Fibromyalgia - tips? where to live?

[Roselvr]

Originally Posted by mainegirl

WOW that's scary. I haven't started taking it yet because I read the sheet that came with it, regarding the side effects. I need to be able to function well at work.

Yes it is scary.
Have you started it yet to see if you'll have side effects?

[fibrochick1]

Originally Posted by fibrochick1

I have Fibro and Chronic Fatigue plus Restless leg Syndrome. I was taking Cymbalta, Ultram, Buspar, Mirapex, Lunesta plus a few other things now... thanks to a doctor that believes in helping all his patients to the fullest I have cut down to Cymbalta and Neurontin..I sleep all night long by taking 800mg once at night. I am so amazed by the results because i am able to finally get asleep at night and I am AWAKE during the day. Those of you with sleep problems know how exciting it is to not have to take a nap 2 hours after you wake up. I have little to no pain and I feel almost normal. Some side effects though, been craving carbs, hard to fall asleep during the day if I want to take a nap, and sometimes a 'high' type feeling that makes the world look like a video game. I am working on the carb cravings which might have to do with Michigan being so dark and gloomy right now and it's not that horrible to not be able to sleep during the day. Anyways I'm happy right now so that's all that matters.

Well here it is Feburary and I'm back to my cocktail of drugs, the neurontin was still working but after gaining 20 lbs I just couldn't handle it anymore. So i'm back to talking cymbalta, buspar, ultram, lunesta and all the vitamins I can handle. It's depressing to have all the pain and sleep problems back after feeling almost "normal" but there are other health issues in my family that the weight gain would start to trigger. Oh well I'm just trying to live my life one day at a time.

[spiderbear]

I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia about two weeks ago. It seems to be like a leaking dam..as soon as you patch one leak, another one springs up.

I've been on Cymbalta for two weeks and I've never felt better in my life. I can concentrate, I'm painfree the entire day, my grades have skyrocketed, and I actually wake up rested! The only problem for me as far as sleep is I have my "sleep ceilings." I can stay up until about eleven, no later, or I will literally fall asleep standing up. I also can't sleep in past about 8am.

I still have some issues in the cold. Here in NC it's not too much of a problem, but I still notice winter weather. My best bet, I've found, is parking as far away from where I'm going as I can and walking. It's counterintuitive, but it warms up my body, stretches out my muscles, and makes me not realize the cold so much. I walk about a mile to school every day, and walk with my dogs about two miles. My husband and I make it an after/before dinner routine. The constant activity, combined with the Cymbalta, seems to keep it at bay. Hubby is also a source of constant massages, which is tremendous on bad days.

Also make sure you're not anemic. I was diagnosed anemic as well, and increasing the iron in my diet helped with the pain and weakness. Now I make sure to eat red meat at least 4 times a week, instead of just nibbling on whatever I can stomach.

Cymbalta also decreased my appetite a lot. As long as I push through it, I seem to be able to eat fairly regular meals. I've lost some weight, which is nice, but I do need to keep an eye on it, otherwise I'll forget to eat the whole day.

As far as location, I feel best in hot, humid weather. Low country SC and Louisiana/Mississipi are the best for me. Living near the ocean is great as well, because the constant activity through swimming really helps with joint pain. Unfortunately, I'm stuck up here for college... but you can bet that I'm moving south as soon as I can.

[jacbe]

I'm newly diagnosed, but I've had varying symptoms over the years. They're now more intense and more frequent, but I'm determined to live pain-free and be "cured," despite what doctors say.

I thought I would share a few things that help me, in case it helps others: mattress memory foam topper, acupuncture, acupressure, walking, stretching, eating healthy, stretching, breaks from sitting and computer (every 45 to 60 minutes for about 5 to 10 minutes), posture exercises, socializing (a little tricky in some areas of the country), and hope.

I'm a nutrition-conscious vegan, but I'm not suggesting that people have to go to that extreme in order to feel better. I've been a vegan long before my diagnosis. I think you can eat healthier without being a vegan.

I've been taking vitamins for years, so I can't tell if they help fibro or not.

I'm experimenting with other types of relief. If you're interested in my sharing the results, just let me know. I'm also interested in hearing what others have found helpful.

As far as meds go, I've only tried ibuprofen, but it's for a rotator-cuff issue I'm fixing, so I don't know if it helps fibro in general. The doc gave me a script for nortriptyline, 10 mg every night. I haven't started it yet. I'm not fond of meds until I really need them, but I'll take them if I have to. I heard from doc, pharmacist, and written instructions that the only symptoms are dry mouth and constipation, but it's not common with low dosages. And it's easily helped with extra water and fiber. The pharmacist told me that he takes nortriptyline for his chronic back problems because it's a safe drug. I was talking to him about my hesitancy with daily meds.

I also plan on moving. It's been a goal for a number of years, long before these symptoms. Now that I've been diagnosed, I'm interested in learning about the places to live for fibro, when it comes to weather. I read conflicting info on the Internet. Anyone have recommendations?

Thanks.

[Dav1d]

I have been diagnosed with fibro since an electricution 8 years ago, also have isues of nerve damage, vertibray damage from the fall after the rosting etc., but I think it is the fibro that produces the most pain. I am on about 140 mg. of Morphine, and other stuff for the pain. Curently even that isnt working. I am cutently on many meds due to the many different aspects of my accident. One of the meds is Nurontin. Without it the burning and tingling, like being stabed with ice picks, is unbarable. With it it is just bothersome, very bothersome. I triied Lyrica shortly but switched back to the Nurontin becouse of what seemed to be an unrelated side effect, I lost the ability to lift my foot. Other than that which was probubly an unrelated coincidence in timeing they both are the same class of medicine i'm told and seemed to work about the same for me. I am not shure if the burning is from the fibro or the nerve damage but eaither way the Nurontin is indespencible as far as I can tell.
Voltarin an anti inflamitory similar to celebrex seems as imprtant to my pain as the Morphine.

As far as where to live, I live in Denver, CO and would like to move because of the pain. I love the area, actualy Arvada, CO, It has relativly low humidity, cools off at night, and is warm to hot during the summer with mild winters compaired to MN and further east but what seems to effect my pain more than any other factor I can think of is changes in the weather. it seems every time the barometer changes I am in very severe pain, even totally bed ridden for several days. And it seems like the weather is always changing here. Even on our beutifull summer days every afternoon about 3-5 pm the cloudes push over the mountains and even that seems to be enough to make a noticeable difference in how I feel, let alone stormmy days with rain etc. Also it seems the quicker the storm comes and the bigger the baromiter change the worse it gets. For me it is the change in weather more than what the weather is that affects me.
Can anyone tell me where the weather stays the same most of the time? Prefribrally where its not to hot or humid eaither as the electricution or the meds has messed up my body regulation and has caused swetting problems.

[Apples&Oranges]

I use Chinese herbs to alleviate my fibromyalgia. Jiaogulan (gynostemma pentaphyllum) and Red Reishi (ganoderma lucidum) are both excellent anti-inflammitory herbs and help me to get deep sleep at night. They have NO side effects!

[ukusagirl39]

The bottom line is every aspirin or pill that you take will eventually affect your liver. better to find as many non med ways to deal as possible. Moving to a warmer climate may be one of them. Good luck!

[AUNTIEMinCOLORADO]

Hope you all don't mind that I respond to this old thread and add my 2 cents. I say 2 cents because my writing skills are horrible,
but hopefully my post will be of help to some one.

I moved from Southern California to Southern Colorado and after the 1st year here, I ended up being diagnosed with fibromyalgia. I already had arthritis problems for many years and so this was a double whammy.
My doctor (a D.O., PHD and has expertise in holistic and alternative medicines), has many natural therapies for pain, but none that my health insurance would cover. So, I ventured to find my own cure for the pain.

One of the things I found that has helped some is the D-Ribose powder.
But, before anyone goes out and buys it, might be a good idea to run past your doctor first. I let mine know after I experimented with it.
Also, no soda or products that contain sodium. One pickle and double the pain for me. Especially hard on arthritis.
But, the biggest help of all was when I went to California from June to July. I spent a lot of days in the sun, swimming, kicking back in spas and hiking.
Seven weeks in Apple Valley and 1 week in Rancho Cucamonga and not a single flare of pain the whole time.

When I got back to Colorado, I felt so good that I was on a roll. I painted the house, mowed the lawn several times, planted trees, gardens and got lots of exercise and sun.
Oh, and my sleep was sooo much better too because I was so exhausted from all the work I did.

And now that the cold is here, the pain is slowly coming back.
So yes, I do agree that heat can help along with being active and having access to a spa or pool can be a wonderful help.

I wonder if a spa is still a tax right off when it's used for health problems?

[nimchimpsky]

For me the most important is stable weather patterns. If it's constantly going between rainy and sunny that for me causes the most pain. Obviously the wet and cold cause me more pain too, but the main culprit is weather changes.

[Yellerdog]

There is a lot more info out there on Fibro. Be careful of Lyrica. It stops the plasticity in your brain. Do some research before you take anything. If you are not experiencing much pain, consider yourself lucky. Many people with Fibro, like me, have pain all the time and nothing stops it.