Sunday, December 20, 2009

7 Fibromyalgia and Sleep Recommendations

Good quality sleep is probably one of the most natural fibromyalgia medicines. The University of Maryland’s Sleep Disorder Center has made several recommendations for our sleep. Enjoy!

1. Use rituals like a warm bath or light snack to lead you to sleep.
2. Get up and go to bed at the same time all seven days of the week.
3. If you have to nap do it for less than and hour and before 3:00PM.
4. Avoid caffeine, alcohol, and cigarettes.
5. Stay away for fatty or spicy foods for supper and snack. They may cause heartburn.
6. Relax during the day.
7. Save your bed for sleeping and sex!

Sunday, November 29, 2009

The One Major Symptom of Fibromyalgia

The One Major Symptom of Fibromyalgia

Surprisingly the one symptom of fibromyalgia that got my attention was the pain. Pain in the muscles and pain between the muscles got my attention. Even before I knew what they were pain in the pressure points drove me to start looking for answers. Some people start with pain in one area and it just seems to spread.

My best friend and I have talked about how long I was having some of the symptoms many times. We figure that I have been having some of the “lesser” symptoms of fibromyalgia for 5 to 10 years before 2005. It wasn’t until the pain became overwhelming that I paid attention though. Pain is at least for me the most debilitating part of fibromyalgia.

It is hard to describe. I always said it was like having arthritis but in the muscle not the joint. I have heard others describe it as like having the achiness from the flu or bronchitis. Another lady described it as feeling like someone was chewing on her muscles. I know people describe the pain in the pressure points as a burning.

Unfortunately it is also hard to predict how bad the pain will be. Some of the things that seem to affect fibromyalgia are the weather, time of day, changing positions from sitting to standing, not sleeping, or even stress.

As time goes on I hope to explore more symptoms of fibromyalgia. I also want to explore things that help me and others.