A comprehensive guide on chronic pain, its causes, symptoms, and effective management strategies to improve your quality of life.
On a scale of 1-10, my average daily pain level is a 6 or a 7. All-day. Every single day of my life. It’s always there, and cannot be ignored no matter how engrossed in something I may be. Being in constant pain is exhausting. Fatigue is a huge issue in my life. Unrefreshing sleep is one of the hallmarks of this disease. I sleep about ten hours per night and still wake feeling like…
Exercise helps break the chronic pain cycle associated with fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) by improving fitness and functional levels, relieving physical and emotional stress, and boosting one’s confidence and self-esteem. While you probably have heard a lot about the benefits of aerobic exercise, you may be wondering about strength training. Women at risk of osteoporosis commonly hear about including strength training activities in an exercise program. Should a person with fibromyalgia perform strength training activities? Is…
Tips for the Warrior Caring for someone with CFS or FM can be a stressful experience. You may take on extra responsibilities, experience financial strain, feel frustrated and resentful at times, lose companionship, face uncertainty about the future, and experience both reduced socializing and sexual difficulties. Even with all the challenges brought by serious illness, there are many ways to take care of yourself. Here are nine to consider. Maintain Your Health This is the…
Fibromyalgia a disorder that causes widespread chronic pain and tenderness affects 2 to 4 percent of women and men in the United States (women ages 20 to 50 are the most affected) and impacts patients in many different ways. Thus, fibromyalgia remains mysterious, and questions still linger like why are more women affected by fibromyalgia than men? And why is fibromyalgia so hard to diagnose and treat? Why do some patients with fibromyalgia have more back pain…
Experiencing Fibro fog can make you feel like you’re lost in a maze. You might feel confused, alone, frustrated, disoriented, bewildered, unclear, and adrift. Fibro fog can also affect your emotional well-being. Being unable to think clearly may make you feel powerless, irritable, and downcast. Constantly feeling this way can put a damper on your mental health. Having a mental illness can trigger Fibro fog, as can other conditions. Understanding Fibro fog, its causes, and…
“Fibromyalgia, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, and Objective Medical Evidence Requirements …” was the subject of a memorandum from Social Security Deputy Commissioner, Susan M. Daniels, Ph. D., (“the Deputy Commissioner”) to a Social Security administrative law judge (ALJ) in May 1998. This memo has been widely circulated. The memo was in response to memoranda from the ALJ to the Deputy Commissioner, to an appeal judge, and to the general counsel for Social Security. The ALJ asserted…
Len Chung, MD Associate Professor of Medicine, Co-Director of the UCLA/CURE Neuroenteric Disease Program, Director of the UCLA Motility Unit Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a very common gastrointestinal condition, which is present in 8- 20% of the general population. Several population-based studies have demonstrated IBS symptoms to be more common in women, with prevalence ratios ranging from 2 to 3:1. It has been estimated to affect 14-24% of women and 5-19% of men. The…
New research indicates that a disruption of brain signals for reward and punishment contributes to increased pain sensitivity, known as hyperalgesia, in fibromyalgia patients. Results published in Arthritis & Rheumatism, a journal of the American College of Rheumatology, suggest that this altered brain processing might contribute to widespread pain and lack of response to opioid therapy in patients with fibromyalgia. Click Here to Visit the Store and find Much More…. Fibromyalgia is a chronic, musculoskeletal…
It may seem counterintuitive, but young and middle-aged fibromyalgia patients report worse symptoms and poorer quality of life than older patients, a Mayo Clinic study shows. Fibromyalgia most often strikes women. It is characterized by widespread musculoskeletal pain with fatigue, sleep, memory and mood issues. The research, one of several Mayo studies being presented at the American College of Rheumatology annual meeting, suggests the disorder plays out differently among different age groups. Researchers studied 978…
More than 100 million Americans suffer from chronic pain. But treating and studying chronic pain is complex and presents many challenges. Scientists have long searched for a method to objectively measure pain and a new study from Brigham and Women’s Hospital advances that effort. The study appears in the January 2013 print edition of the journal Pain. “While we need to be cautious in the interpretation of our results, this has the potential to be…