Very bad fatigue (seems to be getting worse w/ time)

[PuppyLove989]

I have been diagnosed with Fibro about a year or so ago, and for some reason my fatigue has been getting much worse. :0( I'm really worried that it might be something far worse than just fibro, but I'm not sure.

I have "bags" under my eyes and never feel like I am able to get enough sleep. The heat from the sun, just makes me feel even more tired. My lack of sleep is also causing me to become irritated really easily.

When I wake up a lot of days, I feel drained like I didn't even sleep at all that night. :0( Does anyone else feel the same way? Is there anything I can do to help me feel better? Please if anyone knows of what may be able to help me, I would greatly appreciate the knowledge. Thanks! :0)

--------------------------------------------------------------------
How has your fatigue symptoms been?

[glazam]

hello, have you thought of taking glyconutrients? I had all sorts of problems for three years ... I have written an article about it all http://www.glazam.com/health2.htm ... After three years of hell I was diagnosed as having fibromyalgia ... now I feel better than I have ever done ... let me know what you think? ... And I hope this helps.

[fibrohurts]

I so feel your pain honey. Your words sound like my own thoughts. I hope you feel better and get some good days! I know those are few and far between. Good luck!

[mickeyirish]

I agree with Fibrohurts,  untill this happened to me , I had an extreme tolerence to pain, I was burnt from the waist up in an accident and survived and tolerated the skin peals etc. with little or no pain medication, much to the surprise of my doctors. Same with my hysterectomy.  In my early 30's I won a gold medial in corporate olympics for bench pressing 200 lbs (and I weight only 160 then). But all along I did have suttle signs something was not quite right.  Migraines, motor skill issues, then RLS, then problems with endometriosis and fibroid in my uterus and breasts. Then when I turned 50, things really started to go down hill, out of the blue. Up untill then I worked full time from the age of 14 years old, I loved to work. Infact I probably was a bit of a work acholic. Now I can not work, let along function like a normal human being. I am in constant pain, exhausted all the time, muscle cramps, migraines, loss of vision & RLS.. And I am so frustrated with people, who until something like this happens to them, they have no clue, what it is like to deal with something like this. This is a nightmare I would not wish upon anyone. Doctors don't believe you, they try to push anit depressents onto you . (20 years ago it was stess, now it is depression) People think you just want to be lazy and not work etc.  I would give anything in this world to have my life back. I hate having to take pain pills. It seems my only choices are take pain pills and not be able to think straight or be in such pain I think about suicide. Believe me this is not in my head, I wish it was, because then I'd just pop a (ZOLOFT, CYMBALTA, ZANAX whatever) and be happy. Because I can't work, I have lost so much, I have lost my home all of my savings, I am now trying to live on SS and now living at what most would consider poverty level. If you think this is something I would do if I had a choice , you are crazy.

[cjruz]

I do not have proof other than seeing symptoms in myself and neighbors such as strange markings on skin "bites"peripheral nueropathy,stabbing pains and larva migrans.Sounds crazy but I am sure it is true

[PlateletGal]

I'm not sure about the unidentified parasite theory, but fibro and CFS patients do have abnomally high viral and bacterial titers and of course.... we all share many of the same symptoms that lyme disease patients have.

For more information, check out http://www.immed.org

[fibrohurts]

Do you have any proof of these parasites?

[cjruz]

Dr Leo Galland in NYC beleives 98% of CFS and "FIBRO" sufferers have an identifiable parasite.Unfortunately a LLMD sent me to  someone else who is a very old and famous book writing tropical medicine doctor.He uses the same method of detection for all parasites,if he cant find it he says your clean and sends you away.He only takes cash as well as Dr.Galland so my wife no longer beleives me even though she and my daughter suffer the same "FIBRO" type symptoms and will not allow me to spend more money on cashn only doctors(I have spent over $2500. so far)I purchased meds online from India and it resolved most symptoms.This year the Obama adminastration spent 1.8 billion of our tax dollars fighting parasites in sub saharan Africa yet the CDC recognizes it is becoming a real threat to our citizens and withhold info and treatment from us?FIBRO=PARASITES

[PlateletGal]

I can't tell you why physicians spend very little time in medical school discussing parasites, Celiac diseases, food allergies and other very real and frequently overlooked conditions. They obviously need to catch up and especially since I'm hearing that they STILL aren't teaching about fibromyalgia and CFS in medical schools. Yikes !

I was shocked when I heard Dr. Oz (I believe it was him) say that 9 out of 10 Americans have had parasites at some point in their life.

We need better healthcare and especially for those of us who want to treat the cause of their illness and not just treat the symptoms with tons of painkillers and/or other medications.... many of them which have side effects and are ineffective.

[cjruz]

good answer,but why do MDs dicount prasites?Because that is not taught in medical schools.Symptoms and damage will be treated but not the source of infection.How did this come to be?

[PlateletGal]

I don't necessarily disagree with your thoughts. Parasites, of course, are more common than people realize and especially more common in people who are chronically ill.

I believe "CFS" and "fibromyalgia" are symptoms of an underlying infection (viral and/or bacterial).

[cjruz]

fibro and CFS are false diagnoses,it is actualy parasites and tiny clear worms (strongyloides) invermectin and antiparasitic herbs will clear fibro symptoms as well as albenzadole.Doctors will say your crazy but who is fooling who?

[carla559]

Can you  explain to me about Zanaflex?  My neuro gave me samples of Lyrica but
the side effects I read about were unappealing for sure.  Can't take neurontin it makes
me literally sick.  Today was tough, my legs got tight and stiff and ached of course
I also have a low FT3 that I am working on seeing on endo and a internist.
Appreciate your help,
Carla

[fibrohurts]

I have been diagnosed with FM. I can assure you that I am not just "sensitive" to pain. Before this started, I always had a high tolerance to pain. I had 3 surgeries and I had babies.. the docs were always surprised by how well I did and on low doses of pain meds for after surgery pain. I went home faster that any of their other patients, etc....

BUT now, I deal with some major pain on a daily basis and it is real. If I did not have this cocktail of meds, I wouldnt be able to get out of bed, because I would be rolled in a ball, crying from the pain.

[SuzCat]

I know exactly how I feel. My doc has been telling me that I have Chronic Fatigue Syndrome for a year now, but my symptoms don't match up. I don't have pain, thank god, but I have terrible, incapacitating fatigue. That's getting even worse.

I can't do anything. I just about feed my kids and flop into bed like a zombie between times. No amount of sleep ever refreshes me. Finally, my doc said maybe it's Hypersomnia, not CFS. I'm going to have a sleep study done soon, to monitor the quality of my sleep and whether I get enough REM sleep. They prescrible stimulants to treat this disorder, with varying degrees of success.

It's well worth you asking to get a Sleep Study done.
I wish you energy and liveliness!

[Totie]

I have been told by a Pain Management Doctor that Fibro is a "politically correct way of saying, there is not anything wrong with you", ENTER , the anti depressants.

I also have been told by another doctor that Fibro is just people's way of showing how sensitive they are to pain. Everyone's pain tolerance is different.

I believe EVERYONE has some sort of pain, some just react differently to it.

Do I believe in Fibro, I did at first, until the reasons for my pains were actual discovered to be glands, other actual organs, or tumors, or cysts.

I believe there are people who are in chronic pain, and other who are just sensitive to pain.

Don't take me wrong, pain is real to everyone who feels it, even me, some just handle it different than others.  What works for me may not work for others. Some can only functions with a cocktail of medications, while others do fine using OTC meds.

I believe taking a lot of different medications for every different symptoms does not help in the long run, sometimes to much causes brain fog.

Again, this is just my opinion. Not trying to offend anyone.

[PlateletGal]

Primary Symptoms

As the name chronic fatigue syndrome suggests, this illness is accompanied by fatigue. However, it's not the kind of fatigue patients experience after a particularly busy day or week, after a sleepless night or after a stressful event. It's a severe, incapacitating fatigue that isn't improved by bed rest and that may be exacerbated by physical or mental activity. It's an all-encompassing fatigue that results in a dramatic decline in both activity level and stamina.

People with CFS function at a significantly lower level of activity than they were capable of prior to becoming ill. The illness results in a substantial reduction in occupational, personal, social or educational activities.

A CFS diagnosis should be considered in patients who present with six months or more of unexplained fatigue accompanied by other characteristic symptoms. These symptoms include:

cognitive dysfunction, including impaired memory or concentration
postexertional malaise lasting more than 24 hours (exhaustion and increased symptoms) following physical or mental exercise
unrefreshing sleep
joint pain (without redness or swelling)
persistent muscle pain
headaches of a new type or severity
tender cervical or axillary lymph nodes
sore throat
Other Common Symptoms

In addition to the eight primary defining symptoms of CFS, a number of other symptoms have been reported by some CFS patients. The frequency of occurrence of these symptoms varies among patients. These symptoms include:

irritable bowel, abdominal pain, nausea, diarrhea or bloating
chills and night sweats
brain fog
chest pain
shortness of breath
chronic cough
visual disturbances (blurring, sensitivity to light, eye pain or dry eyes)
allergies or sensitivities to foods, alcohol, odors, chemicals, medications or noise
difficulty maintaining upright position (orthostatic instability, irregular heartbeat, dizziness, balance problems or fainting)
psychological problems (depression, irritability, mood swings, anxiety, panic attacks)
jaw pain
weight loss or gain

http://www.cdc.gov/CFS/cfssymptomsHCP.htm

[PlateletGal]

If your fatigue is worse than your pain, I would seriously question your diagnosis of fibromyalgia.

Here is a list to our health pages. I tend to listen to the experts on these illnesses and some of their treatments and approaches to both fibro & CFS are listed here:

http://www.medhelp.org/health_pages/list?cid=39

[fibrohurts]

It really aggravates me that docs are diagnosing people with FM without even doing the pressure/tender point test. I have heard other people say that. There are people running around saying they have FM when their only sypmtom is a sore shoulder. It makes the ones of us who have severe symtoms look  like fakers. Do you know what I mean? (and Im not talking about you!!)

My best advise for you at this point, is got to a DIFFERENT doc. The one you are going to isn't doing his/her job.

Feel better!

[PuppyLove989]

Thank You all for the information, I greatly value your response! :0) I do believe that my fatigue is a lot worse than my pain. My Rhematologist didn't do hardly any tests to diagnose me, which I'm not sure if I even really have Fibro or not. He, as far as I remember, didn't do any pressure point testing before he said that I have it. :0(

I do know that I have a vitamin d deficiency, as well. I have to take medication once every two weeks for it. I have tried many different medications for my Fibro, but unfortunately none of it seemed to help. :0( I am becoming very discouraged and doubt my diagnoses sometimes. :0( I have had many blood tests done and they all came back normal, except one time they said I had a little anemia, but then said I didn't, so I'm not sure. I know that anemia could be causing my fatigue too, but I'm not sure what to believe right now. One minute they tell me I have it, and then the next they say I don't.

Thanks again, I greatly value your responses! :0)

[fibrohurts]

I have FM and I am pretty sure that is a correct dx. Fatigue is a big issue for me as well and so is pain and a multitude of other things. There is some literature that we all read on FM that makes it sound like its not that big a deal, like you should be just kind of tired and its just a few muscle aches, etc.. Well, that really isn't accurate, at least not for everybody.

FM can cause severe fatigue. If your pain levels are usually low then maybe it is CFS instead... But here is the deciding factor, did you have the tender point test and did you have enough of them to be diagnosed with FM?

Also, CFS and FM have so many overlapping symptoms that it is hard for us and our docs to differentiate between them. One of my docs diagnoses me with having both CFS and FM. I dont know if that is really possible or if they are really the same thing or what... It is confusing but either way, the symptoms are real and they are miserable.

Something else, not everybody with FM has the same exact sypmtoms nor do they have them all with the same severity. I have a great group of FM friends and we have discussed all of this for years and compared our sypmtoms, etc.. We ALL have fatigue but some of us have more probs with it than others and we all have a LOT of pain but some of us have severe pain more often, etc..

People with FM who suffer a lot with fatigue can be prescribed the same meds that CFS patients are and vice versa...

If you are having a spell of not sleeping then your fatigue IS probably worse. You really need to get something from the doctor that helps you get some sleep. Maybe the fatigue would get a little better..

Off and on I wonder what I really have or if I have FM plus something else.. Docs never find anything else in my bloodwork or tests. I am so sick at times that it is hard for me to believe that I dont have some horrible disease. I understand how you feel, wondering what in the **** is wrong with you and why, why am I so sick??....

There is always a chance that you DO have something else or something else in addition to the FM. You just have to force your doc to run all the tests. The best thing for you is to be knowledgable. Research on the internet, read everything you can, talk to people, talk to your doc, go to other doctors.

Good luck sweetie and I hope you feel better soon. Try to get some major sleep!

[GracieMurphy]

I understand about the fatigue. My Dr has convinced me he can make my pain tolerable if only I can get a good nights rest consistantly. It has helped with my fatigue only, so far. I'm standing in faith for the pain the diminish.

The bed time meds I'm on are Zanaflex and Neurontin. The Neurontin helps with the pain and is long lasting. It also takes a while to get in your system. The Zanaflex is immediate. Be near your bed when you take it. I also have Restless Leg and take meds for it too, Requip.

Talk to your Dr. about trying something different with your meds. Only you know what you truly need as far as relief. Don't be afraid to tell your Dr some ideas of treatment. He will listen because he doesn't have time to do the research you do.

I hope your endeavor here is blessed.

[PlateletGal]

What is worse.... your fatigue or your pain ? If fatigue is your primary symptom, then you should consider talking to your physician about Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. If pain is your # 1 complaint, then it is possible that you could have CFS along with your fibromyalgia.

I thought I would mention though that I'm seeing more and more members in this forum say that their primary symptom is fatigue, but they've been diagnosed with fibromyalgia. Some physicians haven't realized yet that muscle aches are common in CFS patients and are getting it wrong.  

[Weney3777]

Have you been checking your blood pressure? Have you had your electrolyte levels checked? Sometimes those being low can lead to fatigue. (Though I'm sure you know this.)