It’s become one of the most frustrating conditions of the past decade – fibromyalgia. Almost like a stealth ailment which which reduce someone to bouts of pain on some days yet, like a magician’s disappearing act, it will vanish without a trace on other days.
The problem with taking fibromyalgia seriously is that many still consider it may be like a hypochondriac – someone complaining about ailments all the time but never finding a solution to their problems. But the truth is, it’s real and unless you’ve experienced fibromyalgia then you really are not qualified to pass comment on it’s validity.
This article is not meant to refute the doubters but only to give them a little idea about this syndrome and that those affected by it, really really do have claims to be suffering from something which affects their quality of life.
What Is Fibromyalgia?
Fibromyalgia is considered a syndrome. In a nutshell, it involves a collection of signs and signals that occur in unison. When these conditions come together it can leave a person feeling stiff and fatigued one day yet on other days, they may be full of life and energy with no sign of symptoms.
And this is where many who doubt the validity of fibromyalgia will want to raise questions about whether it really is an ailment or whether someone is just seeking attention. It’s a tough call isn’t it but as we mentioned earlier, you’ve really got to experience fibromyalgia to appreciate it is real.
The word fibromyalgia is Latin and is broken down into three syllables:
- fibro or fibrous referring to the soft body tissues under the skin, around the joints and tendons
- my or myo pertaining to muscle
- algia which refers to pain – pain in the supporting body tissues including those tissues and muscles surrounding the knees and shoulders
Further confusion surrounds what is known as generalized fibromyalgia as opposed to localized pain in the tendons referred to as tendonitis, bursae referred to as bursitis and muscles referring to muscle strains.
These conditions may be more from a result of under use, excessive use or even misuse. They can also be secondary to conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis. Now you may be able to appreciate why putting this type of ailment in the fibromyalgia basket can lead to doubt in the minds of those who have never experienced it.
