I have asked the doctor if my problems are Fibromyalgia but she said that is when it hurts to be touched. However my symptoms are as follows:
The worst thing is Muscle pain everywhere especially in the evening. During the day I can play tennis so it doesn't stop me doing things
Tiredness
Hard to even stand up after sitting down in the evening
iBS
Numbness in my lower leg and toes
Depression
Surely these are all the classic symptoms. I am taking 20 Citalopram which has made a slight improvement in the evenings but not completely. However It has stopped my depression.
Please could anyone make any suggestions as to what else it could be or anything else I can do?
Hello and welcome, what you describe are indeed symptoms of Fibromyalgia, you need to see your GP again for tests to rule out any other cause, the symptoms are the same as many other conditions which need to be ruled out. Lou xx
There are many similarities in symptoms with thyroid problems, ME, MS, too many to go into really. We are not medically trained on the forum so cant give definite answers to this. Many of us have several conditions along with Fibromyalgia and it is vital that you see your GP and get proper diagnosis, you need answers xx
Your symptoms are similar to fibromyalgia. Except depression is not a recognised symptom of the condition. It is something that fibro sufferers can experience in the same way that any one having to live with chronic illness can, but it isn't required for a diagnosis.
Lou is right, you do need to see your GP again. Fibro is one of those conditions that currently requires a diagnosis of exclusion which basically means all other things have to be ruled out first before fibro can be diagnosed as there is not yet a specific test. Although science is making progress in that respect but nothing is yet generally available.
Fibro is also a condition that has so many symptoms it can mean there are lots of other possible diagnoses that could fit, including primary depression bizarrely. So again these conditions need to be ruled out first.
If your current GP is not well versed in diagnosing fibro, do you maybe have another GP at your practice that you could see. Or alternatively can you ask your GP to refer you to a specialist such as a rheumatologist who should be able to go through the process of diagnosing fibro.
Good luck, I hope you get the answers you need. Margaret. xxx
Hello, I am wondering if what your doctor meant by "hurts to be touched" is the specific 18 tender points test which can be used to diagnose fibromyalgia. Did she apply pressure to certain parts of your body (e.g. shoulders, neck)? I would suggest that you arrange to see her again and if she is not familiar with the tender points test, ask for a referral to a Rheumatologist.
Has your doctor carried out any other tests? E.g. blood tests. Tiredness could maybe result from anaemia, vitamin D deficiency, low thyroid.
A lot of your symptoms, IBS, tiredness, muscle pain, numbness (I have all these) do relate to fibromyalgia, but your doctor should really check out other conditions first. Xxx
Thank you for your reply. She did not do the 18 point test. I do have an underactive thyroid. She did suggest vitamin D tablets and I have taken them. A different doctor gave me the Citalopram. It has been great for depression.
Ah, there is a bit of cross over there with your list of symptoms and your underactive thyroid. By which I mean some of them could relate to that issue.
Definitely suggest you need to get more tests done to rule out all possibilities. xxx
Thank you for your reply. I am on a low dose thyroxine and my last tests showed me to be in the middle now, not high and not low. I thought my symptoms were to do with my thyroid until I started to learn about Fibromyalgia
Hi Hidden and welcome to the forum, I'm sure you will love it as we all do. The answer to your question is yes they are symptoms of Fibromyalgia but their are many other things to be ruled out before a diagnosis of Fibro is given. I would be inclined to ask the doctor to refer you to a Rhuematologist at the hospital, especially as you are experiencing numbness.
Please go check out the main site, where you will find lots of information on Fibro and some other useful links.
I look forward to chatting with you & do keep us informed
Thank you for your reply. I have had some tests done and assume they have looked at all other possible causes. I would like to know what other conditions it could be as I like to have some know,edge when I go to see the doctor as they only have 10 minutes to decide what to do.
Have you been to a Rhuematologist at the hospital ?. This is the next step, after blood tests.
Symptoms similar to fibromyalgia & sometimes misdiagnosed are.
Lupus
Rhuematoid Arthritis
ME/CFS
Hypothyroidism
Multiple Sclerosis
Polymyagia Rhuematica
Depression
You would probably have been blood tested for most of these.
If all these have been ruled out, they would look more into seeing if you have Fibro & this is most commonly diagnosed by a Rhuematologist, who would check the 18 tender spots on your body and will be able to tell by your reaction. It's very painful.
I hope this helps a little, but do go look at the link I have given you because you will find lots of information there.
Hmm, sounds like your doc has a narrow view of fibro. Your symtoms do sound like fibro, but as the others said, you need to get other stuff ruled out. You may want to try another doctor? Xx
I was experiencing random muscle and joint pains through out my body and most noticeably in my fingers. It had been going on for a number of years and I was just chalking it up to "another" weird menopause symptom. I recently went to see my gp and she suggested I quit using sweetener. She said Aspartame has been known to cause similar symptoms and maybe that was what I was reacting to. I was using Splenda, which doesn't contain Aspartame (I don't believe) but I stopped ingesting all artificial sweeteners. After a couple weeks all the weird pains are gone. Since this has worked for me I wanted to put it out there for other people to try. I feel so much better.
I was only using maybe two packets a day so I would never have thought of those tiny amounts capable of causing me any issues. I don't drink diet drinks so I think for the most part it was my morning coffee sweetener and it might have built up over time.
That's my story and I'm sticking to it. : ) Hopefully it is helpful to others.
Thank you for your reply. It is interesting to hear your discovery. I do not use sweetners but am open to any suggestions. After 10 years of terrible itching found I was allergic to polyester. ANYTHING can be responsible.
Have your B12 levels been tested? The numbness in your feet and lower legs could suggest MS, and some of the other things you wrote are also symptoms of MS. However very low, prolonged levels of vitamin B12 can cause the same symptoms. There are definitive tests for both of these.
My friend has recently been diagnosed so I just have an awareness of it.
Unfortunately we cannot diagnose you here, but we can point you in the right direction looking for answers.
It can take many years to get a definitive diagnosis of Fibromyalgia. As our forum friends have already said so many other conditions need to be ruled out first, one of the main ones being Lupus and MS.
My personal advice to you would be to ask your GP for a referral to see a Rheumatologist.
If you take a look at our mother site you will find a list of common Fibro symptoms which you may find of interest fmauk.org
Welcome to the forum and it is wonderful to make your acquaintance. I am so genuinely sorry to read that you are suffering and struggling in this way and I sincerely hope that you can find the answers that you are looking for.
I can see that you have been given some wonderful replies to your post so I will simply and sincerely wish you all the best of luck with getting a diagnosis one way or the other? Please take care of yourself.
Ask for your B12 levels and VitD to be checked. Both of these will cause pain if low, and low B12 can cause extreme tiredness , numbness, and digestive issues. So worth getting them tested, but do get a copy of the results and post them on here for more advice. Anything under 500 for B12 is low, in spite of what the doctors might say!
Once you start to supplement these, any future test results will be skewed. So if you want to try and get a blood test for B12 first that would be best. Ask for ferritin and folate to be done as they all work together.
I haven't been online for a few months. so forgive me if you already have your answer. I don't know where you live, when I FINALLY got my diagnosis I was living in Wales at the time. I was lucky enough that my lovely G.P. had heard of a specialist who was in Bath and it turned out that it was his 'baby', he was a wonderful consultant. His name is DR Bhalla and he was working at that time. more than 20 years ago. in Bath Mineral Hospital. If you are still having problems with the diagnosis I truly hope he's still there. He's my hero! Although, as he told me at the time, he could diagnose but at the same time, no cure. I know I was just so thankful that I, at last after 6 years of nearly tearing my hair out with frustration. I finally got my answer. he admitted me to the hospital and I had wonderful treatment with hydrotherapy and several different drugs,
Hoping I haven't bored everyone with my lengthy reply.
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