How To Get Rid Of Fibromyalgia

How To Get Rid Of Fibromyalgia

How To Get Rid Of Fibromyalgia

Among the more unusual and certainly uncomfortable illnesses a person can have, fibromyalgia is arguably up there in the upper tier of the list. Feeling chronic pain in every part of your body and not knowing why you do can really be a pain (no pun intended) in the proverbial behind.

King of Pain

Fibromyalgia is an illness that is characterized by the presence of chronic pain on all your muscles and ligaments, effectively making you hurt all over your body. You may also feel fatigue and multiple tender points. These points are places in your body where even the slightest pressure can cause you pain. Fibromyalgia was previously known by many names, among them fibrositis, psychogenic rheumatism, and chronic muscle pain syndrome.

It is not a contagious disease, nor is it directly life-threatening. The intensity of the pain may also vary from day to day, with flare-up periods or remissions. It is generally considered as non-progressive though, although pain may never disappear completely.

Causes of Fibromyalgia

There is no known cause of fibromyalgia. The current theory that is being proposed by researchers concerns what is known as the “central sensitization theory”. The theory states that people with fibromyalgia have a lower tolerance or threshold of pain because there is an increased sensitivity to pain signals in the brain. The researchers also believe that repeated nerve stimulation causes a change to the brains of people with fibromyalgia. They believe that there is an abnormal increase in levels of certain chemicals found in the brain that signal pain, called neurotransmitters. The brain's pain receptors (called neurons) also seem to remember the pain and become much more sensitive to it, causing them to overreact to the pain signals. In this way, an application of pressure on spots where you normally wouldn't feel any pain can be very painful if you have fibromyalgia. The question of what initiates this theory, however, is still not known.

There are other proposed causes of the development of fibromyalgia too. They include:

• Sleep disturbance. Studies conducted via electroencephalograpy (ECG) have shown that people who are suffering from fibromyalgia are laching in the slow-wave sleep department (the phase where the deepest sleep happen). Feelings and circumstances that interfere with the stage four sleep such as depression and anxiety are believed to worsen the situation. There is a sleep disturbance hypothesis which states that trauma or illness causes sleep disturbance that may give initial chronic pain that may initiate the disorder. The hypothesis also states that deep sleep is critical in order to reset a substance called substance P which is released when you feel pain. The substance has the effect of amplifying pain and causing the nerves near those that initiate it more sensitive to pain. Deep sleep resets the substance P mechanism so this effect will not go out of control.
• Injury and trauma. A trauma particularly on the upper spinal region may trigger the formation of fibromyalgia on some people. The nervous system—the system that is in charge of sensations including pain—may also suffer an injury that will cause you to get fibromyalgia.
• An abnormality in the sympathetic nervous system. The sympathetic nervous system is in charge of the bodily functions you don't consciously control such as sweating, heart rate, salivary flow, and intestinal movement. It is thought that a dysfunction of the system leads to fatigue, dizziness, stiffness, and other symptoms that are associated with the condition.
• Infection. There is also a theory that a viral or bacterial infection causes fibromyalgia.
• Changes in muscle metabolism. Decreased blood flow to muscles may contribute to a decrease in strength as well as fatigue. An abnormality in the hormonal substance that influence the nerve activities may play a role in the development of fibromyalgia.

Symptoms of Fibromyalgia

The most prominent symptom of fibromyalgia is, of course, pain. The pain is not conentrated in the joints, like arthritis, but rather in the muscles and ligaments. The most common locations of the pain are in the neck, the back, and shoulder, and the hips. The pain is worse in the mornings, with some people describing it as throbbing or flulike.

Another common symptom that sufferers of fibromyalgia complain of is fatigue. It is so common that some doctors confuse the condition with chronic fatigue syndrome. The severity can range from mild to debilitating. In the most extreme form, the fatigue can keep some of the people from doing their jobs. Like chronic fatigue syndrome, no amount of sleep and rest can make it go away.

Other people also report a condition some have called fibrofog. It is a mental haziness that makes the people unable to concentrate, have memory losses, and depression.

Getting Rid of Fibromyalgia

In general, the treatment of fibromyalgia hinges on minimizing the symptoms and improving the patient's general health. Self-care is particularly important for the management of fibromyalgia. These include:

Reduce stress. Reducing the stress will have an over-all calming effect on your system and will allow you to sleep better, without being disturbed (a probable factor for developing fibromyalgia). Allow yourself to relax for some time each day. Avoid stress-inducing situations. You can also try stress-management exercises and techniques, such as meditation and deep-breathing exercises.

Get enough rest and sleep. Fatigue is one of the effects of fibromyalgia. Getting enough sleep and rest is therefore important. Also, practice good sleep habits. Go to bed early and try not to oversleep. Limit daytime napping.

Exercise. It may be painful at first exercising those ligaments and muscles, but regular exercises will often decrease the disease's symptoms. Light exercises such as walking, biking, or water aerobics are recommended. You can also hire a physical therapist to help you develop a good exercise program suited to your condition.

Maintain a healthy lifestyle. Avoid habits such as smoking or substance abuse. Eat lots of healthy foods and try to limit caffeine intake as well as fats. Pretty soon, you will find your disposition becoming more and more positive.

Consult your doctor for medications and therapies. Your doctor will be able to provide you with the newest medications for fibromyalgia as well as some therapies and programs to help you manage the condition.

Fibromyalgia may sound scary at first, but with proper treatment and lifestyle management, you will be able to live life like a normal person would. Also, as they say, pain makes a man grow stronger.

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