36yr old man needs help
painpro - Oct 26th, 2009 1:22 PM
[ Original Post ]

My neurologist mentioned fibromyalgia and I almost laughed. I'm a 36 year old man in pretty good health. I never get a cold or flu. I have a pretty high tolerance for pain. However, if I have to live with my current pain levels I'm not sure it's worth it. I go to see my doctor soon and I want to be able to ask him about fibromyalgia without feeling like a hypochondriac. Here is what is happening. I don't sleep well. When I do sleep I have nightmares, sometimes violent, and sweat profusely. My body is very sore when I get up and throughout the day. I have chronic neck pain, headaches (including migraines), bad depression, rhinitis really bad, fatigue, and the worst of all, shooting pains in my head, arms, hands, and feet. Sometimes it just feels prickly, sometimes I start screaming before I even know what's going on. I have been getting botox every 3 months in my neck for spasms and that helps the headaches and neck cramps for a couple months. I just don't seem to have the classic symptoms of tenderness all over. I hurt but not to be touched. Anyone have advise?

Comment


 

brooksidefarm - Oct 26th, 2009 4:50 PM

Hi painpro. Go to WebMD before you see your doctor and do the symptom checker. When you do, be sure you used the detailed one. It will asks questions about all parts of your body based on your responses. When I did it, having never heard of FMS, there were three possiblities, and I took the print out to my md. With that and an exam and talking, he proceeded with tests and a specialist referral. We had to rule out MS and some other things. This will help you get a discussion going. God bless.


axxie - Oct 26th, 2009 6:00 PM

Hey painpro, pain has no boundaries, and it doesn't discriminate. You may well have fibro, it just does not affect everyone the same way.

Ask questions, to your doctor, has he done all the necessary tests, etc.

I would think if your doctor gave you your diagnoses, did he mention medication to control your pain, sleep, etc.

There is different kinds of medication that can bring some relief. Here are some of them that can help. Cymbalta treats anxiety, depression and pain. Savella same as above and there is Lyrica which only helps with pain, gives great comfort except for the rapid weight gain (I don't know if the weight gain in gender specific). Others drugs that help are Calcium Channel Blokers, Celexa, Cox-2 medication such as Ariva, Vioxx, and Celebrex, Desyrel or better know as Trazadone, another antidepressant helps with sleep problems, Effexor, Elavil, those are antidepressants. You may look into Guaifenesin an active ingredient in many expectorate experimentally to treat FMS. This is small erray of medication that can help you in some way or another, and there's the class of opiods or I hear smoking pot great help with fibro patient.

I'm on Cymbalta to help combat with depression and pain and I also take Desyrel to sleep at night and might even take half a pill during the day if I get anxiety. A bunch of vitamins, massages,chiro, traditional chinese medicine, pet therapy, trigger point injections, etc.

Can you still work and how do you manage with your fibro.


Fantod - Oct 26th, 2009 7:22 PM

Painpro - Something is obviously wrong but whether it is Fibromyalgia (FMS) remains to be seen. FMS is rare in men - only 20% as opposed to us girls.

The reason your body is so sore during the day is because you are probably not getting deep sleep. FMS causes a disruption of the deep sleep cycle with short bursts of high intensity brain waves. Your muscles need deep sleep in order to repair themselves from the days activities. No deep sleep means high levels of pain.

It is possbile to have FMS without all of the classic tender points etc. To that end, you need to see a rheumotologist to find out what the heck is going on. You can call your local hospital physician referral service and ask them for a recommendation to a rheumotologist and/or a pain specialist (have both). You can also go online to the National Fibromyalgia Association website and register. Then you will be able to see a list of fibro-friendly healthcare providers in your area. I think that you should do this ASAP. The longer a chronic pain cycle goes on, the harder it is to manage or stop.The prickling and shooting pains are nerve pain. Gabapentin is usually prescribed for this issue.

If you have any recent bloodwork or other tests, get copies and take them with you to save some time and expense. You are not a hypochrondiac - something is very wrong. With regards to pain, there are now three main drugs used to treat FMS. They are Cymbalata which addresses the pain as well as depression issues, Lyrica which ia advertised on TV all of the time and Savella which is new to the US market this year.
Amitriptyline is the drug usually prescribed for sleep issues. Frankly, I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around the neurologist telling you that it might be FMS and then doing nothing. All the more reason to find someone else who has a clue about this syndrome.

Good luck to you and let us know if there is anything else we can do to help. Take care and God Bless.