Fibro/Advice

I got a fibromyalgia diagnosis after a quick physical check at a doctor's office.

They gave me Savella and it doesn't do anything except give me some annoying side effects.

If you don't have fibromyalgia how likely is it that fibromyalgia drugs will work if you have something with similar symptoms?

[wonko]

I'm sorry to read about your frustrating situation.

I'm not medically trained, but my opinion as a patient is that doctors sometime resort to a diagnosis of fibro when they can't neatly fit you into another diagnostic box.  Fibro is a syndrome, which means it is a collection of symptoms.  So a dx of fibro doesn't identify any particular cause of the problem, nor does it clearly suggest any specific treatment.

Some folks have fibro that is secondary to another problem or that can be linked to a specific event.  For example, some people develop fibro after a trauma or surgery.  Some people with rheumatoid arthritis may also develop the symptoms of fibro.  However, if you have developed a pain syndrome and no underlying cause has been identified, I would suggest that you continue to seek a more satisfactory explanation for your condition.

My situation is that I have chronic Lyme disease (which is a complex illness that is also complicated by the fact that most doctors don't believe it exists).  So my fibro and chronic fatigue are secondary to infection.

I have never tried Savella so I can't comment on it.  I have used neurontin and lyrica in the past, and got some relief from them.  Often the pain associated with fibro is neurological pain that will not respond to OTC pain relievers, and many do get some relief from the neurological pain meds.  However,  also experienced a lot of side effects, especially with lyrica.  By the time I got to a high enough dose to treat my pain, I felt all kinds of loopy and forgetful.  A big trick to success with these meds can be finding the right dosage.  I was admittedly a bit impatient with the Lyrica, but had some better luck with neurontin.

So, in summary, your question is difficult to answer because fibro is not diagnosed in a consistent manner, and in my opinion many docs misuse the label and fail to find the underlying cause.  In you case, where you don't know what the root problem is, it is possible that fibro meds will not help your condition.  Furthermore, folks with fibro have mixed results with the meds, so it is really a case-by-case situation.  Just my two cents, your mileage may vary.

[wonko]

I'm sorry to read about your frustrating situation.

I'm not medically trained, but my opinion as a patient is that doctors sometime resort to a diagnosis of fibro when they can't neatly fit you into another diagnostic box.  Fibro is a syndrome, which means it is a collection of symptoms.  So a dx of fibro doesn't identify any particular cause of the problem, nor does it clearly suggest any specific treatment.

Some folks have fibro that is secondary to another problem or that can be linked to a specific event.  For example, some people develop fibro after a trauma or surgery.  Some people with rheumatoid arthritis may also develop the symptoms of fibro.  However, if you have developed a pain syndrome and no underlying cause has been identified, I would suggest that you continue to seek a more satisfactory explanation for your condition.

My situation is that I have chronic Lyme disease (which is a complex illness that is also complicated by the fact that most doctors don't believe it exists).  So my fibro and chronic fatigue are secondary to infection.

I have never tried Savella so I can't comment on it.  I have used neurontin and lyrica in the past, and got some relief from them.  Often the pain associated with fibro is neurological pain that will not respond to OTC pain relievers, and many do get some relief from the neurological pain meds.  However,  also experienced a lot of side effects, especially with lyrica.  By the time I got to a high enough dose to treat my pain, I felt all kinds of loopy and forgetful.  A big trick to success with these meds can be finding the right dosage.  I was admittedly a bit impatient with the Lyrica, but had some better luck with neurontin.

So, in summary, your question is difficult to answer because fibro is not diagnosed in a consistent manner, and in my opinion many docs misuse the label and fail to find the underlying cause.  In you case, where you don't know what the root problem is, it is possible that fibro meds will not help your condition.  Furthermore, folks with fibro have mixed results with the meds, so it is really a case-by-case situation.  Just my two cents, your mileage may vary.