8 Potential Symptoms of Fibromyalgia to Never Ignore

Fibromyalgia is a chronic disorder described by widespread musculoskeletal pain, accompanied by fatigue, sleep issues, memory issues, mood issues and tenderness in localized areas. It is a particularly distressing condition that can affect someone both mentally and physically. Upon waking up, individual with fibromyalgia usually feels a rapid onset of fatigue when trying to move their body.

Its plain mental and physical complications can make one’s daily activities a challenging path to navigate. Symptoms sometimes start after a physical trauma, surgery, infection or significant psychological stress. In other cases, indicators gradually occur over time with no single triggering incident.

Women are 10 times more likely to develop fibromyalgia than men. Women who are aged 25 to 60 years old comprise the majority of fibromyalgia patients. To diagnose the condition, a blood test, specifically a full blood count (FBC) and thyroid exam, is routinely undertaken. When diagnosed with fibromyalgia, patients are often referred to a rheumatologist for proper medical guidance.

HERE ARE EIGHT POTENTIAL SIGNS OF FIBROMYALGIA TO NEVER IGNORE:

1. IRRITABLE BOWEL SYNDROME

Potential symptoms are acid reflux, constipation, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), diarrhea and bloating. Usually, approximately 40 to 70 percent of patients feel symptoms similar to Irritable Bowel Syndrome, or IBS.

2. MORNING STIFFNESS

More than 75 percent of patients with the condition experience bodily stiffness, particularly in the morning. This physical sense of stiffness is comparable to those diagnosed with arthritis, especially inflammatory or rheumatoid arthritis. In some cases, these symptoms disappear within 10 to 15 minutes; in others, they’ll last most of the day, if not all waking hours.

3. PROLIFERATING BODY PAIN

Most fibromyalgia patients complain of proliferating body pain. Most individuals with fibromyalgia feel pain across the body. Fibromyalgia patients often feel “deep, sharp, throbbing or aching,” pain that affect ligaments, muscles, and tendons.

4. FATIGUE

Fatigue is one of the most common complaint of individuals diagnosed with fibromyalgia. The major difference between someone experiencing tiredness and extreme fatigue like exhaustion is the period of associated symptoms.

Most often, fibromyalgia patients associate their sense of fatigue as being stricken with the flu. They are simply can not perform at a normal level. This feeling of exhaustion applies to simple routines, exercise, and even waking up.

5. SLEEP PROBLEMS

Due to their physical and mental condition, people with fibromyalgia have difficulty in getting quality sleep. This difficulty in falling asleep is followed by interruptions caused by irregular brain activity.

6. SPASMS

25 to 50 percent of fibromyalgia patients experience arterial spasms of the hands or toes. This sign occurs when exposed to either cold or stress. Essentially, affected areas will often appear bluish or pale coloration and also accompanied by pain.

Known as Raynaud’s syndrome, or Raynaud’s phenomenon, this symptom often disappear when heat is applied.

7. COGNITIVE PROBLEMS

Similar to “brain fog”, fibromyalgia may be evident to concentration problems. Also, patients with the condition may experience short-term memory loss. They may also feel confused, forgetful, and lack of mental clarity. Cognitive problems are issues related to mental processes, like thinking and learning. Other problems may be you may have difficulty recalling and learning new things, troubles with attention and concentration and slowed or confused speech

8. EXCESSIVE PERSPIRATION

Individuals with fibromyalgia sweat heavily and may even think they have a fever. This is due to the condition called autonomic dysfunction within the hypothalamus, the almond-sized area in the brain that controls sleep and regulates sweating, bowel movements, and other automatic body functions. Some medications and lifestyle changes that can maintain you cool and dry may help with this fibromyalgia symptom.

While there is still no cure for fibromyalgia, multiple medications can help control symptoms. It may help to exercise, relax and do stress-reduction measures.

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