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Fibro Specialist visit today

Posted , 8 users are following.

mandy09255
mandy09255

Did find my visit to a specialist interesting... I have been thinking recently about why fibro exists.  There is no physical reason that can be detected for the symptoms we have but still the physical symptoms are felt but what causes our bodies to give out pain sgnals or extreme fatigue or loss of hair or hot sweats or nervous tension or a million and one other reactions?

The answer is... the specialist does not know.

No physical answer has been found and that led me to thinking - is this a mental issue then?  There are a few things we know about fibro:

1.Pain is felt but not from any injury, only from a pain signal sent from our brains.

2. Extreme fatigue usually comes on with a feeling of being nervous.

3. A little excercise and getting outside for some fresh air makes us feel better.

4. Not working makes us feel better as we feel less stressed out.

I believe that some credit must be given to the theory that this is a mental issue and not a physical one.  I'm not saying that we are all psycho but that our sub-consious minds have learnt a certain set of physical reactions to life.  When we feel tense our minds express that as pain or fatigue whereby the average person would just feel a little tense and nothing more.

If we have sub-consiously learnt these over-reactions to stress then wouldn't the best bet be to try and teach our minds to react correctly.

I have requested CBT, I can only think that this is the only way forward at this point.  I need to teach myself a better way to react to life... there is no way I am going give up and live with this.

Fighting talk I know.... just got to get on the therapy course!

Let me know what you think?

Thanks for listening to me rabble on.

Cheers

Mandy

 

2 likes, 19 replies

19 Replies

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  • Bee70
    Bee70 mandy09255

    Posted

    Hi Mandy

    Totally agree with your findings.

    CBT will help you as it helped me. biggrin

  • becky000
    becky000 mandy09255

    Posted

    I agree.  Having suffered from depression and extreme anxiety for twenty years now and Fibro for the past ten, I've noticed that my flare-ups occur after a time of anxiety and stress.  I have slowly learnt how to control the anxiety and CBT is honestly the only thing I've found that helps.  To re-train the brain.  Unlearn the bad habits.  But somehow I think I learnt too late and the damage has already been done.  

    I have begun to understand my condition though and how my mind reacts and many symptoms are due to the mind over-reacting.  (In my case anyway). I find that if I can occupy my mind with something else and stop concentrating on the pain, I am then able to gauge just how bad (or not bad) the symptoms are.

    Exercise is good.  Often I find myself thinking that I just can't even go for a walk because I feel to I'll or have too much pain, but if I make the effort I generally come home feeling so much better.

    I don't know if this will help anyone else, but it's an interesting discussion.

    Anyone else have anything to add?

     

    • Bee70
      Bee70 becky000

      Posted

      Hi Becky

      Agree with you too !

      It's about how we take each moment of our day and tackle it in a calm and positive way.  CBT has made me re-assess the way I think and react towards others. 

      Although some days the pains do control me, but I am able to take control of the pain too through my CBT training.

    • tiswas24537
      tiswas24537 becky000

      Posted

      i feel like this and i come home feeling great i did a brisk walk for 15mins for 5 days the 6th day i couldnt hardly move let alone do the walk 

      and it triggered a pain flare that lasted 4 weeks . 

      it drives me mad but i cant see away round it 

    • mandy09255
      mandy09255 becky000

      Posted

      Thanks for that becky, good to know CBT did some good for you.

      I work for a wonderful company and they sent me to see the specialist and I've just been told they have booked a 6 session course of CBT for me in work time. 

      Really happy to be getting some help and I agree eventhough it is really hard sometimes to convince yourself to go out or just get out of bed I feel alot better for it afterwards.  

      That's why I am very reluctant to stop work because without that incentive I think it would be impossible to get up in the mornings.

      I never thought of myself as a nervous or anxious person and people have always said I'm the most laid-back person they know.  But I can now say that what people see on the outside is very different to how I have felt all my life on the inside.

      I too am an anxious and nervous person but have never searched for help before because I just always dealt with it by ignoring it and throwing myself into something new to take my mind of it.  

      Until about 7years ago when I started having all these other symptoms.

      It makes sense that learning too late could make it much harder for CBT to be succesfull. It is a pity the doctors take so long diagnosing for Fibro, a whole lot of pain could be avoided if they could perscribe anti-depressants and CBT earlier. 

      But my motto is "where there's a will, there's a way".

      It was really nice reading your comments because I can tell you are a very strong willed person who looks on the bright side of things despite what you have to put up with in daily life.  

      Cheers

      Mandy

       

  • susan69134
    susan69134 mandy09255

    Posted

    My sister has MS, suffers from anxiety and depression, can't sleep and has many symptoms similar to my own, but Dr's wouldn't tell her it's all in her head. If you think about it if you feel ill for long periods you are going to be depressed etc.

    There are studies that are showing abnormalities in brain scans, nerve fibre bundles and the central nervous system as a whole, in Fibromyalgia sufferers my GP told me about this report

    http://www.intidyn.com/news-events/news/20-researchers-discover-a-rational-biological-source-of-pain-in-the-skin-of-patients-with-fibromyalgia-press-relase

    I was diagnosed over twenty years ago, told it was all in my head go away and relearn my sleep patterns. I've not been back to see a specialist about it since.

    My GP gave me some stronger pain meds, which I only take at night time and then only if the pain is very bad. The rest of the time I try to ignore it by concentrating on something else, think it's called distraction technique. Knitting, working or if I'm really bad I read.

    • loxie
      loxie susan69134

      Posted

      So sorry to hear of your sister's health issues, I have a good friend with MS, its very tragic to see her struggle so much.  There's a difference between 'all in the head' - ie that the symptoms are psychosomatic, and the reference to it being a brain/mind issue - as you've said above brain scans show abnormalities. It has to be understood that the very term fibromyalgia just means fibrous pain, nothing more.  It's a descriptive reference to the symptoms (some of them anyhow) rather than a 'diagnosis'  - being told you have fibromyalgia doesn't result in any different treatment often from just being told you're in pain - unfortunately.  I'm not convinced that everyone will have exactly the same source of the pain experienced, which is why it's important for doctors to rule out other diagnoses.  I personally don't want to just hear I have 'fibrous pain syndrome' for which there is no effective treatment, just more pain meds.  I'd rather my doctors found out the true cause, call it anything they like but find me a solution please.  If they tell me it's stress so be it, as long as whatever resulting treatment and assistance I get relieves my symptoms I dont care if they call it oodle woodle disease!
    • susan69134
      susan69134 loxie

      Posted

      Trouble is DR's haven't been finding the true cause, they didn't know so they guessed, it's the same thing with many other illness's/diseases just that in those cases they can see a physical reaction, so they don't say it's psychosomatic. Let's hope that newer research into what is fibromyalgia will lead to better understanding of it's effects, and in turn treatments for it, if not a cure.
    • christine26761
      christine26761 susan69134

      Posted

      Better understanding that leads to better treatment would just be excellent Susan ......be blessed, have a lovely day..:-) xx
    • tiswas24537
      tiswas24537 susan69134

      Posted

      if they felt like they were being tortured daily they would find a cure or a sucefully treatment super fast . it in the brain is were the problem is the part that deals with flight or freight after bouts of constant stress or truma the gland gets stuck and keeps producing chemicals like adrenlin that is not needed .which builds in the soft tissues and muscles causing pain.eek

       

  • christine26761
    christine26761 mandy09255

    Posted

    smile

    O' yes, Mandy..thanks for the  information.,have a lovely day..be blessed:-) xx

  • sha1271
    sha1271 mandy09255

    Posted

    My rheumatologist explained to me that it is a brain disease that effecta the central nervous system causing over sensitization. It is commonly found in people with anxiety and depression whIich I think is why antidepressants work for some. So far nothing has really helped me as far as medication. Im now exercising regularly and upping my magnesium, vitamin D3, B12 which my levels are low. So far im doing better, my symptoms aren't as severe. Once I stop gabapentin completely I shall see if my headaches return. Im just tired of side effects from medications. Wish you all luck.
    • mandy09255
      mandy09255 sha1271

      Posted

      Thanks for reply, glad your doing much better and I agree excercise makes me feel better too.

      Hope the headaches dont return... they drive me crazy.

      Good luck too.

  • sian77255
    sian77255 mandy09255

    Posted

    Hi Mandy, I do agree but I also think it is important to recognise there is a very physical side to it, I know my fibro really took its toll on me after I strained my back. When I spoke to my GP about what was going on and why the pain was still there she asked me about what other stuff I had in my life and there were a million stressors in one way or another. So she said thinks I had fibro for a while but while I was busy filtering the mental stuff and trying to just ignore the other symptoms the stress of the injury itself on my body was the final straw and I've been paying for it ever since rolleyes The injury effected my ability to cope with everything else. Should have paid attention earlier then it may not have been as bad now. So i guess mine was mental and physical in one big punch haha. I hope CBT works for you I am a great believer in what you can achieve with it  x x 
    • mandy09255
      mandy09255 sian77255

      Posted

      Hi sian,  yeah I agree when things happen it makes the fibro worse.

      Sorry to hear you are still paying for it and hope you find some relief soon.

      Got 6 sessions of CBT coming up so going to give it my best shot and keep positive.

      Thanks xxx

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