Fibromyalgia is a condition that affects the musculoskeletal system and causes pain, uneasiness and tiredness. It is a chronic condition that causes a great amount of anguish for the sufferer. It can affect anyone but is mainly common in middle aged women.

What Exactly Is It?

Fibromyalgia is an illness that affects the muscles, ligaments and tendons. It can cause aches and pain but can also worsen other conditions or bear side-effects that can have a seriously damaging affect on health which can present with many improbable symptoms.

What Causes Fibromyalgia?

It was thought in the past that this condition was caused by an inflammatory problem but it has been proved through research that there is no inflammation or damage to nerves present in this disorder.

The truth is experts are still uncertain as to why this condition develops at all. Sufferers of rheumatoid arthritis appear to be more at risk of being diagnosed with fibromyalgia.

Signs and Symptoms.

Fibromyalgia has many symptoms, the main ones being pain and aching of the muscles, low energy and changes and disturbances to sleeping patterns.
Muscles can feel fatigued and can cause most of the body to ache.

Numerous sufferers of fibromyalgia have reported increased pain at certain points on their body such as the shoulders, elbows and knees. This pain can at times reveal itself as ‘tenderness’ and is a definitive part of being able to make an official diagnosis of fibromyalgia.

The person’s ability to perform daily tasks and routines can be affected by tiredness and fatigue; it may be partly because of the sleep pattern disturbances that can happen. This can also lead to feeling low, poor appetite and feeling uneasy.

Other symptoms can include bowel and bladder problems and extreme tingling and numbness.

Treatment Options

Before considering any type of treatment it is necessary that an accurate diagnosis is made to make certain you have no other conditions which may need a different treatment.

The first treatment is to make sure that pain levels are looked at. To keep pain at a reasonable level, over the counter drugs should be sufficient for this.

Fibromvalgia is a long term chronic condition and aftersome time the effect of the pain killers can become reduced, which is why it is better not to rely on the stronger varieties of medication at the early stages, this should be explained to the sufferer.

If compared to other areas, there is an elevated level of pain present in certain areas like the shoulders or the elbows, a local anaesthetic or steroids can be used to treat these. They will need prescribing and can only be administered by a professional.

If the sufferer suffers from sleeping disturbances, to overcome these troubles, medication can be used to treat it. Issues with bladders and bowels may also need to be looked at.

Alternative therapies such as relaxation techniques and massage could be useful to try and deal with aches and tiredness.

If pain levels increase due to these methods being unsuccessful, anti-depressants and stronger medication could help the person handle their illness better.

Fibromyalgia is a chronic condition that can have severe and depressing effects on a sufferer’s daily life. The person should try to discover ways to cope with the disorder in order to uphold a good quality of life.