Fibromyalgia

So eight years ago (give or take), I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia. This cam after a few years of just generally feeling crumby and stiff all the time. Both myself and my doctor believed that I likely had arthritis, or another auto-immune disorder, however, after several blood tests, bone scans, x-rays, and specialists, that wasn't the case. So I was told the problem was fibromyalgia!

Several years after that, a new issue arose. I noticed one hot summer day that my feet were pretty swollen. I didn't think it was too strange at first because I just thought it was the heat and it would go away soon enough. Now, not only did it not get better, it got sooooooo much worse. The swelling worsened, and spread though-out my body. My feet, knees, shoulders, elbows, and hands all puffed up! All of the doctors that I saw at the time had no idea what was going on, and all test results came back completely normal (thanks body for that little trick), and the doctors still have no idea what would have caused that to happen. But I lived like that for a month and a half before finding my acupuncturist. And let me tell you what I difference that made!! After two treatments, the swelling was almost completely gone and the symptoms of my fibromyalgia were also eased tremendously.

So you are probably wondering what fibromyalgia is...

Fibromyalgia is a syndrome that is chacterized by pain in the muscles and soft tissue. It affects more women then men, although men can also suffer from the condition. Its symptoms include:

• Chronic muscle pain, muscle spasms and tightness
• Moderate to sever fatigue
• Insomnia
• Stiffness upon waking up or staying in one position for too long
• Difficulty remembering and concentrating
• Abdominal pain, bloating and nausea 
• Tension and migraine headaches
• Feeling anxious or depressed 
• Feeling of swelling (without any actual swelling) in hands and feet

(Thank you to WebMD for a complete list)

So basically, I am in a degree if pain and discomfort everyday. Some days it's pretty awful and I'm extremely uncomfortable and in a lot of pain (like today), but thankfully, most days I'm just a little uncomfortable and can deal with it. There are also times when the pain is more localized and only affects certain areas of my body, which is usually my hands and feet. On those days, it almost feels like my fingers or toes are broken, which is just a strange sensation to live with.

When I was first diagnosed, I was taking some pretty strong pain killers to get me through the day (they were so strong that I cut them down so that I was only taking enough to take the edge off of the pain a little bit). But now I manage it with the acupuncture, over the counter pain relievers and yoga! I really didn't like being on the prescription pain medication, so I'm glad that I found something else that worked!! I'm just so young, and I don't want to be on anything that strong unless I really don't have any other options. And here is hoping that I will always have other options!!