Everything You Need to Know About Fibromyalgia

Pain, fatigue, and other fibromyalgia symptoms affect your quality of daily life. This chronic condition can be managed by using different medical assistance or guidance.

Fibromyalgia is a chronic condition that lasts for a longer time. Its symptoms include:

• General fatigue
• Cognitive distractions due to sleep disturbances.
• Tenderness of joints.
• Pain in the bones, muscles, and joints.

Since fibromyalgia symptoms mimic those of other diseases, it is difficult to diagnose or understand its early signs or symptoms. Even healthcare professionals find it hard to diagnose its symptoms as there are no tests to confirm a diagnosis. Therefore, fibromyalgia is often misdiagnosed.

In the past, it was a dilemma whether fibromyalgia was real or not. But in the modern era of scientific development, it is easy to understand this phenomenon. A recent study has reported that fibromyalgia affects females more than males. It is diagnosed mostly in middle-aged people but some cases of affected children have also appeared. According to a survey around 3 to 5 percent of the population of the country is diagnosed with fibromyalgia. 

Some stigmas were attached to fibromyalgia in the past but they have been eased now. Lifestyle changes, therapy, and medications can help you improve your quality of life and manage your symptoms of fibromyalgia. 

Symptoms of Fibromyalgia

Regions of pain in your body are referred to as fibromyalgia symptoms. Some of your body’s tender points get overlapped with trigger points and cause severe pain with tenderness. However, some areas of tenderness are not affected by these pains. The pains are dull and consistent, similar to musculoskeletal pain in four out of five regions of pain. 

Currently, a medical criteria journal claims that fibromyalgia is identified as multisite pain. In contrast, the 2023 fibromyalgia diagnostic criteria defined this condition as a wide-spreading chronic pain. Another diagnostic procedure has revealed that professional healthcare providers focus on the severity and areas of musculoskeletal pain. In the past, the main focus was the duration of pain, which helped to diagnose focal points of the condition.

More symptoms of fibromyalgia include:

• Fatigue
• Trouble sleeping
• Non-restorative sleep, or sleeping for long periods without feeling rested
• Headaches
• Trouble focusing or paying attention
• Dry eyes
• Rash
• Itching
• Pain or dull pain in the lower abdomen
• Bladder problems, such as interstitial cystitis
• Depression 
• Anxiety

Therefore a professional healthcare provider tells you that fibromyalgia is dangerous for both your emotions as well as your physical health.

Fibro FogBrain fog is also termed as fibro fog which describes fuzzy feelings. Its common signs and symptoms are:

• Trouble staying active.
• Difficulty in concentrating.
• Memory lapses.

According to a 2023 medical diagnostic criteria, mental fogginess affects more severely than physical pain. People felt it more painful to bear brain fog than muscle or bone pain.

Fibromyalgia pain feels like musculoskeletal pain, and it is diagnosed easily by its hallmark symptom, bone or muscle pain. The pain hurts various parts of your body, including muscles and soft tissues around vital organs. It ranges from a mild ache to an intense, unbearable pain. The severity of the pain will tell you how well you cope with daily life.

Chest PainChest pain due to this condition is as unbearable as a heart attack and sometimes people consider it a heart attack at first. This unbearable discomfort affects the cartilage that connects your ribs to your breastbone then it spreads to your arms and shoulders. It may feel like:

• Struggling to catch your breath, like a symptom of a heart attack.
• Like a burning sensation.
• Stabbing.

Back Pain

The back is the most important part of your body. Most of the time you feel pain in your back more than any other part of your body. People are affected by lower back pain in their lives at some point. Therefore, back pain cannot be linked directly with this condition. Because some other medical conditions like pulled muscles or arthritis cause pain in the lower back.

Thus the symptoms of brain fog or fatigue can be considered more helpful to diagnose the condition. But remember, fibromyalgia and arthritis can make a combination to cause back pains. Back pain can also be treated with the same medications that you are taking for the management of other fibromyalgia symptoms. Additionally, strengthening and stretching workouts can also support your back muscles and other soft tissues present in your back.

Leg PainMuscles and soft tissues present in your legs are also affected by fibromyalgia. The feel of leg pain due to this condition is similar to the stiffness and soreness of arthritis. It is a deep, throbbing pain with a burning sensation. You may feel numbness or tingling sensation in your legs affected by this condition. Creepy-crawly sensation in the legs is a prominent sign of fibromyalgia. An urge to keep moving your legs even in a resting position is a sign of restless legs syndrome, which can overlap with fibromyalgia.

You may feel heavy limbs as if your limbs are held down by weight. Fatigue also affects your legs.

Treatment of Fibromyalgia

Truly, at the moment, there is no treatment for the condition. So, healthcare professionals focus on reducing or limiting the symptoms with medications and improving your life quality with therapies, lifestyle changes, and self-care strategies.

Moreover, you can join support groups or seek guidance from a therapist to manage the symptoms.

Medications for Fibromyalgia

Medications are the way to get relief from pain and sleep better. Pain relievers, antidepressants, and anti-seizure drugs are common medications for fibromyalgia.

Pain Relievers

Fibromyalgia pain can disturb your routine life because it creates a severe discomfort that does not allow you to perform your daily chores as usual. Don’t avoid this pain and immediately talk to your healthcare provider to manage these pains. In the case of mild pains, over-the-counter pain relievers are also effective. You can use:

• Acetaminophen.
• Aspirin.
• Naproxen.
• Ibuprofen.

These medications are suitable to limit your body aches, reduce discomfort, and help you to manage your symptoms in a better way. Side effects of the pain reliever may include inflammation. Inflammation is a response to the use of a pain reliever, it is not a symptom of the condition. Sometimes inflammation is a sign of rheumatoid arthritis.

Remember that non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs also have side effects. You can use these medications after the prescription from a specialist doctor because their extended use in chronic pain can be damaging. 

Sometimes, healthcare providers may prescribe opioids as pain relievers. However, these drugs are not effective over time. In addition, narcotics dosages are increasing rapidly, and prescribing such medications can pose a health risk for people.

Antiseizure DrugsAntiseizure drugs are considered the first medication that was approved for the treatment of fibromyalgia. Pregabalin or Lyrica is the first anti-seizure medication. Some drugs such as Gabapentin or Neurontin were formulated for the treatment of epilepsy but these drugs have proved effective remedies for fibromyalgia. Remember these medications are not FDA-Approved, these are off-label drugs that people use without any prescription.

Antidepressants

Duloxetine and milnacipran are examples of antidepressant drugs that help treat fatigue and pain from fibromyalgia. These can help improve your sleep and play a crucial role in rebalancing neurotransmitters. Both medications are FDA-Approved for the treatment of the condition.

More Medications

Many drugs are used for the treatment of pain and fatigue from fibromyalgia but these are not FDA-Approved. These medications help with specific symptoms such as aiding sleep, relaxing muscles, and relieving pain. Research is continuing to explore and investigate new treatment technologies to help people with fibromyalgia in the future.

Natural Remedies

Alternative methods are applied to treat fibromyalgia, if you wouldn’t get relieved through medications. Natural remedies help you lower stress and reduce pain. They also help you in feeling better physically as well as mentally. These remedies can be used alone or in combination with some medicinal drugs. Let’s learn about some natural remedies for the treatment of fibromyalgia!

• Physical therapy reduces your stress and improves your muscular strength.
• Acupuncture.
• Massage therapy.
• Meditation.
• Hypermobility.
• Tai chi.
• Exercise.
• Stress-reduction techniques.
• A balanced, nutrient-rich diet.
• 5-hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP), an amino acid.

These therapies help reduce the stress that triggers symptoms of fibromyalgia. Group therapy is considered the best option because it provides you an opportunity to meet other patients with fibromyalgia and it is the most affordable option. You can also choose individual therapy if you like one-to-one therapy. Cognitive behavioral therapy is also used to manage stressful conditions.Eating a balanced diet with nutrient-rich food items can provide you with a constant energy supply and keep you healthy and active. They also prevent symptoms from getting worse. Certain foods are harmful to people with fibromyalgia. If you have symptoms, avoid those foods. But always talk to your healthcare provider before bringing a change to your diet.

Causes of Fibromyalgia

The Actual cause of fibromyalgia is not discovered still. According to researchers and healthcare providers, different stimulants are found that cause this disease. Stress, trauma, infection, or other genetic deposition are the main causes of the condition. Researchers are working to understand what causes the chronic widespread nature of fibromyalgia pain. 

According to theory, the brain and its nerves overreact to normal body pain signals and misinterpret these signals. The neurons become more sensitive and exaggerate the pain. This happens due to an imbalance of hormonal secretions in the brain or abnormality in the dorsal root ganglion. 

The second theory states that the brain lowers the pain threshold and non-painful sensations become more painful over time.

Genes

Most females are affected by fibromyalgia. If there is a family member with fibromyalgia, you have more risk of developing the symptoms. According to researchers, certain gene mutations play a role in developing symptoms. A few genes that transmit chemical pain signals between nerve cells are found in your genetic makeup that causes the painful sensations.

Infections

Sometimes your past illness can trigger fibromyalgia or make its symptoms unbearable. Some infections possibly linked with fibromyalgia are:

• Flu
• Pneumonia
• Epstein-Barr virus
• Trauma

Severe physical or mental traumas can be a solid reason for developing fibromyalgia. This condition is directly linked with PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder).

Stress

Stress damages your physical and mental health equally. Stressed conditions also cause abnormality in hormonal changes that may be the cause of fibromyalgia. 

Risk Factors for Fibromyalgia

Different factors are under discussions that cause fibromyalgia. These include:

Sex: Mostly female gender is affected by fibromyalgia but the reason is not clear.

Family History: Having close family members with fibromyalgia can increase the probability of getting affected by this condition.

Age: Mostly people in middle age are affected by fibromyalgia and the risk increases with growing age.

Researchers are striving to evaluate the origin of this condition.

Diagnosis of Fibromyalgia

You may be diagnosed with fibromyalgia, if you have widespread chronic pain for 2 months or longer in three out of four regions. It is called widespread if you feel the pain in both sides of your body and you feel it above and below your waist.

A thorough examination can help to conclude that no other reason was found that caused the pain. No imaging scans or X-rays can detect it. However, various blood tests are carried out to explore the possible causes of your chronic wide-spreading pain. 

Conclusion

Pain and fatigue in your body surely affect your quality of life. Fibromyalgia being a complicated matter is still misunderstood. Researchers and professional healthcare providers are still trying to find out its actual cause and remedy. But till now, if you have fibromyalgia symptoms, it is hard to bear them. 

The first step to managing fibromyalgia symptoms is to know that your condition is real. Be consistent with the medications or therapies that work for you in relieving your pain. Try different therapies to choose the best one. Leaning to the people who understand you and your condition such as your close friends, therapist, and doctor may give you more opportunities to get relief from painful conditions.

So believe in what you have learned to cope with fibromyalgia symptoms and try not to overdo it.