“We don’t see things as they are, we see them as we are”, Anaïs Nin One of the common sayings in Mindfulness Meditation is that thoughts are not facts. In chronic pain clinics, we are…
Fibromyalgia Pain
A comprehensive look at Fibromyalgia pain, its symptoms, triggers, and effective strategies to manage and alleviate discomfort.
Fibromyalgia: “what’s that smell”?
“For the sense of smell, almost more than any other, has the power to recall memories and it is a pity that we use it so little”, Rachel Carson Many of us with fibromyalgia are…
Fibromyalgia and the tendency toward anxiety
“When anxious people anticipate something bad about to happen- such as being confronted with creepy pictures of snakes or spiders- their right frontal insulas go into overdrive”, Blakeslee and Blakeslee Many of us with fibromyalgia…
Fibromyalgia and foot pain
” When things get really bad, just raise your glass and stamp your feet and do a little jig”, Leonard Cohen As I have been limping along these past few months following hip surgery I…
Fibromyalgia and Skin Problems: Clothing that Causes Itching
Clothing & Fibromyalgia Pain – How Materials Affect Discomfort For many people living with fibromyalgia, pain does not come only from within. It is also triggered from the outside. Something as ordinary as clothing—meant to…
The many faces of fibromyalgia
“What’s in a name?”, Shakespeare The nomenclature of Fibromyalgia can be known as: “Central Sensitization”, “Post Traumatic Stress Disorder”, “Cycles of Over-Exertion-Relapse”, and “Chronic Fatigue Disorder”, and now a new term: “Systemic Exertion Intolerance Disorder”-…
“Pulling yourself up by your bootstraps”: struggling with fibromyalgia
” Early in life, I was visited by the bluebird of anxiety”, Woody Allen Anxiety is the root cause of fibromyalgia, particularly at an early age, or even in the womb. So, how is one…
The twins: Fibromyalgia/ PTSD
The Twins: Fibromyalgia and PTSD — Two Conditions Bound by Trauma, the Nervous System, and Survival Fibromyalgia and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are often treated as separate medical conditions—one rooted in chronic pain, the other…
Fibromyalgia After Hip Surgery: A slow process
” Patience is a conquering virtue”, Geoffrey Chaucer So, the hip replacement happened almost three weeks ago. I had hoped that when I took my first step post-operatively I would not have pain. So many…
Fibromyalgia: The body holding on to past trauma
“The traumatic moment becomes encoded in an abnormal form of memory, which breaks spontaneously into consciousness, both as flashbacks during waking states and as traumatic nightmares during sleep”, Judith Lewis Herman Trapped in our psyche,…