Is Fibromyalgia Reall a Thing?

[Anonymous]

I have three friends who have it, and they seem to all be genuinely suffering, and not drug-seeking. I think it's one of those things that is misunderstood because there aren't any symptoms beyond "pain" and it's hard to quantify pain because pain and pain tolerance are so subjective.

[Anonymous]

I know an annoying person that claims to have it. She posts about it everyday and educational links, it's quite annoying.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Gene weingarten used to rail on about it. He said even the guy who named it admitted it was fake. Just a "diagnosis" to justify middle class pain reliever addiction.

People with fibro are typically not prescribed narcotics. They don't help much.

This isn't true. Many people with fibro use narcotic pain relievers. I have a "friend" with fibro who has progressed all the way to morphine after other less powerful narcotics have worn off. Who knows now if her pain is from the disease or withdrawls?

[Anonymous]

I believe it is real only, but I don't have it.

I was just cleared for fibro yesterday. Felt very relieved because I already have one "invisible" chronic condition. At the same time, my doctor is perplexed why I am in pain in areas that were not directly injured. Luckily, I basically always refuse narcotics unless I am hospitalized so no one thinks I'm drug-seeking once they look at my chart.

I remember a few decades ago having a relative diagnosed with lupus. She was told it was all in her head for the better part of three years, that women got these fake illnesses when they had an empty nest or entered menopause. She suffered terribly from the social stigma and not being able to get disability on top of her physical pain and fatigue.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Gene weingarten used to rail on about it. He said even the guy who named it admitted it was fake. Just a "diagnosis" to justify middle class pain reliever addiction.

People with fibro are typically not prescribed narcotics. They don't help much.

This isn't true. Many people with fibro use narcotic pain relievers. I have a "friend" with fibro who has progressed all the way to morphine after other less powerful narcotics have worn off. Who knows now if her pain is from the disease or withdrawls?

They'd be better off on drugs that treat neuropathic pain. Like neurontin etc.

[Anonymous]

I believe some people truly have it (my aunt). I believe some people are diagnosed with it, but really have something else that they will eventually be diagnosed with. And I believe some people are hypochondriacs and doctors slap a diagnosis on to get them to go away. And the third category is why it gets a bad rap.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I know an annoying person that claims to have it. She posts about it everyday and educational links, it's quite annoying.

Well, yeah, that's a bit much. But I have fibro and it's real. I keep it secret for the most part. But it hurts and makes things so much worse that many in my extended family don't believe the dx.

[Anonymous]

"I was just cleared for fibro yesterday".

OP again. So when you say "cleared", what do you mean? Is there a test for it?

[Anonymous]

I can't be sure, but I do know that some of the drugs they give you for it are pretty potent. My husband was offered one of those drugs by a prominent doctor (he has a very real cancer-treatment-induced issue)... so we are finding a new doctor.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was always under the impression that Fibromyalgia was one of those hokie conditions suffered by middle-aged, multiple-cat-owning, wrist-brace-wearing women. But now a friend of mine says she has this "condition", and she doesn't fit the profile. I don't know whether to be sympathetic and read up on it, or just ignore it and let her deal with it (yes I know, some friend huh). Anyone dealt with this?

They ALL fit the profile...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:"I was just cleared for fibro yesterday".

OP again. So when you say "cleared", what do you mean? Is there a test for it?

My doctor probed a number of points on my body that are typically extremely tender in fibro patients. It is usually bilateral. My tender spots were unilateral (except for the base of skull). He thinks that I wrenched my neck, shoulder, and back when I was knocked down (an object fell on my head from above).

[Anonymous]

I have fibromyalgia. It is a relentless debilitating pain and muscle stiffness. For me the trick is to make sure that I get into deep REM sleep during the night, and keep up with my pain medication. I take anti-anxiety meds as well as meds to make me sleep. I take my multi-vitamins and some additional meds. I cannot let Fibromyalgia prevent me from living my life, however, I have to pace myself which means that if I start to feel tired, I drop everything and rest.

[Anonymous]

Ok, thanks 22:22. Things falling on one's head is usually unpleasant. Good luck with it.

[Anonymous]

The fibro sufferer I know used to be a big druggie not sure if trying to get drugs or just messed up from prior drug use.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Someone keeps posting these "is fibro real" threads - Jeff, is it the same person?

Yes, it is real. But the medical community hasn't fully figured it out yet.

Fibro is painful and awful. Having friends and family not believe you and dismiss you as a crazy cat lady multiplies the pain tenfold. Imagine if you had a broken leg and people were sneering at you for not walking on it.

Y hasn't fully figured it out, I mean the cast majority of doctors now recognize it as a real syndrome, wither all symptoms, but they don't fully understand the why or the how to treat it.

Sort of like where lupus and ms were decades ago.

Um...Lupus has been recognized for over 200 years, and MS for over 100...

Fibro is recognized as real in that doctors recognize there are patients with symptoms. But, like many syndromes, when there is no infection, no nerve activation at the site of pain, etc...no Physiologic cause of pain...it's root is usually psychiatric. So does the medical community recognized fibro? Yes, in as much as they recognize depression.