What is Fibromyalgia?

Defining Fibromyalgia

Fibromyalgia — which is also sometimes referred to as Fibromyalgia Syndrome, Fibromyositis, Fibrositis, or Myofascial pain syndrome — is a chronic disorder characterized by tenderness in localized areas of the neck, spine, shoulders, and hips sometimes referred to as tender points or pressure points.

What are some of the other symptoms associated with Fibromyalgia?

In addition to the tender points, Fibromyalgia is also associated with other body disturbances, including:
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by Pamela Rice Hahn

What is Multiple Chemical Sensitivities (MCS)?

Whether you call it Multiple Chemical Sensitivities (MCS), Environmental Illness (EI), 20th century disease, Total Allergy Syndrome, Idiopathic Environmental Illness, or Chemical AIDS, or if you suffer chemical sensitivities along with the devastation of Gulf War Illness (GWI), Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS), or Fibromyalgia (FMS), those who share my diagnoses are allergic or overly sensitive to many substances most of the world takes for granted.

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by Pamela Rice Hahn

Until recently, western medicine ignored the mind-body connection. Mind-body doesn’t mean that what’s happening in your “body” is “all in your mind;” however, it can sometimes mean that getting yourself in the right frame of mind might help your body. Research is now showing that learning how to cope with stress may also help you be more receptive to treatment. Therefore, learning how to control your anger may be just what the doctor ordered.

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Dave Roever’s path to becoming a motivational speaker hasn’t been an easy one, but taking into consideration the war-inflicted obstacles he’s had to overcome, his message of hope is one that can benefit us all.

Vietnam Vet Brings Message Of Hope

Dave Roever Horrifically Burned, Tells Bulldog Brigade “Don’t Give Up”

by Spc. John S. Wollaston
3BCT PAO

BAGHDAD, IRAQ – Sometimes, when you’re having a bad day, it helps to talk to someone who’s had a worse day and made it through. For the soldiers of the Bulldog Brigade, still feeling the effects of a “bad day” announcement of a 6-week extension to their combat deployment in Iraq the day before, hearing Dave Roever talk was the shot in the arm that most of 3rd Brigade needed.

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Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS), which is also sometimes referred to as Chronic Fatigue Immune Dysfunction Syndrome (CFIDS) or Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (M.E.), is a condition characterized by the primary symptom of a prolonged, persistent debilitating fatigue not relieved by rest and not directly caused by other conditions. In general, a diagnosis for CFS requires that the tiredness is severe enough for at least a 50% decrease in the patient’s ability to participate in ordinary activities. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) describes CFS as a distinct disorder with specific symptoms and physical signs, based on the exclusion of other possible causes.

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by Pamela Rice Hahn

Note: I wrote an initial article about the Bounce Back Exercise Chair in 2005 while working as the about.com guide for the Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome site. Getting a chair for myself has been my goal since that time and I now finally have one! I’ve had mine for a week, and I can tell a difference already; it’s especially helped lessen some of my lower back pain. … Now for the article:

Maintaining or improving one’s physical fitness is difficult for a healthy person. It’s even more so for those with Fibromyalgia, and especially so for those who are exercise intolerant because of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. Although it doesn’t promise an easy solution, the Bounce Back Fitness Chair does provide a safer fitness alternative. Because it combines the function of low-impact aerobics while the user is seated in a comfortable chair, anyone with balance or most other mobility problems can perform the exercise.

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Dr. John W. Gow’s Research Shows Promise of Diagnostic Test for ME/CFS/CFIDS

Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (M.E., ME) — referred to as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) per CDC definition in the United States or Chronic Fatigue and Immune Dysfunction Syndrome (CFIDS) — is a complex disorder characterized by persistent fatigue, musculoskeletal pain, and post-exertional malaise. (Malaise is usually referred to as the feeling of bodily discomfort at the beginning of an illness; in ME/CFS, malaise is not limited to the onset to the illness, but for those with exercise-intolerant ME/CFS, it is the pain, discomfort, and depression that can follow any exertion.) Because the mechanism of fatigue in CFS is not known and as no reliable diagnostic test is available, misdiagnosis is common and treatment regimes vary.

T-shirts and Gift Ideas Index for the “a nap is only nice when it’s a luxury, not a necessity” design

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Many women who suffer through the pains associated with Fibromyalgia and arthritis find they have problems wearing a bra. This often leaves them suffering from a dilemma: The decision of whether to appear in public sans bra or whether to go for the support of that upper-body undergarment and suffer intensified muscle spasms as a result.

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Anyone who copes with the cognitive impairments and brain fogginess that often accompanies Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome understandably often also worries about whether or not there is something more seriously wrong with his or her mind than just being one more symptom of frustrating chronic illness. The fear of “something more seriously wrong” often leads to worries about Alzheimer’s Disease.

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Diagnosed with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) at age 9, Casey Fero’s short life was one plagued with headaches, cognitive difficulties, muscle weakness, exhaustion, and other problems associated with that condition. Despite such struggles, his mother — Pat Fero, who was diagnosed with CFS prior to Casey’s birth and is President of the Wisconsin CFS Association — recently told the CFSAC (The Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Advisory Committee of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services) that Casey had just completed two years of community college, had a summer job, and was looking forward to beginning courses at the University of Wisconsin. Sadly, that was not to be.

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