Discover Top Posts Tagged with #fibro warriors

I was officially diagnosed with fibromyalgia November 2020.

This was after ten years of complaints about pain in my shoulders, back, hips, legs and feet. This was after two children. This was after I specifically kept telling doctors there was something more.

All to be told that with this diagnosis, it was “all in my head”.

This diagnosis is not “all in my head” though.

Summer of 2021, I was hit with dizzy spells.

Fast forward to 2024 and I have dizziness on a daily basis starting at my 31st birthday. I’ve lost my job in community mental health as a result. I was diagnosed with major depressive disorder earlier this month. I have had lifelong anxiety stemming from autism and was diagnosed with C-PTSD in 2016. Later, they added my C-PTSD had a dissociative factor in it.

Not long after my fibromyalgia diagnosis, I learned my ex husband was cheating on me and when I went to leave, he attacked me and called the cops on me after I defended myself. I was arrested and charged with domestic violence, but those charges were later dropped due to the DA becoming suspicious that I was actually the victim of the domestic violence.

There is new research out there, though, and now I know fibromyalgia is actually an autoimmune disorder. I know it isn’t “all in my head”. I did the mindfulness stuff to attempt to help manage my pain. I fully believe by ignoring my pain, the dizziness started. I take medications that don’t help and just had an increase, which isn’t helping the pain at all and is just exacerbating the dizziness I’ve been experiencing since April. I had steroids injected into my muscles to try to release the tension but it’s only made it worse.

I am starting this blog in the hopes that others will chime in to support and also to help others suffering from the same condition.

Here is to you other fibromyalgia warriors- we are stronger than we think and this is a battle we surely must be able to win someday. Here is to the battle and the hope that one day we can actually treat this diagnosis without doctors blaming it on weight and stress. 🥂

#fibromyalgia #fibro problems #fibropain #autoimmune #chronic pain #chronic illness #chronically ill #chronically disabled #fibromyalgiasupport #fibro warriors

Fibromyalgia is a B*tch

Hello my fellow Fibro Warriors! I just wanted to share this stupid, but wonderful victory with you. For the past two weeks, I've been putting off washing my hair. Just putting it off, and putting it off, and putting it off. And it was because my scalp just hurt so much. Not my back like usual, not my hips or my legs like usual, not my hands like usual, or my joints in general. This past week has been my calves and my scalp. And I just kept putting it off. I would shower, but I wouldn't wash my hair. And I, my loves, am a gal with a LOT of hair. It's nearly three feet long, and thick as all git out. But for two whole weeks, I kept putting it off. I was dandruff city. I was oily like smoked salmon. I was, in short, gross. And I was breaking out along the sides of my face, because the sebum from my hair, was just SO much. As some of you know, or may have experienced, or are experiencing RIGHT NOW, I typically gotta break my shower routine up. Gotta use those spoons wisely, right? Like one time, I'll wash my body with soap, and that's it for that shower. Or I'll shave, and soap it up, and that's it for THAT shower. When it comes to my hair, I have a routine. I typically wash it once a week, and that's all it needs. It's healthy, long, and strong. It's the one thing I truly love about myself. I have no other vanities, just my hair. And I take good care of it. But the past two weeks -- it's been a minefield. I've had to be gentle as H-E-double-hockey-sticks with my danged scalp and hair. But today -- despite it being a flare up day (gosh I need a good hard nap RIGHT NOW), I got in the shower to wash my hair. And it hurt. Boy, did it ever. Massaging shampoo into my hair, onto my scalp, I swear I could feel the tug and pull of each individual strand of hair and it hurt. But I kept going. I bemoaned to the empty bathroom, "Ow, ow, ow," but I did it. I washed behind my ears, and scrubbed along the sides of my face, and I didn't just shampoo my hair, but I flipped it over, and I put conditioner in. I combed through it with my silicone brush, and I did my danged routine. Like a warrior. And to my fellow fibro sufferers, to anyone having a flare up day, who still gets out of bed and faces the day with grim determination, you are WARRIORS. I am now out of the shower, and sitting here in my towel, with my hair gently wrapped in another; while I type this out. And I am BEAT. I am worn thin. I am exhausted. But, I. Freaking. Did it.

I created a piece I felt represented my worst symptoms associated with my fibromyalgia. I couldn’t figure out how to represent dull achy pain, but you can see depression, spiky electric sensations, the rock represents muscle tension. Let me know what you all think!

#fibromyalgia #chronic illness #chronic pain #fibro problems #chronically ill #fibropain #fibro #fibro warriors #invisible illness #disability

Today I had a falling incident. This is my first fall that I have had. I went out to have my service dog go to the bathroom and fell down- due to what? My leg gave out and I fell down on the ground, on the sidewalk, leash went flying out of my hands because my dog was focused on his bathroom break. Thankfully he noticed and he came over and allowed me to use him to get up. My knee and hands are scraped and I’m likely to get bruises.

Is falling normal with fibromyalgia? I’m not sure,

#fibromyalgia #chronic illness #chronic pain #fibro problems #chronically ill #fibropain #fibro #fibro warriors #invisible illness #disability #falling

Insurance sucks

Insurance: Won't cover the CT scan that I need to get done on my inner ears to ensure there is not an inner ear issue. They won't even take it as medically necessary LOL

#fibromyalgia #chronic illness #chronic pain #fibro problems #chronically ill #fibropain #fibro #fibro warriors #invisible illness #disability #insurance problems

Moment of appreciation for my service dog (still in training). I rescued him from a shelter in May of 2023. He was 6 months old and scared of everything but other dogs, but was especially scared of humans he doesn’t know. My intention was not to have him do service work initially. I started doing basic obedience with him and he fully learned the commands within the first month of having him. I started proofing those commands and working on boosting his confidence around people and his fear reactivity. I also started doing threshold work with him.

Fast forward to today where he is generally neutral towards people unless they try to pet him (which is fine, I advocate for him) and has been allowed by the hospital to be brought in on a leash for training purposes. He has come a long way and wanted to recognize all the hard work he’s done to get to this point. He’s currently working on tasking and focus work as his puppy “stupids” are clearing up and I am so proud of him and how smart he is for picking up his tasks as quick as he does. I’m tasking him for mobility stability, as he is tall enough and he alerts when my symptoms require me to rest (although, him pushing me into a chair or on the bed is not necessarily what I want him to do but I am working on that with him).

It is not easy training your own service dog and it is especially not easy when they are a shelter rescue, but this has worked for me and my dog due to hard work, consistency, routine, and LOTS of treats.