are mourning something that is lost or gone. We used to be stronger, had more energy, not always in pain, and now we have lost the ability to be pain free and all the benefits that come with not having chronic pain.

When a person is in mourning, people want to tell you "it will get better", and I really hate that, because the only thing that would really make it Better is if you had back what you have lost! But what it can do --and guaranteed it does --get Different.

With grief, as with something like Fibro, the different it gets has a lot to do with acceptance of what it is. This never means apathy, nor does it imply in any way that you won't continue to do whatever you can to deal effectively with the situation, and even change it if you can. It just means you are not wasting your limited energy in anger, resentment, or depression.

Depression is the worst because the hardest to throw off. I have a lot of experience with it. What I have found is that my best defense with that is actually kind of an offense, which for me means very regularly doing things that get me out of my head and get my body moving. So, walking, dancing, hiking, and not allowing myself to think about what is depressing while I am doing those things. For you it is your own thing --whatever brings you some peace, and gets your body moving.

As Sabrina says, getting down is all part of processing this thing and is really unavoidable at first. But you can learn to manage that, same as managing the pain. We are here to help.
 
It's really about accepting our new normal and taking it day by day. Easier said than done often but mindset is key in coping for sure. This forum is a great help for me!! What is it they say misery loves company?? For me its more about not feeling alone, or even crazy for some of the odd symptoms. It helps to share and support :)
 
Hi Patricia - yeah the fog can be horrid at times. I was only diagnosed about a month ago but had been dealing with "something" for over a year and a half. Alot of "odd" symptoms. I took gabapentin for a short time with no help other than making me feel dungy. Now have been prescribed Cymbalta but not ready to try it yet. I went through alot of tests and dr visits, ER visits etc before getting my diagnosis. I only know a few people who have it but based on forums and support groups we all seem to have similair symptoms but treatment is very individual on what works. This is a hard illness for sure but I try to stay as proactive as I can and as positive as I can. I get down in the dumps too, I believe its all part of processing this illness.

Thank you for responding. It is now 8am on the Northern East Coast of Massachusetts. I had all.of 2 hrs according to my fit bit. Just could not go to sleep last night. However it was not just
Hi Patricia, -------- I understand about it getting you down. I have been there, quite thoroughly. The way I tend to look at it now is this:
It is as if you (any of us) are mourning something that is lost or gone. We used to be stronger, had more energy, not always in pain, and now we have lost the ability to be pain free and all the benefits that come with not having chronic pain.

When a person is in mourning, people want to tell you "it will get better", and I really hate that, because the only thing that would really make it Better is if you had back what you have lost! But what it can do --and guaranteed it does --get Different.

With grief, as with something like Fibro, the different it gets has a lot to do with acceptance of what it is. This never means apathy, nor does it imply in any way that you won't continue to do whatever you can to deal effectively with the situation, and even change it if you can. It just means you are not wasting your limited energy in anger, resentment, or depression.

Depression is the worst because the hardest to throw off. I have a lot of experience with it. What I have found is that my best defense with that is actually kind of an offense, which for me means very regularly doing things that get me out of my head and get my body moving. So, walking, dancing, hiking, and not allowing myself to think about what is depressing while I am doing those things. For you it is your own thing --whatever brings you some peace, and gets your body moving.

As Sabrina says, getting down is all part of processing this thing and is really unavoidable at first. But you can learn to manage that, same as managing the pain. We are here to help.

Thank you for your wise words. This AM I woke up and looked out at the beautiful blue sky. Soon New England will start seeing the signs of spring. I love spring and the warm weather. I am happy that I found this forum. It helps to be able to have discussions with others who understand. Again thank you for your support and advice. Have a wonderful day.🌞
 
Hang in there, Patricia. Like everyone has already said, try to be positive. Enjoy the good days so much that they help carry you through the not-so-good days. Like you, I deal with itching and burning sensations at times. It sucks. I've tried all the nerve pain meds and I can't take any of them. The only pain reliever I can take is Tylenol and it doesn't do anything.
 
Hi Patricia, -------- I understand about it getting you down. I have been there, quite thoroughly. The way I tend to look at it now is this:
It is as if you (any of us) are mourning something that is lost or gone. We used to be stronger, had more energy, not always in pain, and now we have lost the ability to be pain free and all the benefits that come with not having chronic pain.

When a person is in mourning, people want to tell you "it will get better", and I really hate that, because the only thing that would really make it Better is if you had back what you have lost! But what it can do --and guaranteed it does --get Different.

With grief, as with something like Fibro, the different it gets has a lot to do with acceptance of what it is. This never means apathy, nor does it imply in any way that you won't continue to do whatever you can to deal effectively with the situation, and even change it if you can. It just means you are not wasting your limited energy in anger, resentment, or depression.

Depression is the worst because the hardest to throw off. I have a lot of experience with it. What I have found is that my best defense with that is actually kind of an offense, which for me means very regularly doing things that get me out of my head and get my body moving. So, walking, dancing, hiking, and not allowing myself to think about what is depressing while I am doing those things. For you it is your own thing --whatever brings you some peace, and gets your body moving.

As Sabrina says, getting down is all part of processing this thing and is really unavoidable at first. But you can learn to manage that, same as managing the pain. We are here to help.
 
Thanks for writing back. I have an appointment with my Nurse practitioner
She is great. I told my husband he needs to come. I want him to hear that she says so he understands I not making this up. Again thank you for your response.
 
Hi everyone, I was finally diagnosed 4 months ago by a wonderful nurse practitioner. It took 2 years and dealing with three doctors to finally get a correct diagnosis. She gave me Cymbalta for night pain and it is helping. However I am always tired, my body itches and I have fibrofog which is worse than the pain. O do not know anyone who has fibromyalgia or even knows about this disease. I try to not be down in the dumps, but it is tough.


Hi Patricia, I’m 43 and recently diagnosed - I have been bed bound for a couple of days but my symptoms over the years have varied (sometimes I thought I was just plain crazy)
Once diagnosed and I looked into all the symptoms it was obvious to me. As for the Fibro fog I was convinced I had the start of dementia - work to me is a saviour ( although a couple of days of each month will not do me any favours at work) and I try to keep a routine - getting up at the same time walk the dog, go to work .......
I have only just joined this forum and feel better already :):)
 
Hi Patricia, I’m 43 and recently diagnosed - I have been bed bound for a couple of days but my symptoms over the years have varied (sometimes I thought I was just plain crazy)
Once diagnosed and I looked into all the symptoms it was obvious to me. As for the Fibro fog I was convinced I had the start of dementia - work to me is a saviour ( although a couple of days of each month will not do me any favours at work) and I try to keep a routine - getting up at the same time walk the dog, go to work .......
I have only just joined this forum and feel better already :):)
Amanda - I think work has helped me too - given me something to focus on and like you I think a routine helps. I too went through feeling like i was crazy. Even asked the dr point blank what the hell is wrong with me and why do the tests show everything is basically ok when I feel so crappy so much of the time. And YES this forum is soooooooooooo helpful. Seeing others going through almost the exact same things and struggling. It's like ok - this thing is real. Now to figure out how best to "treat" it. I am trying VERY hard t o stay off meds. I did a 3 week round of gabapentin and stopped because it wasnt helping anything and made me feel alittle more foggy. Having the support is so nice! :)
 
I think for all of us it is putting our lives back together the best that we can in anyway that we can. It is hard to express yourself when people will say, "I heard there is a cure for that and everyone is doing fine." But I have learned to take it all with a grain of salt and I have learned to be kind in saying, "Listen if there was a cure I would be there, I'd hop on a plane, I'd go to another state or another country." They really don't mean to be cruel because I know even though I have a really great doctor now, they don't have a cure. But this doctor listens to me and believes me. I have to go back in three months and will keep you all updated. Hint: there is Tylenol extra strength, I picked it up one time out of desperation and it helped me until I got in to see this doctor. The generic worked for me, it is only $2.00. I hope this gives you some relief and take care! I practice a breathing exercise as well, breath in, breath out, breath in hold to the count of 3 to 8 (your choice) and let it out. Do it again if it helps or works for you.
 
Hi everyone, I was finally diagnosed 4 months ago by a wonderful nurse practitioner. It took 2 years and dealing with three doctors to finally get a correct diagnosis. She gave me Cymbalta for night pain and it is helping. However I am always tired, my body itches and I have fibrofog which is worse than the pain. O do not know anyone who has fibromyalgia or even knows about this disease. I try to not be down in the dumps, but it is tough.
Fibromyalgia can really bring you down for sure. Sometimes you think you have it all sorted and something else pops up! Re: Cymbalta. I had horrible itching when I took it as well as increased brain fog. It helped with pain at first, but then it didn’t and when my dose was increased everything got worse. Sweating, spasms, brain zaps, more itching and fatigue. Then it took me a year to slow taper off it due to discontinuation syndrome—a fancy way of saying withdrawal. I hope it works for you, but educate yourself on the side effects. I thought my fibromyalgia was getting worse, but it was the medication.
 
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