What exactly is fibromyalgia?
Fibromyalgia is a disorder characterized by widespread
musculoskeletal pain accompanied by fatigue, sleep issues, memory and mood issues. Fibromyalgia also affects the way your brain and spinal cord process painful signals.
Fibromyalgia is a chronic condition and there is no cure, but there are treatments available. Fibromyalgia never really goes away, but you can go into remission at times, which means you can go for weeks, months, or even years (which is rare) without symptoms.
Fibromyalgia is chronic pain in multiple sites.
- These sites include :
- the head,
- the arms,
- the chest,
- the abdomen,
- both legs,
- the upper and lower back and spine.
The pain may be mild to severe. It may feel like a deep ache, or a stabbing, burning pain.
Symptoms often begin after an event, such as physical trauma, surgery, infection or significant psychological stress. In other cases, symptoms gradually accumulate over time with no single triggering event.
Women are more likely to develop fibromyalgia than are men. Many people who have fibromyalgia also have tension headaches, temporomandibular joint disorders, irritable bowel syndrome, anxiety and depression.
Fibromyalgia can also co-exist with other conditions, conditions such as:
- Irritable bowel syndrome
- Chronic fatigue syndrome
- Depression
- Anxiety
- Migraine headaches
- painful bladder syndrome
- Temporomandibular joint disorder
- Postural tachycardia syndrome (a condition that causes symptoms when you go from lying down to standing, symptoms such as a fast heart rate, dizziness and fatigue.)
You may get some relief with the following.
Your doctor may prescribe medicine to help you sleep and also to help reduce the pain you're in.
. Also, there is relief with good nutrition and regular sleep. Along with exercise, which can often help as well.
Low-impact aerobic exercise like swimming or bicycling can help you feel better. Along with yoga, walking and strength training. Your doctor, can decide which types of exercise are best for you.
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