Living with Fibromyalgia

I suffered with many different symptoms for five years. They ranged from chronic insomnia, back and neck pain, skin rashes, sensitivity to light and cleaning product odors, muscle pain (primarily in my biceps and thighs) and the ever maddening muscle twitching!!!

I am a 39 year old mother of two wonderful sons and I have a very loving understanding husband. Before my first fibro flare up which includes at times debilitating fatigue, I was an energetic person involved in a ladies softball league, I went to a personal trainer 3x’s a week and ran up to 9 miles a week. My bouts of fatigue were distressing but the muscle twitching that I have been experiencing for a year and a half has been the worst symptom of this chronic syndrome.

I have been to rheumatolgists, general practicioners, neurologist, dermatologist and pain management doctors. I have had a battery of blood work ups, I have been tested for lymes disease multiple times as well as lupus It has been ruled out that I have MS and ALS I have had a brain MRI with contrast. I currently still visit with my neurologist every 4 months and see my pain management doctor every six weeks.

I just wish I would wake up one morning and feel like my old self again, which at times I forget what it would feel like to be pain free. I will not let fibromyalgia rob me of my life any longer. When I have days that I feel good, I relish in it and seize the day. I horseback ride four times out of the week and try to incorporate stretching and exercise in with my riding. When I have days that I am fatigued and achey, I listen to my body and don’t over do because I know I will pay for it big time for three days after. There are times when I feel sorry for myself but then I think of the terrible diseases I was tested for and I received a negative result and I know many people were not as lucky as me. Still I do wish there was more we could do to treat fibromyalgia and not just the symptoms.

Massage therapy gives wonderful temporary relief but it gets costly since it is not covered under insurance. I was under a chiropractors care for a while but found I left there more sore than before. This syndrome is frustrating and I feel like it chips away at the person I was. It weakens my spirit at times. But as long as I know that I can still go to my 16 and 13 year old sons football and baseball games and enjoy all of their accomplishments, it gets me through. I know I will just have to dress very warm, bring something comfortable to sit on, stretch frequently and then enjoy the game. Living with this is making everyday adjustments but the important word is living!!!! Make each day count and HELP yourself, because nobody else is going to.