Fibromyalgia: Symptoms, Causes & Treatment

About Fibromyalgia Everything You’ve Always Wanted to Know

Fibromyalgia, meaning muscle and connective tissue pain (also referred to as FM or FMS), is a disorder classified by the presence of chronic widespread pain and a heightened and painful response to gentle touch (tactile allodynia). Daily variations are interwoven in combinations from the following list of the most common symptoms. Central Nervous System – Fatigue, irritability, nervousness, depression, apathy, listlessness, impaired memory and concentration, anxieties, suicidal thoughts, insomnia, frequent awakening from pain resulting in…

by chronicillness•07/12/202208/23/2025•0

3 Months to Recovery for Fibromyalgia Patients

Another fibromyalgia patient just recently has reached that level of recovery that most of you only dream of. I’m talking about no pain and being able to plan to begin living and enjoying life. This young lady is 30 years old and was literally nonfunctional when her parents brought her into our clinic. With doubts and apprehension, she decided to give one more program a chance, and three months later she is a hiking, fishing,…

by chronicillness•07/11/202208/23/2025•0

Some Fibromyalgia Patients are Going to P.O.T.(S.)

It has recently come to my attention that there is another condition that is commonly found in a number of fibromyalgia patients. The condition is called “postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome,” P.O.T.S., also known as postural tachycardia syndrome. The condition is caused by a change from the supine (face down) position to an upright position causing an abnormal increase in heart rate. The increase can range from 30 beats per minute for adults to an increase…

by chronicillness•07/10/202208/23/2025•0

Harnessing your fibromyalgia anxiety with mindfulness meditation

“Breathe and let be”, Jon Kabat-Zinn Within the last two decades, the concept of mindfulness meditation has been adopted by schools, hospitals, businesses, police, and even the military. Those who teach/mentor MM to people in the huge business of organized sport, the corporate world, and the military, no doubt live with some degree of contradiction in their lives. It is not a practice that is focused so much on ethical issues in big business or professional sport (considered by…

by chronicillness•07/09/202208/23/2025•0

Manual therapists to “help” Fibromyalgia

“Names are not always what they seem”, Mark Twain How to go about convincing experts and the general population that fibromyalgia is not a disease, but a Medically Unexplained Syndrome (MUS)? It is in fact, a dis-ease. It is mysterious in the ways in which it exhibits itself with a vast array of features, but the cause can be explained as an uneasy central nervous system! What is implied in that name? Generally, it is ‘sore…

by chronicillness•07/08/202208/23/2025•0

Fibromyalgia: Living on high alert

“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 told that hurt does not necessarily mean harm. B.K.S Iyengar, a yoga master, says to think light and feel light. But what are we to do when we are in a state of high arousal, waiting for disaster to fall, whether…

by chronicillness•07/07/202208/23/2025•0

Trigger warnings for the fibromyalgia mind

“Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear-not absence of fear” , Mark Twain Neuroscientists can now tell us amazing things about the brain, they are the experts on the nervous system. The argument that there is or is not a ‘mind’ is no longer relevant. A mind without a brain and a brain without a nervous system are not feasible. It is the mind that alerts us to fear, which may or not be…

by chronicillness•07/06/202208/23/2025•0

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 extremely sensitive to environmental stimulation such as loud noises, dogs barking, loud music, bright lights, frightening images, strong tastes, and even certain smells which can be very provocative. While some smells are deliciously pleasant to many the same ones may not be ones…

by chronicillness•07/05/202208/23/2025•0

Writing about Fibromyalgia: The psychological and physiological effects

“There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you”, Maya Angelou A very interesting interview a while ago on CBC Radio with Michael Enright as host. Dr. Suzanne Koven, who is a Massachusetts General Hospital Writer-in-Residence and a primary care doctor, writes, teaches, and speaks about the healing power of story writing. She was Enright’s guest. It has allowed me to ponder upon my own need to write about fibromyalgia and in turn for others to comment…

by chronicillness•07/04/202208/23/2025•1

Fibromyalgia: Living with Chronic Pain

“In three words I can sum up everything I’ve learned about life: it goes on”, Robert Frost My friend has become my guru for updates on research regarding pain. I take hope because of her personal struggles with the issues surrounding living with acceptance in lieu of catastrophizing. Daily pain is exhausting, depletes our energy, and leaves us with a sense of hopelessness. Each new symptom (and there are many) can be like taking one…

by chronicillness•07/03/202208/23/2025•1