Fibromyalgia

Description

Fibromyalgia is a long-term condition involving widespread pain, body. The pain occurs along with the fatigue. It may also involve problems with sleep, memory and mood. The researchers believe that fibromyalgia affects the way in which the brain and spinal cord process painful and nonpainful signals. That increases your sensitivity to pain.

The symptoms often begin after a trigger event. Triggers may include injury, surgery, infection or emotional stress. Or the symptoms may build over time, with no single event to trigger them.

Women are more likely to suffer from fibromyalgia than are men. Many people who have fibromyalgia also have:

  • Headaches.
  • The jaw and facial pain due to temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorders.
  • Irritable bowel syndrome.
  • Anxiety.
  • Depression.

There is No cure for fibromyalgia. But medications and other treatments can help control the symptoms. The exercise, talk therapy, and the techniques that reduce stress can also help.

Symptoms

The main symptoms of fibromyalgia include:

  • Widespread pain. Fibromyalgia pain is often described as a constant dull ache that has lasted for at least three months. Pain is considered widespread if this occurs on both sides of the body and above and below the waist.
  • Fatigue. People with fibromyalgia often wakes up tired, even though they say that sleep for a long time. Often, the pain disrupts sleep. Many people with fibromyalgia have other sleep disorders. These include restless legs syndrome and sleep apnea.
  • Thinking of related problems. A symptom knowns the "fibro fog" makes it more difficult to pay attention and concentrate on mental tasks.

The fibromyalgia often occurs with other conditions, such as:

  • The Irritable bowel syndrome.
  • The chronic fatigue syndrome.
  • Migraine headache and other types of headaches.
  • Interstitial cystitis, also calleded painful bladder syndrome.
  • Disorders of the TMJ.
  • Anxiety.
  • Depression.
  • Postural tachycardia syndrome.
  • Post-COVID syndrome, also known as long-COVID.

Causes

With fibromyalgia, many researchers think that the nerves are affected in a way that makes the brain and the spinal cord of the cord to change. This change involves an irregular, increase in the levels of certain chemicals in the brain that signal pain.

In addition, the brain of the pain receptors seem to develop a sort of memory of the pain. You may begin to overreact to painful and nonpainful signals.

Many factors that can lead to these changes, including:

  • Genes. Fibromyalgia tends to run in families. So that certain changes in the genes that could make more likely to contract the disease.
  • Infections. Some illnesses appear to trigger fibromyalgia or do worse.
  • Physical or emotional events. Sometimes, fibromyalgia can be triggered by a physical event, such as a car accident. Ongoing stress can also trigger the disease.

Risk factors

Risk factors for fibromyalgia include:

  • Be assigned to women in childbirth. Fibromyalgia is more common in women than in men.
  • The history of the family. You may be more likely to get fibromyalgia if a father or brother also has the condition.
  • Other medical conditions. The risk of fibromyalgia is raised if you have osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, or obesity.

Complications

The pain, fatigue and lack of sleep associated with fibromyalgia can affect your personal life and your career. It can also be stressful to live with a condition that is often misunderstood by others. That can lead to mental health conditions such as depression and anxiety.

Fibromyalgia

Diagnosis

To find out if you have fibromyalgia, your health care professional will start by asking about your symptoms and medical history. You can also get a physical exam. Your care team checks for the main sign of fibromyalgia: widespread pain around the body for at least three months.

You must have pain in at least four of these five areas:

  • At the top left of the region, including the shoulder, arm, or jaw.
  • In the top right of the region, including the shoulder, arm, or jaw.
  • Bottom left of the region, including those of the hip, buttocks, or legs.
  • Lower-right of the region, including those of the hip, buttocks, or legs.
  • Axial region, which includes the neck, back, chest or stomach area.

Tests

You may need blood tests or statueg testing. These tests can help determine if a distinct condition of fibromyalgia is the cause of your symptoms.

Other conditions that can cause ongoing pain and fatigue are:

  • Rheumatoid arthritis.
  • Lupus.
  • Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome.

You may also need tests to find the conditions that may happen along the fibromyalgia. For example, your doctor may recommend a sleep study during the night if sleep apnea is suspected.

Treatment

In general, treatments for fibromyalgia include the medicine and other techniques. The goal is to reduce the symptoms and improve your overall health. There is not a treatment that works for all of the symptoms, so that it can help to try a few.

Medications

Medications can help relieve the pain of fibromyalgia and improve sleep. Common options includinge:

  • Pain relievers. - Counter pain medications such as acetaminophen (Tylenol, others), ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin IB, others) or naproxen sodium (Aleve, others) may be useful. Your doctor may recommend that you take along with other medications. Opioid medicines are not recommended. That can lead to side effects, dependency, and the pain that worsens with time.
  • Antidepressants. These medications can help, even if you don't have depression with fibromyalgia. Duloxetine (Cymbalta) and milnacipran (Savella) may help relieve fibromyalgia pain and fatigue. Your doctor may prescribe amitriptyline or the muscle relaxant cyclobenzaprine to help with the pain, or sleep.
  • Anti-epileptic drugs. Epilepsy medications often help to relieve some types of pain. Pregabalin (Lyrica) is used as a treatment for fibromyalgia. And gabapentin (Gralise, Neurontin) is sometimes helpful to relieve the symptoms of fibromyalgia.

Other therapies

Other treatments can help reduce the effects that fibromyalgia have on your body and your life. Examples include:

  • The physical therapy. A physical therapist can teach you exercises to increase strength, flexibility, and endurance. Water-based exercises can be especially helpful.
  • Occupational therapy. An occupational therapist can help you make changes to your work area or the way of doing certaintasks. The changes that cause less stress on your body.
  • Counseling. Talking to a counselor can help strengthen your belief in your abilities. You can also teach ways of dealing with stressful situations. It can be especially useful to see a counselor who is trained in cognitive-behavioral therapy.

Self-care

Self-care is the key of how to take care of fibromyalgia.

  • Manage stress. Work with your health care team about a plan to save their energy and manage stress. Take time each day to relax. This may mean that youarning how to say no to others without the guilt. But try not to change your whole routine. People who stop working or stop all activity tend to do worse than those who remain active. Try stress management techniques, such as deep breathing exercises or mindfulness meditation. Think about joining a fibromyalgia support group also. Helps you to get to know the people that understand what is happening.
  • The quality of sleep. Fatigue is one of the main symptoms of fibromyalgia, which makes the dream crucial. Adults should aim to get at least seven hours of rest per night. Keep your bedroom cool, dark and quiet at night. Try going to bed and getting up at the same time each day. And limit daytime naps.
  • Exercise regularly. In the first place, the exercise may worsen the pain. But if you start slowly and become more active over time, often relieves symptoms. Talk with your doctor or another member of your health care team if you are not active. They may recommend aerobic exercises that get your heart pumping, such as walking, swimming, biking and water aerobics. A physical therapist can help you develop a home exercise program as well. Stretching, good posture and relaxation exercises are also helpful.
  • A rhythm. Maintain its activity at a level even more. If you don't do too much on his good days, andou could have more bad days. Likewise, don't do too little in the days when the symptoms of the flare.
  • Practice other healthy habits. Eating nutritious food. Do not use tobacco products. Limit the consumption of caffeine. Do something that you find fun and fulfillment of all the days.

Alternative medicine

Complementary and alternative treatments to help manage the pain and stress are not new. Some, such as meditation and yoga have been practiced for thousands of years. Their use has become more popular, especially with people who have chronic illparticipants, such as fibromyalgia.

Some of these treatments are not safe to relieve stress and reduce pain. Talk with a member of your health care team before you try a new complementary or alternative treatment.

  • Acupuncture. Acupuncture is a Chinese technique. A trained practitioner places very thin needles through the skin at different depths. According to Western theories of acupuncture, the needles cause changes in the blood flow and the levels of brain chemicals called neurotransmitters. Some studies suggest that acupuncture help to relieve the symptoms of fibromyalgia.
  • Massage therapy. This is one of the oldest methods of health still in practice. This implies the use of different techniques to move the body's muscles and soft tissues. The massage can reduce heart rate, relax the muscles and improve range of motion in the joints. You can also increase the amount of natural to relieve the pain of the chemicals that the body produces. It often helps to relieve the stress and anxiety also.
  • Yoga and tai chi. These practices combine meditation, slow movements, deep breathing and relaxation. Both have been found to be useful in the control of the symptoms of fibromyalgia.

Preparing for your appointment

Many of the symptoms of fibromyalgia are similar to those of other conditions. So you can see more than one doctor before you learn that they have fibromyalgia. Your health care team can refer you to a doctor who treats arthritis and other similar conditions, called a rheumatologist.

What you can do

Before your appointment, you can write a list that includes:

  • Detailed descriptions of their symptoms.
  • The information about the medical problems you have had in the past.
  • Information about the health problems of your parents or siblings.
  • All of the medications and supplements you are taking.
  • The questions you want to ask your healthcare professional.

What to expect from your doctor

Your health care professional gives you a physical exam and asks him questions. For example, you may be wondering if you have sleep problems and if you have been feeling depressed or anxious.

Symptoms and treatment of Fibromyalgia