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Anyone here got fibromyalgia/arthritis type pains

38 replies

saltire · 23/02/2007 08:39

Morning. I suffer from very painful muscles,ligamnets and joints. The pain isn't there all teh time however. I have recently noticed that i am getting cold hands and feet during a flare up, and feelings of pins and needles. Also have a few bowel problems (I know TMI!).
I wondered if anyone with fibromyalgia or arthritis type illness had similar symptoms, and if it's common. I don't know if these symptoms are connected to my pains

OP posts:
foxinsocks · 05/03/2007 19:30

she's been around recently saltire

tribpot · 05/03/2007 19:32

Thanks for this ladies - I've been larging it (!) in London since Friday so only just catching up. More soon! Btw, in shock news: London Underground is not wheelchair friendly.

saltire · 05/03/2007 19:39

Hi tribpot. Foxinsocks told me you had helped her out when she thought she had fibromyalgia. Well i think i have it as well - you'll see what i mean if you read my OP. Wondered if you could give me some help too!

OP posts:
HullaBalloo · 05/03/2007 19:48

Has anyone tried 5-HTP for fybromyalgia type symptoms? I take it and feel it has some benefit, although it is hard to define what - it seems to make you feel brighter and less anxious but is also reputed to be good for fybromyalgia. I stopped it for a while and my dh { who is the biggest cynic there is about these sort of things } actually asked me to go back on it as he definitely thinks it makes a difference

tribpot · 05/03/2007 19:58

Righty-o, have now read the thread.

Absolutely the relationship between IBS, the cold hands and feet, and all that, sounds like fibro to me. The absence of pressure points is a bit tricky since that's basically the only differentiating characteristic between fibro and similar illnesses, but essentially since there's nack all they can do about it, the exact label may not be much help anyway.

Indith, I actually didn't know about the link between fibro and resistance to painkillers. My dh can literally take a dose of stuff which would kill a normal person, and has kicked both methadone and morphine in a week (not the same week!) with virtually no ill effects. Essentially it wasn't that he was dependent and tolerising the painkillers, his body was somehow ignoring them completely.

I assume you've read the threads so I won't repeat everything that's in there. There is a good book which I don't think I've mentioned before, I haven't actually finished reading it (despite buying it about 2 years ago!) called The Fibromyalgia Handbook - one of the things he is v keen on is heat therapy, whether that's in the shower, steam room, applying hot water bottles to joints, whatever. Definitely worth a try.

Also, have I mentioned the salts before? Dh feels better after a salt water bath, but there are also some allegedly special salts you can get, this wasn't what I was looking for but is a useful source of info.

Finally, have I mentioned the hilariously-named Blair Lamb before? (Think 'Silence of the Blair Lamb Project' as the title of a spoof movie) worth a look .

tribpot · 05/03/2007 20:00

HullaBalloo, my dh definitely found 5HTP helpful. Do you have Living with Fibromyalgia ? The author is v keen on 5HTP, magnesium, etc.

VeniVidiVickiQV · 05/03/2007 20:08

Fark - i didnt know ibuprofen did that Greeny

That explains a great deal about my mother then....

In fact, I am wondering if she has fibromyalgia. Are there any skin conditions that are related to this too?

tribpot · 05/03/2007 20:15

This is the salts website I was thinking of.

VVV, dh has a number of skin conditions - very red skin over the joints, and quite a lot of warts as well.

HullaBalloo · 05/03/2007 20:18

Hi tribpot, I don't think I have fibromyalgia - I have some mild aches and pains that I put down to my lack of sleep.I take 5-HTP to try and help with my insomnia and anxiety - it definitly seems to help with anxiety, not so sure about the insomnia. I read a book by Dr Michael Murray who also recommends it for fibromyalgia, so thought I'd mention it - he also says to take it with magnesium.

saltire · 05/03/2007 20:42

tribpot, I often sit with hot water bottles during a flare up. I have small children's size ones for my hands and bigger ones for my feet. I am back at my GP on Friday to discuss my painkillers with him. i had another flare up over the weekend, and took some of my co-codamol. As i said before though I don't actually know if it's doing any good, it just seems to make me sleepy. I will definately have a look at the book. i also see the Rheumatologist on teh 15th March

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VeniVidiVickiQV · 05/03/2007 20:44

Well, my mum has a remarkable number of these symptoms. She also has a really awful skin condition on her arms and legs. They look like loads of picked scabs, well they are - they itch her mercilessly and she has to scratch. She has IBS, diverticular disease, arthritis, fatigue, chronic headaches amongst other things.

Mind you, her symptoms tend to ease when she has been on a higher dose of HRT....

saltire · 16/03/2007 13:07

Well, I had my appointment yesterday with the Rheumatologist. After telling her about my new symptoms - the cold hands and feet, pins and needles etc, she did an examination. She started pushing on all the tender points, which several months ago got no reaction from me. i nearly went through the roof. She has now given me a diagnosis of Fibromyalgia. She gave me some leaflets to read and a book from the ARC. I've had a good read of them, and hopefully will be able to start getting some exercise. the only thing is when the pain flare up's happen in my feet, i find it difficult to move around, and DH keeps saying "you will need to do this, that and the other" i.e I need to go and do exercise, I need to go on a diet, i need to do relaxation techniquesetc. I can tell he is going to do my head in!

OP posts:
SHOSHAlee · 16/03/2007 13:13

VeniVidiVickiQV has your mum been tested for Lupus, I have it and have really painful joints and skin rashes!

Saltire what have they given you for the pain love, and have you tried ibuprofen cream, find it helps my hands and feet.

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