Explore the conditions associated with Fibromyalgia, their symptoms, and how to manage them for improved well-being.
” To let go is to release the images and emotions, the grudges and fears, the clingings and disappointments of the past that bind our spirit”, Jack Kornfield In the newspaper today there is an editorial written by Jane Brody titled “More specialists explore treating pain without drugs” (The Globe and Mail, L5, September 15, 2017). She cites the conditions that drug-free options for pain can help with, such as fibromyalgia, news of which was…
” The biology of pain is never straightforward, even when it appears to be”, Lorimer Moseley I thought I knew it all: fibromyalgia is a constant hyper-arousal of the central nervous system and all the symptoms that evolve from that disorder. But recently I met with an internist who held my hand’s palms upward and told me she would have known I had fibromyalgia just by looking at my palms which are pink! I have…
“After a traumatic experience, the human system of self-preservation seems to go onto permanent alert, as if the danger might return at any moment”, Judith Lewis Herman In my book almost a decade ago, I wrote about Gulf War syndrome and the similarities between this condition and fibromyalgia. From the terms ‘shell shock’ and ‘Gulf War syndrome’ has emerged the contemporary ‘Post–Traumatic Stress Disorder’ label. We have now landed firmly on the relationship between these…
” 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 people told me that would happen. I should have known better. Of course, there is still pain. It is too soon for me to know the nature of it. Is it fibromyalgia? The scar? The hip itself? I thought I…
“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, past traumas wind themselves into the body and present as a multitude of physical symptoms. Pain, extreme crushing fatigue, intestinal difficulties, severe itching, rashes, tingling of limbs- the list seems endless. We seem not able to control our anxiety about when…
“Pain is real when you get other people to believe in it”, Naomi Wolf As I have frequently written there are two kinds of pain: nociceptive and neuropathic. Those of us with fibromyalgia suffer from the latter. It is the most difficult to live with as it is long-term damage to the nervous system that has become chronic. It cannot be treated with opioids long-term as it only gives temporary relief. Many find some degree…
“People are made happy by one thing and one thing only-pleasant sensations in their bodies”, Yuval Noah Harari What is happiness? Sometimes I think I have been seeking it my entire life and it still often eludes me. I want to be happy. I have worked at it. I meditate, have done yoga and chi-gong, I even have colored in books (the newest craze), made quilts, and listened to joyful music, all said to enhance creativity…
“There’s someone in my head, but it’s not me”, Pink Floyd Just as I thought that I had nothing new to write about I have discovered that the weird ‘brain’ sensations I have, which only last for moments, are common among those of us with this frustrating condition of fibromyalgia! I have had these peculiar short-lived experiences that are followed by dizziness for several years now. The episodes are almost like a small temporary memory loss, almost feeling…
” People who are prone to anxiety are nearly always people-pleasers who fear conflict and negative feelings like anger”, David D. Burns Everyone worries, it falls under the umbrella of anxiety. It is not about living in the moment but rather it is about looking back in the past where it all began and into a future that is pure fantasy. Those of us with excessive anxiety are prone to catastrophic thinking, our thoughts go…
” Trying to eradicate symptoms on the physical level can be extremely important, but there’s more to healing than that; dealing with psychological, emotional and spiritual issues involved in treating sickness is equally important”, Marianne Williamson I have become discouraged of late with a fibromyalgia group on FaceBook. One person asks about a particular symptom and others write in that they too have the symptom. While it helps to know that others are suffering to the…