Mum-of-two with fibromyalgia experienced pain ‘worse than childbirth’

Fibromyalgia: Natural and alternative medicines to reverse it

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Despite being a potentially disabling condition, many neurologists remain sceptical of the condition. This is mainly because it describes a collection of symptoms with no identifiable cause. Fibromyalgia, which now affects millions of people around the world, is slowly becoming accepted as a real disorder.

The pain that characterises fibromyalgia is often compared to a constant dull ache, spanning both sides of the body and spreading below the waist.

Fatigue is a significant part of the condition as people often wake up feeling tired, even after having slept for long periods of time.

The third major characteristic of the condition, cognitive impairment, is often described as “fibro fog”.

Some people diagnosed with the condition report having irritable bowel syndrome, depression, anxiety and headache.

All these symptoms can significantly interfere with a person’s concentration, making mental tasks a daily struggle.

The most disabling aspect of the condition for some patients, however, is excruciating pain.

Michelle Smith was just 37 when she began to develop pain in the legs, thigh muscles and lower back.

The mother-of-two, from Suffolk, had suffered psoriatic arthritis in her hands and feet since 2010 and believed this was causing pain to spread to other body parts.

“Just after the second lockdown my children went back to school and the day after I experienced pain in my lower back worse than childbirth,” noted Michelle.

“It was relentless, it went on for a couple of weeks like this and I couldn’t even watch TV or read as it was agony even just sitting down.

“When I finally got an appointment after months of waiting with the doctor, I was eventually sent for a pain test and after a lot of back and forth they finally diagnosed me with fibromyalgia in April this year, but I feel I’ve had it for about the last five years.”

The disease is still poorly understood, so researchers are uncertain what causes it apart from interferences with chemicals in the brain.

These changes are believed to alter the way the central nervous system processes pain, and how messages get carried around the body, according to the NHS.

What causes this to happen remains unknown, but researchers have identified several triggers for the disease so far.

Sleep deprivation, for example, is a known trigger for symptoms of the disease, like myalgia, tenderness and fatigue.

Sometimes the condition is brought on by an event that causes physical or psychological stress, like a serious injury or infection.

Between 1.8 and 2.9 millions, people in the UK are thought to have fibromyalgia, with most people between the ages of 25 and 55 being affected.

The first signs of the condition tend to be:

• Fatigue
• Trouble sleeping
• Anxiety or depression
• Headaches
• Muscle and cramps.

Though the condition isn’t deadly, it carries a higher risk of death due to suicide attempts and physical injuries.

This is why it’s imperative to tackle symptoms through exercise, lifestyle changes, or appropriate treatment with medications.

In Michelle’s case, Actimas Celafen, a muscle and joint run, helped bring her symptoms under control instantly.

“My right thigh at the time was throbbing and I remember running the cream into it and the pain starting to ease within a matter of about half an hour,” she noted.

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