Free Fibromyalgia Relief Kit

Thanks! Hope it comes with some pain meds.....fibro is a terrible thing to wish on anyone. I've had it since I was a teenager.
 
I sent this to my friend. I have plenty of pain , but it's not from fibro
 
Thank you for requesting to receive your copy of the FREE My Fibro Relief Kit. It will be mailed to you within 5 to 7 business days. And if you subscribed to our FIBROCENTER e-mail series, you'll receive a welcome e-mail soon.
 
This will definitely be handy as i have fibro and are in constant pain.:(
 
lawschoolmom said:
Thanks! Hope it comes with some pain meds.....fibro is a terrible thing to wish on anyone. I've had it since I was a teenager.
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Me too.. had it since I was 14/15 but was just diagnosed last Sept. Was hell going thru it all those years (half my life) and not knowing what was wrong with me.

For those of you with it, have you tried Ultr*m / Tr*m*dol? I've been on it since Sept and it's quite good helping with the pain.
 
Husband was diagnosed 12 years ago...more rare in men. Also has a form of arthritis which was initially blamed for all of his symptoms, but finally found that fibro was also responsible. Ultram and amitryptoline have helped considerably, but if he misses a dose of Ultram, it takes quite a while to get back on track. The good news is that Ultram is not addictive and the body doesn't seem to build up an immunity. Best wishes to everyone dealing with the struggles of this disease (including having to deal with all the skeptics in your life).
 
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I take the generic form of Ultram (I'm surprised it let you put that in here. It usually blocks out the names of medications. When I tried to put the generic name for it, Tr@m@dol, it replaced all the letters with stars.

Anyway, I take the generic version of that and it helps a lot but if I go too long without taking it, the pain comes back fully and I also get really anxious and jittery. While it's not supposed to be addictive/habit forming, I think the body just gets used to taking it on a regular basis and reacts when it's not in there for too long (usually, for me, it's if I go more than 12 hours w/o it. I'm supposed to take 2pills every 6 hours but I typically take 2 every 8 or 10 hours.) I've been taking it on a regular basis for *thinks* 10-11 months now.

Also, Ginncjb, while some Dr's/people/specialists think it's more rare in men, others theorize that it's actually just misdiagnosed in men more often than not as sports injuries, etc, or that men tend not to speak up/seek medical attention.

Even tho this has been around since the 1700s, so little research has been done on it as many doctors, even now, feel it's not a legitimate condition. Only recently has it been legitimized by the FDA when they released the 1st prescription drug targeted specifically to treat Fibro patients/symptoms (which ironically, was originally a seizure drug that failed in that market and they then found it worked on fibro patients). My fibro specialist/dr has been working with/seeing patients with this since the 80s and has done a lot of work on it over the years... in fact, much of his admin staff has the condition as well.

For anyone living in/around the Charlotte area, if you think you might have this (or do have it) and are looking for a good Dr, I'd be happy to recommend mine -- just PM me. :)

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ginncjb said:
(including having to deal with all the skeptics in your life).
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Yeah... it's tough both dealing with family/friends that think nothing's wrong b/c A) they can't see anything wrong and B) the symptoms & pain change location and intensity from day to day, and also tough dealing with how it affects your ability to work. Some days I'd be fine... moderate to no pain and clear headed and others my fibrofog would be so bad, whatever was on my computer screen looked like it was written in another language and my focus would be all over the place. Details that I would check/do on a daily basis I'd completely forget about.

Oh, and on a sorta-related sorta-unrelated note.. I was talking to my best friend today about fibro b/c she saw my medication and I told her what it was for, how it helped, etc. She said her Dr told her she had fibro in her left shoulder due to injury sustained from an automobile accident last year... Kinda irritated me that a Dr. would say something like that as you don't just get fibro in one part of your body after an accident but then no other pain/symptoms/etc. While most people believe the majority of fibro cases come on after some kind of trauma (either physical or mental (like abuse)), it doesn't just strictly hang around in one place. It's a widespread condition that affects you pretty much everywhere, kinda randomly, and to be diagnosed you actually have to fit numerous criteria, including the 18 point tender point test.
 
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I ordered this for my mom. Hope it helps some.

Thanks, OP.
 
Diagnoised in 98'

I feel bad for anyone with this problem. Esp. if you have arthritis. I was told at 38. Avoided pain meds for years. Now Vic is my best friend and some muscle relaxers along with cancer meds for arthritis. I don't have cancer. I am on quite a few meds. God Bless anyone with this. I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy if I had one:)
 
was just diagnosed a week ago, well formally diagnosed anyway, the doctor told me a year ago he suspected Fibro and then another doctor told me 2 months ago she suspected fibro and finally gave me meds, I am the same way, I got sick and tired of relatives who told me it was all in my head, I started to think it was all in my head until I got the fibro meds, the pain can literally drive you mad wondering what's wrong! Now,(the relatives) they don't believe in fibromyalgia, like it's the freekin tooth fairy or something?!?! Whatever, I am still in pain when the meds wear off, I don't have tra m adol yet, I am trying to get in touch with my regular doctor, but anyway, this website is a big help, it has the rights you have as a patient, I printed them out and last time I went to the ER I took them with me, I didn't have to use them but if I get a doc that is a pain again, I plan to!
 
cina said:
I feel bad for anyone with this problem. Esp. if you have arthritis. I was told at 38. Avoided pain meds for years. Now Vic is my best friend and some muscle relaxers along with cancer meds for arthritis. I don't have cancer. I am on quite a few meds. God Bless anyone with this. I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy if I had one:)
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I just noticed you're in Hickory -- I used to live there. I don't know if you have a Dr. specifically for Fibro, but I can recommend one here in Charlotte if you do need one. I found him here: http://www.co-cure.org/USA_NC.htm There's also a Dr. listed in Hickory on that page.

My Dr is featured in articles on these 2 pages: this article (lower half):
Fibromyalgia is a common disorder involving chronic muscle pain (either a deep ache or a burning sensation) and fatigue. Its cause is unknown, and there is no cure. The syndrome has been recognized since the late 1800s, when it was called fibrositis, said Dr. Daniel Hamaty, who is partially retired from his Charlotte rheumatology practice.

In 1990, the name fibromyalgia was endorsed by the American College of Rheumatology. Estimates are that 3 million to 5 million Americans have the syndrome. It is the second most common disorder seen by rheumatologists, next to rheumatoid arthritis. Women are 10 times more likely to have it than men.

Still, like Cooke, many fibromyalgia patients complain it takes years to get a diagnosis. This is because no evidence appears on X-rays or in laboratory tests. People with fibromyalgia often look healthy. Some doctors may conclude patients have psychological problems.

"I was appalled that most physicians generally tended to regard the patients as psychosomatic," said Dr. Glenn McCain, a Charlotte rheumatologist, about his experiences in medical training. "My interest in fibromyalgia developed as my rebellion against this view, 20 years ago, that these patients weren't really deserving of treatment."

Research has led more doctors to accept fibromyalgia, McCain said.

One of the most important findings was all fibromyalgia patients register pain at predictable "tender points" when doctors apply pressure with a finger. There are 18 such points for doctors to test, spots where healthy people wouldn't feel pain if touched.

Skeptics suggest many people feel tenderness on those spots and its measurement is subjective, but McCain said a doctor can determine tenderness with the same reliability as blood pressure if the exam is done properly. Many researchers believe fibromyalgia is an abnormality in the way the body handles pain.

"When pain stops, that's not a passive event," McCain said. "The body turns off the pain."

In fibromyalgia patients, pain stimuli come in normally, but the brain doesn't turn off the pain with its usual effectiveness. Some researchers believe that injury, physical or emotional trauma or even an infection, such as a flu virus, may trigger fibromyalgia. Some believe it is related to a lack of growth hormone, produced at night by the pituitary gland and used to repair muscles. Without such repair, muscles are sore, the theory goes. Treatment for fibromyalgia involves symptom relief.

"Medicine is much more than finding a cure," McCain said. "Most patients you can help by simply being understanding, practicing your craft and providing care."

Patients with the same levels of pain cope with it differently. Some get by with anti-inflammatory drugs and low-dose antidepressants to relieve pain, promote sleep and reduce depression. Others may not be able to work, become depressed, have difficulty in relationships and turn to narcotics for pain relief because milder drugs don't work.

Those patients need a pain management program, said McCain, who refers patients to the Presbyterian-Orthopedic Center for Pain Medicine. There, in addition to getting pain medicines, patients work on exercise programs and learn how to live with the pain better.
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and this one -- (he's been doing research on this since 1980.)

EDIT:

I just found this article and thought fellow Fibro sufferers might find it interesting. It's from March 2008: Fibromyalgia Pain And Changes In Brain Molecule Linked
 
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Thanks I go to a Family Practice in Charlotte and I have been with her for 10 yrs. I drive there still but my Rhemy is here. I only moved here to be near my daughter. If her relationship doesn't work out we will move back. I prefer living closer to Charlotte but not in, like Huntersville. Love that area. I am sorry you have this dreaded illness. I couldn't even go to Walmart today. I am in a flare and it sucks.

Thanks,

Cina
 
cina said:
I am sorry you have this dreaded illness. I couldn't even go to Walmart today. I am in a flare and it sucks.
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I'm sorry you have it too, and that you're in a flair-up. I assume since you've been seeing your Dr. for the last 10 years, that you're happy with her. While my pain hasn't been to bad lately, thanks to the ultram/tram@dol, I've had really bad sleep issues & TMJ of late. my jaw is popping/dislocating all the time & making it hard to chew. Once leaving my last job, my stress has gone down and reduced my flairs and other symptoms. I also find myself lying in bed for hours unable to sleep, and once asleep, it's really hard to wake up.



Also, I rec'd the fibro packet Thursday... Also got a separate letter w/info on Lyrica. The Fibro envelope had a little pamphlet on what fibro is, the science of it, more than just pain, how to find a Dr, get a diagnosis, a "pain discussion guide" for you & your Dr., how to take care of yourself w/fibro, and some web links to learn more. Good for people who think they might have it or want to learn more, but for someone like me who knows they have it and has heard all this from her Dr. and/or thru their own research, it's not much I didn't already know. Still, could be good to hold onto and show friends/family who might not understand what you're going thru. Easy reference guide. :)
 
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