Fibromyalgia..?

I'm 18 and I think I have fibromyalgia. I've suffered pains in my back, neck and hips since I was 11. I've had twitching and pains for no reason.

These are my other symptoms
fatigue, pain with change of weather, low b12, brain fog, stress, migraines, impaired memory, gluten sensitivity, depression, PTSD, dizziness, vision problems, teeth grinding and PMS.

The only symptom I don't have is the sleep disruptiveness. I havn't really taken much notice of my sleep patterns.

I live in New Zealand. I'm just wondering what my next step should be. Should I speak to my physiotherapist about this?

Does it sound like fibromyalgia?

Any help appreciated. =]

Thanks.

Well I've been hearing 'There is nothing wrong with you' for the last 7 years. No one has ever mentioned this to me before now.

I've had xrays, bone scans, operations, MRIS, blood tests. All shown nothing (except my blood test showed a B12 deficiency)

You may have fms; it often begins to show around puberty. You should definitely speak to your doctor. Make sure that you go to a rheumatologist or other doctor who recognizes fms as a real disorder - many health care professionals think it is a made up name for hypochondriacs to keep them happy but it is a real problem.

You will find much info on the net but not all of it is good info.

I have fms and several sleep disorders as well. The sleep disorder most commonly associated with fms is alpha delta disturbance, which is when you get into deep sleep and your brain kind of yells at you to wake up so you never get rested. This helps lead to the pain levels being high as your muscles don't repair themselves. This particular problem is diagnosed with a sleep lab and is easily treated with a tricyclic antidepressant such as Vivactyl. However, you do not have to have all of the symptoms in order to be diagnosed.

When I was first diagnosed, I was in extreme pain nearly all the time, with migraines that would last for days; at one point I was taking several pain medications, muscle relaxers, and anti depressants. I also was in a wheelchair for a short while.

I went through a pain rehabilitation clinic to manage the pain through things like biofeedback and neutral spine exercises. I still have trouble each winter and February is my worst month historically, but I am a single working mom with an active life. There are physical activities I can't do anymore but overall I lead a fairly normal life. Some of the things that broke the cycle of pain was using first a blood pressure medicine Calan, then herbal feverfew to stop the migraine cycle, using ice and heat, and losing weight.

Good luck!

I think you're a little young to have that. Go to your doctor and get their opinion.

I would make an appointment to see your doctor and have him run some tests and see what it is your feeling. Good luck

Hi there:
I have fibromyalgia(FM). You should see a Rheumatologist to diagnose this. They test you for other similar disorders with the same symptoms to rule out other disorders. After they have ruled other disorders out, they will determine if you are suffering from Fibro and try different treatments. For your own sake, I hope you do not have it, it's no fun at all. Some of the symptoms you haven't developed, may come along eventually. Everyone is individual as far as that goes. But, you should see a Rheumatologist, which is the category they have placed this disorder. Good luck.

Get your doctor to do some tests for celiac disease -- blood work and an endoscopy. You have to be eating gluten containing products for the test to be valid. Almost 10percent of diagnosed celiacs were originally diagnosed with fibromyalgia so worth looking into. Also it could develop that young. The way to take care of it if you are diagnosed with celiac disease is to go on a strict gluten free diet for life. Well worth it if it takes away the pain and other problems.

I know nothing about that, but this website may help you learn more.
I hope you vsit to the doctor yesterday went well for you.

Hi Wabby, I have this condition and there is a test to see if you do have Fibromyalgia. There is 5 pressure points located on your back and if the doctor touches these spot and you have pain you have this conditions. Go the a athirst doctor and have these points tested.
A Friend,
poppy1

Check out http://www.fibromyalgiasource.com for lots of articles and information about Fibromyalgia.

You may very well have fibromyalgia. Diagnosis is primarily by ruling out diseases and conditions with similar symptoms. There are 18 tender points that may be painful upon applying pressure. A diagnostic criteria for fibromyalgia is pain in at least 11 out of 18 of the tender points. There are also secondary diagnostic criteria such as those you have named. Usually a rheumatologist is the type of doctor that diagnoses and treats fibro. Fibromyalgia can strike anyone of any age. While it is more prevalent among young women, it is found in children and the elderly, as well as men. The cause is unknown at this time, although there are plenty of theories to choose from. The only one that you should reject outright is that it is all in your head or it is caused by depression. Depression is part of it, but who wouldn't get depressed if they had pain in all four quadrants of their body? Treatment is very individual. Unfortunately, what works for one person may or may not work for another. It takes trial & error to find out what works best for an individual & their particular set of symptoms. Fibromyalgia can be very complex and very debilitating. Part of the depression comes from the frustration of finding a course of treatment that works. Good luck. Your next step should be finding a good doctor who is familiar with fibro so that you can get a diagnosis for fibro or whatever is wrong.

Dumb question do you have lesions on your MRI's because what you describing sounds like my MS symptoms...at least some of them. But fibro can have some of the same symptoms.
Wouldn't hurt to be checked for it. They can do a special test that non invasive and its fairly simple from what I have heard.
My friend has fibro and has some of the same symptoms I do, however she doesn't have lesions on her brain and she has a few different symptoms that I do...so I would definitely check into, and possibly MS...who knows...also Lyme disease has been known to cause some of those symptoms...I would definitely talk with a doc
take care Wabby
Morgaine

but in one of the answers you had mentioned that you had been involved in serious accident and your back pain was becuz of that....????? so I dont think it is Fibromyalgia.. but nyways to be on the safer side consult a doctor

I'm 21, and I've just been diagnosed. I've suffered with back pain since I was 14, but I was always told it was growing pains or to go to a chiropractor because my back was out of line. After I had my son it got worse, and since my husband is in the military (great insurance and great time for medical tests) I started seeing a lot of doctors. I saw a rheumatologist, physical therapist, and my family practicioner several times, but no luck. My neighbor has FM, and she was discharged out of the Navy because of it. She said she had problems getting diagnosed, so she did research on her own, walked in her doctor's office and said "I have FM. What are you going to do for me?" The thing with FM is, not all of your symptoms are apparant all the time. You could go with no pain for a while, but not sleep well or vise/versa. A way that I decided I needed to ask about having FM was by going to www.webmd.com and putting in my symtoms. FM was the first one on the list. Have you mentioned FM to your doctor? If not, I would set up a consult with him/her to mention it.