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charmcitymama

Member
Joined
Nov 27, 2013
Messages
15
Diagnosis
09/2013
Country
US
State
Maryland
Hi all,
I am new to the forum and am hoping to connect with others who have Fibromyalgia. I can't tell you all how much I hate having this disorder. So not relishing waking up every morning in constant pain and going to bed every night in pain. It has taken over my life completely. Now I know how my mother felt when she was diagnosed 25+ years ago. O top of having Fibro I also have a condition called costocondritis which is inflammation of the rib cartilage. This and the fibro together makes for a nightmareish day. I am slowly learrning howmto deal with them, but I am wondering how do you all cope with the constant pain?What therapies help you to cope? And lastly, I want to start exercising again but am afraid of the pain working out will cause. What exercises have you all found that work for you? Looking for any help I can g3t to learning how to navigate the wide wonderful world of fibromyalgia.
 
Hi, and welcome! I'm sorry to hear you're struggling! When I was first started my journey with fibro, I found that deep tissue massage was very helpful. It was probably the single biggest thing to help me with pain. Some medications certainly helped, but physical therapy, and deep tissue massage was the ticket.

As for exercise, it's very important that you stay active in some way. Not that you should try to run a marathon or anything, just that you try to not lay around much. I found in my personal experience that it helped a great deal. Swimming is a great fibro exercise. It's high impact, but the water makes it feel low impact. Walking in short snippets are also helpful. I've been told that Yoga, Tai Chi, and Pilates help as well. Just make sure that you don't overdo it, because then exercise can have the opposite effect.

One more thing, make sure you're getting plenty of sleep at night. I know this isn't always easy, but it's very useful in starving off flares. My doctor told me 9 hours a day. I would just use your judgement on what amount of time works for you, and roll with it.
 
Hey! I am so sorry to see that you are struggling :(

All I can tell you to do is to consult a specialist because if you do not, it may get worse. You should always stay healthy, exercise and of course, GET A LOT OF SLEEP.

Try to use medications if the pain is really great.

All the best to you and I hope that your disorder will be better soon.
 
Thanks MizzDeeDee. I used to get massages all the time when I worked in the cosmetology industry and haven't had a good deep tissue massage in ages. I am well over due. I know I need to exercise to keep the pain at bay, but I am so afraid of causing more pain. And as for gettin enough sleep your right it's easier said then done. Right now I'm averaging about 3 1/2-4 hours tops at night. I'm thjnking of trying a sleep aid to get through the night. Thanks for the advice I will definitely look for a massage therapist!
 
Thanks Mega Zero. I am doing the best I can with this and having this forum helps alot.
 
I have found that using my eliptical runner 15 minutes followed by 15 minutes of yoga/pilates is helpful. If I go over those times I set myself back and have more pain. I started off with 5 minutes a day then slowly increased to what I can tolerate. My doctor told me from the very beginning to exercise to combat pain and fatigue. Honestly though, there are flare days and even a week where I am too fatigued to exercise. I get right back to it when I can.
I also have trig or foods such as sugar, white flour and processed food. Which I have had way too much of the past few days!
I also soak in my hot tub most nights. It helps me sleep better and decreases my pain.
I sleep on a Tempurpedic mattress and it makes a huge difference.
As for sleeping meds, I tried Ambien and it made me do crazy stuff. My children still laugh at me when we talk about me doing the bunny hop to bed one night, lol! Now I take Melatonin, an herbal supplement.
I take long acting Tramadol, Celebrex,and Lyrica for pain. Narcotics really did not help my pain and all I ended up doing was becoming addicted so I weaned off them. I used to take Cymbalta but it really made m depression worse.
I also have learned to set limits. I cannot do all I used to be able to do and must accept it no matter how hard it is to admit I can't do as before.
How some of these this work for others!
 
All the above posts tell you some great ideas and so I will add one of mine that might help you sleep better. Try and find yourself a good thick fiber bed pad. this is not a regular mattress pad, but is a pad that is 2-4 inches thick that you lay on top of your regular mattress under the sheets to give you extra padding support. These thick pads come in all sizes from twin-king and are affordable, usually around sixty to one hundred dollars, but cheaper than buying a new bed. They can be cotton batting or feathers, or miracle foam, depending on your choice. I have used them for years and found them to be supportive yet, comfortable and feels like sleeping on a cloud.

I am glad you found this forum. Please feel free to post wherever you like and ask more questions if you have more things about fibro that you can not understand or deal with. Everyone will try hard to be supportive and make you feel at home. :)
 
Hi all,
I am new to the forum and am hoping to connect with others who have Fibromyalgia. I can't tell you all how much I hate having this disorder. So not relishing waking up every morning in constant pain and going to bed every night in pain. It has taken over my life completely. Now I know how my mother felt when she was diagnosed 25+ years ago. O top of having Fibro I also have a condition called costocondritis which is inflammation of the rib cartilage. This and the fibro together makes for a nightmareish day. I am slowly learrning howmto deal with them, but I am wondering how do you all cope with the constant pain?What therapies help you to cope? And lastly, I want to start exercising again but am afraid of the pain working out will cause. What exercises have you all found that work for you? Looking for any help I can g3t to learning how to navigate the wide wonderful world of fibromyalgia.

Have yuo tried gentle walks? Also, welcome to the forum :) Sorry to hear you are going tru this, I know how hard it can be. But I can assure that being active can really help you with your fibro, so if you can just do it. Sometimes gentle and slow walks are all you will ever need.
 
Sassy13 I am finding that certain foods like sugar for one does triggar my Fibro. My chiropractor has been talking to me about Leaky Gut Syndrome as he doesn't belive Imhave Firbo and thinks all this pain is due to this Syndrome. Well don't have Leaky Gut but I do Have gastritis from all the NSAIDS and antibiotics I had been on for p er 3 years for chronic migraine and pnuemonia. I avoid narcotics at all cost as I have a family history of addiction and don't want to go down that road. ? Tramadol does work fine for me but again with th2 gastritis I now have to be careful with what I put on my stomach. Iam on Welbutrin to help me quit smoking and I can honestly say it helping to ease th3 pain from the Fibro. I do notice a difference in my pain level when K miss a dose of the Welbutrin.
1sweed I sleep on a heated mattress pad that is a God send! Cannot live without it. I am going to look into getting extr padding for my bed. Thanks for the advise.
Trellum I take my dog for 15 to 20 minute walks 2 sometimes 3 times a day. It does help to keep me from getting stiff.
 
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