I think i may have fibormyalgia?

I have fibromyalgia. Ive had it since I was 16....so 11 years.

Its hard to give a symptom profile because since its an autoimmune disorder, the symptoms vary.

But the main one is the pain....and I do mean pain, that the person feels in their body. Mine were in my neck, back, hips because of a severe auto accident, but for years up to that trigger, I would have as a child, extremely horrific leg 'cramps' that doctors called "growing pains" but no, they were the precursor to fibro because growing pains do not cause a child to cry and sob, you know?

The pain is in the soft tissues of the body....the muscles and the connective tissue, it can be in your ear lobes (So terrible during the winter, make sure you dont go out in the wind without earmuffs), pain in your mouth and jaw, headaches (they make migraines look easy), neck pain, back pain, hip pain, pain in your elbow/knees, in your feet, etc. It can be anywhere. The pain feels like you are being crushed, squeezed, clamped, or like pins and needles are cutting into you.....thats how I can describe my pain.

Fatigue....God, its bad. For some reason, Fibro and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome seem to go hand in hand.... So you get the fatigue, the lethargy, mental fog/confusion, depression, forgfetfullness, insomnia.

Also tends to cause IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndomre), which you experience abdominal pain, constipation, diarrhea, flatuence, and bloating.

Fibro for some reason, tends to affect a woman's reproductive system....causing PCOS (polycystic ovarian syndrome) and/or endometriosis. Women with fibro tend to also have problems with their periods and even with fertility (Im infertile, went into early menopause at the age of 24).

Depression....This is a REAL depression, not some somatization. And its exacerbated by going to doctors who dont believe you and/or dont treat you correctly.

Other symptoms: ringing in the ears, change in weight, thyroid imbalances, and a list of others I cant think of at the moment.

It can be controlled, believe it or not. However, let me tell you I am not a fan of how the medical community is treating Fibro....Ive tried it all, the antidepressants and everything else, and nothing worked.

So what did? Acupuncture (its a god send), Exercise (I know....I didnt like to hear it at first, but after 6 weeks of regularly working out for 30 min 5x week, the pain decreased by 75 percent and I didnt have the insomnia and the depression.), eating well (Some people with Fibro have "trigger foods", foods that cause more problems, some are dairy products, others are salt, others are carbs....so you have to find out which are your triggers and avoid at all costs), and having a lifestyle of stress reduction (Meditation is key).

This isnt an overnight thing.....But I experienced 10 years of hell....it wasnt until this last year when I really got in control of my condition and went for the right treatment (as described above). Now I do experience periods of flare-ups when all the symptoms come rushing back, but this is only in conjunction with times of great stress....which is why stress reduction is key component here....you cant eliminate stress, but we can reduce it.

I hope this has helped you.

I thought I did at one time but found out I have some food allergies. Hurting all over for no apparent reason. Even the bottom of my feet when I would get up in the morning. My body was just acidic. One thing you might want to try is taking folic acid, it helped me. And staying away from wheat and flour. Do you notice any syptoms of hands swelling? That was one thing I notice with food allergies that led me to find out about allergies. Your doctor can send you in for a blood test to find out about fibromyalgia though. There are certain protein levels that will be higher if you have it.

You are welcome to view my site at www.fms-help.com - I've had FMS since 1982.