# Dealing with Fibro



## thebirdman (Apr 5, 2014)

My wife has suffered for several years with chronic pain and fatigue among other things. That seems to be on top of her list of discomforts. She called me one afternoon several weeks ago: "I have Fibromyalgia!" she said, sounding almost happy; way more excited than anyone who was just diagnosed with such a disease should be. I sympathize with her though. She went from doctor to doctor to doctor. None of them believed her or took her seriously when she told them she was hurting all the time until recently when her newest family practice doctor referred her to a Rheumatologist who told her what she had always kind of suspected. She has been dealing with it for several years. It's kind of nice to know what to call it. 

They are still working on a treatment plan and finishing up some other tests. The doctor prescribed aquatherapy for now, which is unfortunately a very expensive swim. We may go that route depending on what insurance will cover. 

Anyone dealt with something like this? What kind of treatments were you prescribed and what have you found that eases the discomfort?


----------



## C22r (Oct 20, 2015)

Hi sorry to read your story. Sadly I can sympathise with your wife being a fellow fibro sufferer. It's a cyclic illness so she will have days when you think "yay" I have her back (enjoy these), then there will be days where she suffers (if she is anything like me, her mood during these times can be black as you begin to hate your body). 

My poor husband has been pushed away more times than he deserves. I'm thankful that he doesn't take it personally. 

Your gp may suggest cognitive behavioural therapy (it works for some), pain meds and changes to exercise and diet. It's an awful illness that demands patience. I truly hope you and your wife stay strong and battle on. 

Fingers crossed for a cure and may that day come soon. 

X


----------



## turnera (Jan 22, 2010)

My DD25 was diagnosed about 7 years ago, after more than 5 years of dragging her from doctor to doctor with no luck; her childhood pediatrician finally told her to go to a rheumatologist. It was SUCH A RELIEF to finally get a real diagnosis. I just can't tell you how relieved she was (me too) to finally have a REASON for extra sensitivity to touching her skin or any of the other odd symptoms she has.

So far, she's been able to manage it without prescription drugs for the most part. She has a bottle of the pain meds that last about a year. They have told her, however, to expect to become more debilitated over the years. They have even talked about needing a wheelchair down the road. 

She's tried chiropractor, massage, and acupuncture, with varying results. She seems to do better when she is relaxed and addressing her stress.


----------



## kristin2349 (Sep 12, 2013)

I have had Fibromyalgia for 15 years. Your wife sounded happy to tell you because getting a diagnosis for why you are feeling so horrible is a huge relief. Your body is sending you major pain signals telling you something is majorly wrong and you think the Dr.s are ovelooking some dreading terminal thing. And while it is a lifelong chronic illness it is something that can be managed. I have been managing quite well, almost entirely without the prescriptions my Drs. pushed on me. I get massages by a Physical Therapist sometimes as many as 3 a week, I do hydrotherapy with Epsom Salts at home in my whirlpool. I eat high protein, low glycemic foods to keep inflammation down. I work out with weights and do Yoga to keep my body strong and flexible. I take tons of vitamin and herbal supplements. A really good nights sleep is key, so I bought a really comfortable soft but supportive latex foam mattress and I do take Lunesta sleeping pills when needed. If I do have breakthrough pain I use Soma muscle relaxers. I won't get into the whole medical marijuana debate but I will say it helps me a great deal with pain.

When I was diagnosed 15 years ago, I took the medicines my Drs. prescribed and felt horrible all the time. The medications left me tired and I could barely walk and I was getting worse and worse. I finally took control of my health and cut most of the drugs out a little at a time and feel so much better for it. 

If she hasn't already done so she should have her Ferritin levels checked. Many women with Fibro have low ferritin levels (stored iron protein) I had it for years after diagnosis and getting that corrected really helped with many of the symptoms. Many Drs neglect to ever check this if your hemoglobin and iron levels are OK so you have to ask for it specifically, it is a simple cheap blood test.


----------



## thebirdman (Apr 5, 2014)

Thanks for the advice! Talked to a friend who's wife also has fibro. He recommended buying a hot tub. Said it helped a lot with her pain and of course he gets to enjoy it too. I'll look into all your suggestions.


----------



## Slow Hand (Oct 4, 2015)

Let thy food be thy medicine and thy medicine be thy food. Hippocrates 


Cut out all processed foods from the diet, including MSG, aspartame, high fructose corn syrup and gluten. Eat healthy, lots of vegetables and some fruit and some meat for protein. Google each one of these items and the word fibromyalgia for more information. 


Good luck and God bless.


----------



## As'laDain (Nov 27, 2011)

my wife has suffered fibro for about ten years or so. 

the two things that have helped her the most have been cardiovascular exercise and vitamin D. for pain she occasionally takes lyrica.


----------



## C22r (Oct 20, 2015)

Slow Hand said:


> Let thy food be thy medicine and thy medicine be thy food. Hippocrates
> 
> 
> Cut out all processed foods from the diet, including MSG, aspartame, high fructose corn syrup and gluten. Eat healthy, lots of vegetables and some fruit and some meat for protein. Google each one of these items and the word fibromyalgia for more information.
> ...


Not to mention cutting out any form of stress! 

Sadly haven't found anything from my diet the helps when I give it up. 

Got terribly excited when I read about aspartame poisoning - cut it out totally, yet no change. Other than that I have a healthy diet with the odd sweet thing in there once maybe twice a month. 

Mindfulness is meant to be the new cure all. Happy to try hugging trees etc if it's going to help


----------



## As'laDain (Nov 27, 2011)

C22r said:


> Not to mention cutting out any form of stress!
> 
> Sadly haven't found anything from my diet the helps when I give it up.
> 
> ...


try aerobic exercise. for my wife, it was quite painful when she started out, but the better shape she gets in, the less she deals with flare ups, and the less severe the flare ups are. took about a month to start seeing a difference. she took 10,000 IU of vitamin D a day for the first several months because it raised her energy levels quite a bit.

aerobic fitness is known to help with fibro...
Fibromyalgia: Aerobic Fitness for Fibromyalgia

which kinda makes sense after reading this:

Breakthrough In Fibromyalgia Research: Pain Is In Your Skin, Not In Your Head


----------



## C22r (Oct 20, 2015)

As'laDain said:


> try aerobic exercise. for my wife, it was quite painful when she started out, but the better shape she gets in, the less she deals with flare ups, and the less severe the flare ups are. took about a month to start seeing a difference. she took 10,000 IU of vitamin D a day for the first several months because it raised her energy levels quite a bit.
> 
> aerobic fitness is known to help with fibro...
> Fibromyalgia: Aerobic Fitness for Fibromyalgia
> ...


Thank you I will give it a go. I quite like aqua aerobics (or used to), so will investigate my local classes and get a wriggle on. 

Take care. X


----------



## turnera (Jan 22, 2010)

My DD actually got a prescription for aquatherapy for her fibro from her rheumatologist. She never went, though.


----------



## LostinMO (Jan 1, 2016)

My gf has this. Makes it tough to try to be close when she says she hurts when I touch her.


----------



## turnera (Jan 22, 2010)

LostinMO, my daughter's that way, too. My only suggestion is to try to learn to touch her...gently, without putting pressure. It's the pressure that hurts DD25. Gripping her leaves a mark on her skin for hours. Remember, it's a disease of the nerves, and the skin is a very sensitive one. 

Like, how you'd touch a butterfly or a kitten, or hold a feather on the palm of your hand, vs how you'd grip a bat. Does that make sense?


----------



## As'laDain (Nov 27, 2011)

my wife used to complain of that a lot. she still does in the morning, her skin is on fire. especially her forearms and hands. the ONLY thing that seems to consistently help with that is cardiovascular exercise. its subtle at first, but very noticeable. she went from being hospitalized from time to time due to pain to being able to lots of physical activity. nowadays, she is excited about working out at the end of every day. 

for someone with fibro, exercising is far more painful than it is for the average person, but it also seems to be far more beneficial.


----------

