What the Joint?

Hello Wildflowers,

I woke up Monday morning with my right thumb hurting. I’m right handed and I use my hands a lot. The one thing I’ve been doing mostly that brought on this pain in my thumb is knitting.

This pain was new to me. I found myself trying to figure out if it was Carpal tunnel syndrome or early signs of Rheumatoid arthritis. Could it just be inflammation?

All my issues have been with my legs down to my feet. That alone was having me worry. I’ve had some issues with my hands before in the past but it has been in my fingers. To have it move to my thumb now was just, I don’t know, something else to add to the list.

The first time I had an terrible experience with my hands was with carrying a basket of clothes. I was at a apartment complex, no car, so I carried it from the apartment to the laundry building which wasn’t that far but wasn’t right around the corner either. I got inside the building and placed the basket down. Once I put it down I realize my fingers are stuck, curved in the position they were in when holding onto the basket. I start to panic a bit but luckily my husband was with me at the time. As soon as he walked in I was like, “I can’t unbend my fingers, my hands are stuck. Help me get them unstuck.”

My husband grabbed my hands one by one and kind of massaged them and they started to relax and I could move them again. I was so thankful that he was with me that day because I have no idea how long I would’ve been like that if I was alone, because I would’ve been freaking completely out and unable to relax.

That moment scared me and I knew my life was going to be full of these surprises forever now. The older I get I feel the less control I have of it.

Awareness Day

For people with fibromyalgia; awareness is every day but on May 12th it’s a day for others to show their support, and for people living with this condition to proudly be noticed and acknowledged.

What are things about fibromyalgia do you want to bring awareness to today?

One important thing I want others to know for awareness is even when I’m lying or sitting, doing nothing, I am hurting or aching somewhere or all over. It’s exhausting and at times you may get a break and feel pretty good but it doesn’t last long.

Living with an invisible illness is difficult because no one wants to believe you. They see you as this beautiful person because you dress nice, hair done, maybe makeup, and have a smile. They don’t see that inside you feel like you are on fire, breaking into pieces, falling apart, screaming for help, feeling shooting pain etc.

At times I feel as if talking about it gives it power and that I should not claim it into my life, but my body reminds me that I can’t lie to myself. It’s apart of me and I don’t have control over it. Yes I’m a fighter but lately most days I don’t want to fight anymore I just want to be still and try not to feel. It’s laughable thinking I can’t feel, I feel everything.

When you speak about how you feel, they hear excuses. Some think you’re just complaining and lazy. Many keep their pain to themselves.

One of the hardest questions to answer is How are you? The easiest answer is I’m ok.

Edge of the Cliff

Hi, WildFlowers

Hope you all are feeling better than me today. Today I feel so sad, crying and I’m tired. I’m tired and I haven’t even done anything. I don’t even feel like trying to explain what I’m feeling in my body right now. All day long. It’s been a tough few months. Day after day. When the new day starts I’m woke, when the day is moving along I am still, in bed trying to get sleep. By night fall I’m wide awoke again most of the time. There are times that I stay up and try to keep myself busy but with the proper rest, I feel sick.

I feel like nothing I eat or drink agrees with me. To be honest I really don’t want to eat anymore. I try to go as long as I can and not eat. I’m tried of drinking and going to the bathroom. I guess I’m just tried of what is called my life.

One of the most frustrating things are, when you’ve told your family and friends you have fibromyalgia, you have told them all the symptoms even printed them out for them to see and read. Constantly talking about it and explaining. Then when you don’t feel well and they ask what’s wrong, you tell them what you’re feeling and they ask you why are you feeling that way or what did you do. Oh how crazy it is you feel that way etc…

In that moment I feel as if no one cares and of course no one understands. The crap just happens and I don’t know why. It’s like they don’t care to keep that information in their head of What fibromyalgia does to someone. They have no clue.

No one wants to hear about how I feel but then they tell me about their aches and pains as if their pain is more relevant than mine. Don’t forget about the age. People older feel they have a right to feel the way they do and wonder what’s my reason or how, why, would be aching and joints popping, I’m too young to be feeling that way etc…

A Normal Day…

Hello my WildFlowers, how are you all? 

My day has been, being uncomfortable starting early this morning, no last night. Lately I have been becoming hot more often and sweating, even cold sweats when it’s cool. The temperature has changed outside but now my body is used to it being cool inside from the air conditioner but of course it would be crazy to have it still on now. The ceiling fan seemed to not be doing much. Every room in the house seems like a different temperature. 

Today I was smelling something and could not figure out where it was coming from but it was bothering me. I think I found it and that was a relief. 

Then I felt crawling on my legs. The hair has grown back slightly and I think ok let me shave it will be better, wrong. After shaving, my legs are stinging/itching I’m about to rip my legs off. I quickly turn on the shower and get in. Ok now some relief. 

Now to figure out what to put on or to not put on. I’m in the bedroom I’ve chosen to open the window to cool the room off and hopefully help make me more comfortable. Should I close or leave the door open? I find something to put on that won’t irritate my skin too much and I kept the door open. My legs are still itching a bit but I don’t know if I want to put any lotion on or anything because it may irritate me even more. 

Overall I have myself situated at this point and I’m somewhat at peace. It’s quiet in the house, I’m cool and comfortable. 

It’s been a normal day for me full of my personal issues. 

Chronic Dizziness

April 19, 2014

Chronic Dizziness

“Fibromyalgia symptoms can make life extremely difficult for those who have the disorder, making it hard to go to work, finish housework, or just get out of bed in the morning. In addition to chronic headaches, difficulty concentrating and muscle and joint pain, many fibromyalgia sufferers also have to combat chronic dizziness. This dizziness can last for mere seconds or as long as a few days, causing headaches, nausea, and even fainting spells.”-http://www.fibromyalgia-symptoms.org/fibromyalgia_dizziness.html

I haven’t been this dizzy and lightheaded before, it’s really weird, seemed to start to get really bad around the time the weather began changing into spring. I’ve had more headaches [ongoing] and a lot of aching in my neck. It’s made it difficult to do anything, but I’ve manage to get up, eat something, maybe walk to the mailbox, do some cleaning, end up back in bed because of headaches, blurry vision and the spinning around feeling. I’ve been slowly losing my appetite, feeling sick like I want to vomit. Days have not been easy and my body trembling as gotten worst.

The things that I suffer from that could be causing my dizziness are:
High Blood Pressure
Fibromyalgia
Depression
Anxiety
Chronic Headaches [Migraine & Tension]

There are a lot of symptoms that come along with having fibromyalgia and it’s easy to say that is the cause of everything, but truly it could be so many other things going on with your body.

What are the symptoms experienced when a person feels dizzy?
Lightheadedness is the feeling of weakness and faintness as if you are about to pass out. The symptoms tend to be short-lived, depending on the cause. There may be associated nausea, sweating, and blurred vision.
If the cause is dehydration or bleeding, the symptoms may worsen by standing quickly and may resolve somewhat by lying down (orthostatic hypotension)
Heart rhythm disturbances may occur without warning and may be associated with palpitations. This may come and go or it may persist. The heart beat may be felt as too fast (often described as a pounding or fluttering), too slow, and/or irregular.
Vertigo is the sensation of spinning and may present without warning and be associated with nausea and vomiting. People with inner ear problems may be debilitated and unable to move without generating symptoms.
People with a cerebellar cause of vertigo such as a stroke or tumor may have associated coordination problems or difficulty walking.
http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/mobileart.asp?articlekey=97800&page=3

FIBROMYALGIA IS A REAL PAIN IN THE HEAD.

Cloudy Day Flare

April 15, 2014

Cloudy Day

I’m popping Advil like M & M’s and I can’t even tell if its working. But it’s the best I’m willing to do, I’m on no medication.
Forty-three degrees and I’m very cold. Today was rainy [showers all day.] My finger joints and only my left knee feels swollen and are very achy. Of course my legs are aching and back aches. Still feeling gassy and nothing I do is helping.
All I want to do is sleep and I keep getting headaches [which is nothing new.] Headaches seem to be apart of my everyday all days now.

“The FM-Weather Connection
In an internet survey of 2,596 fibromyalgia sufferers conducted by the National Fibromyalgia Association (NFA), weather changes ranked second as a perceived aggravating factor for fibromyalgia symptoms with an increase in pain or stiffness. However, research studies on the fibromyalgia/weather connection are limited, leaving frustrated doctors and patients searching for solutions.”- http://www.fmaware.org/site/News2c0cd.html

Even in spring, the weather is still giving pain.
What in the world will Summer bring? I wonder.
These are the fibromyalgia symptoms that have been worst for me this year so far and doesn’t seem to be getting better anytime soon.:
chest pain unrelated to the heart
shortness of breath
dizziness
nasal congestion
painful periods
palpitations
irritable bladder/interstitial cystitis
profuse sweating
tingling/numbness sensations
chemical sensitivities
vulvodynia (vulvar pain)
difficulty focusing eyes
the feeling of swollen extremities
dry/burning eyes and mouth

I’m ready for April to be done because the spring fever is got me down.