NEED YOUR HELP PLEASE - SURGERY?

[butterscotch23]

Hi, Fibro Friends -

I have to say that out of all the forums and communities on MedHelp, the Fibro/CFS community is the most helpful. Thanks to all of you who take the time to read our posts and reply with compassion. Here is my quandry now:

I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia earlier in the year and have been taking Lyrica and Cymbalta. I recently had a sleep study and found that I have sleep apnea in the upper-moderate level. My ENT has suggested that he remove my swollen tonsils; fix my left septum which has a "spur" and is severely deviated; and "shave" my palate. All these procedures will be done in an effort to get better rest and hopefully help me feel better. Am I doing the right thing? Have any of you all ever had these extreme measures done, and if so, what kind of results did you get? The ENT thinks that I will see a 70-80% improvement which seems significant enough to warrant the pain that I will be in for two weeks.

I anxiously await a reply from any fellow suffers who have bravely traversed these waters. In the meantime, I keep you all in my thoughts and prayers.

[cino]

Well i do hope you will have all your questions answered before you undergo extensive surgery. I have fibromalgia and have sleep apnoea as well, which insomnia does go hand in hand with fibromyalgia. I have had not had more than 4 hours of sleep a day or night within 24 hours for over 7 years now. I have tried all the drugs possible for sleeping with no avail. Nothing ever seems to work for me. But I would try other things possible before surgery. My husband has sleep apnoea as well and he has a CPAP machine to help him breath, but his problem is caused by a prolapsed lung. Anyway, I guess research is the best and answered questions before any surgery. Good luck

[kitty51]

I too have a deviated septum and it can stay that way.I have had 4 operations and the fibro goes wild.The surgery that your doc is taking about, have you thought about getting another opinion first?My doc doesnt think its a good idea when fibro pain is high,as our tolerance of pain isnt too good.But Its always best to weigh it all up and if its worth it to you to go ahead do it.My experiences wont be the same as yours,sometimes people say i am just a sook,but fibro is the weirdest thing to have,especially senstivity to the touch.I have to go the dentist soon and i am really dreading that.hope this is of some help to you:) Kitty

[PlateletGal]

I had sinus surgery in 2002. At the time, I still didn't even have a CFS diagnosis (after many years).  My surgeon told me that it would take me 2 weeks to completely recover. It took me 4 weeks to somewhat recover and I missed 3 weeks of work. The good news is... I quit catching frequent colds and / or other viruses after my surgery. The bad news is... I was still very ill, despite the fact that I quit getting so many sinus infections.

Fibro, CFS and other chronically ill patients have a successive infection. What I like best about these pathogen killing treatments is that they are less risky than anti-viral treatments (for CFS patients) and they are set out to cure the problem.

If you choose to have the surgery... here's a link thatl should help you:

Guidance for FM Patients Who Are Having Elective Surgery:

http://www.immunesupport.com/library/showarticle.cfm?id=7330&T=CFIDS_FM&B1=EM071107F


Warmest Regards.... keep us posted !

PlateletGal

[patsy10]

My condition was in remission until I had surgery.  The stress set it off like a wildfire.

[Garth L Nicolson, PhD]

Response from Prof. Nicolson:  Before going through extensive surgery, which itself can be immune suppressing and could eventually make the condition worse, I would investigate the possibility that the swollen glands, tonsils, tissues etc. may be due to infection(s).  Chronic infections can cause the problems of tissue and glandular swelling that underly the problem, if they are immune related.