Fibromyalgia can also be described as
widespread muscle pain accompanied by fatigue,
sleep, memory and mood issues. Many women
with fibromyalgia may also have tension
headaches, irritable bowel syndrome, anxiety and
depression.
“I stooped down to open a file cabinet and
couldn’t get back up. I saw a doctor, who sent me
to see an orthopedist, who sent me to physical
therapy. No one could figure out what was
wrong, and I just got worse. A friend said, “You
know, you might have Fibromyalgia.” And I
replied, “Oh, I know people with Fibro and I’m not
that bad.” Well, it turns out I was. There’s a
stigma about Fibromyalgia. People are afraid it's
all in their head. But it’s not.” – VB
According to the CDC, the cause of fibromyalgia
remains elusive, but there can be triggering
events thought to precipitate its onset. A few
examples would be an infection (viral or
bacterial), an automobile accident or the
development of another disorder, such as
rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, or hypothyroidism.
These triggering events probably do not cause
fibromyalgia, but rather, they may awaken an
underlying problem. While there is no cure for
fibromyalgia, a variety of medications can help
control symptoms, as well as a daily routine of
exercise, relaxation and stress-reduction.
“For me, it began when I had problems with my
neck. My whole body just started aching. I
probably saw 10 or 15 different doctors. Finally, I
went to a rheumatologist and he said I had
Fibromyalgia. It’s hard. Your life changes with
Fibromyalgia. It just takes over your whole body.
I’ve always been an independent person as far
as doing my job, housework and yard work and I
can no longer do that. You just can’t do the
things you used to do. Everybody has a different
way of dealing with the pain, with this illness. I’m
just a very strong-willed person and I’m the type
to just get up and go regardless of the pain. I just
keep moving. I try to exercise, swim, and such.
And I know when to sit down and rest.”- SG
WORKING WITH FIBROMYALGIA
Working a full-time job with fibromyalgia can be
difficult, to say the least. I often hear that what
frustrates many women is that fibromyalgia is an
‘invisible’ illness, where afflicted women feel like
the walking wounded. They function, but with
great difficulty. On the outside they look good,
but they function on extremely low energy
reserves and in constant pain that migrates
around the entire body. Most want others to
know that even though they’re functioning, they
are doing so at low capacity, and everything they
do is twice as hard as it is for others, and three
times as hard as it was before they became sick.
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