I am a newby here but had fibro for 20 years and seen different forms it takes.
I recently started taking magnesium excel (strong) because I could never find the same fibro tender points at anyone time in my back and because of disk degeneration. Within days all other muscular pain disappeared, especially in my lower back which I thought was the worst area, and I now have a clear pattern of my Fibromyalgia pain. Plus one muscle related to my worst disc is still there.
The nerve pain many of you have described as burning, stinging and I used to say like dry ice being rubbed on me, is actually coming from tissue in the hip area. I cannot walk very far as I have about 7 inches wide in area of these nerves from my pelvis to just above the knee. Now I am getting a stabbing knife like pain regularly.
The fibro area spreads from my hip across the top to other side where nerves are not as bad. It is at this point that my doctor said we should try a cortisone injection. Now this is against any other advice but my physio (went to her after I hadn't been to hydro for a long time} showed me the area and it is definitely one that could be a source and it seems full of fluid. I wish I had a photo of that part of the body. Will try and get one..
I am not keen on cortisone because of the long tem effects but it ruined my recent holiday and I can't see it getting better.
Anyone had cortisone? I will let you know how it goes. Strong magnesium does nothing for fibro pain but it was remarkable how it gave me a clear "view" of my fibro pain. In another powdered form it contains a lot more ingredients inc. zinc and and I used to take this years ago for relief but it wasn't successful. Others say it is good.
On my recent holiday I also got pain down my arms and I immediately thought heart attack. But just had to brush my arm at tender point and had extreme pain coming from this area.
Cheers
May 2017 be more positive. I am not from UK but interested in the proactive approach being taken.
Written by
oldsouls
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I am so genuinely sorry to read that you are feeling worse and I sincerely hope that you can find some relief and resolution to your pain issues. I have pasted you a link below to our mother site, FMA UK which hosts loads of useful Fibro information:
You mentioned some interesting symptoms .I too have that fullness in my right leg below the hip.going down to my knee fullness / swelling seems like fluid.my Dr said muscle and tissue .I've had it for at least 10 years but only diagnosed 2 years ago ..I've learned so much from this site and I'm sure others will join in to welcome you .
There is a mother site that you can link into and get a lot of information.perhaps one of our administrators can give you the website (sorry don't know it of hand).once again welcome aboard .I'm not from the UK I'm from Canada, but I have meet an array of supportive fibro friends from the UK and abroad on this site and I'm sure you will as well.
Thank you for your welcome. The leg pain is actually like nerve pain not a "fullness". To add a bit more it is numb and has been for a few years and the pain wasn't that bad. I could cope.The joint seems like it has fluid around it. Many of the contributors have described this numbness, stinging and similar.
It is always very hard to try and fit your symptons in with everyone else's especially in the beginning as tiredness like chronic fatigue is the first indication. We each have different pain and hard to figure out medication from another country.
So it is good to find like minded people. I actually attended a workshop with was enlightening but they didn't know much then. I read a great article written recently I will share when I can. I gave it to my doctor as they have so many things to keep updated on Fibro is low priority.
Yes correct it is nerve pain .The fullness I described i/ full of fluid is actually what I meant .it's been swollen for quite some time as it flares up or is worse days than others ..it can be quite debilitating to walk even on a good day it's difficult and very painful tight and feels like it full of fluid .and yes is numb . I hope I explained myself a bit better this go round.My Dr here is very educated on fibro and I'm blessed for that I find the physio helps as well.I'm looking forward to your post of the article when you have time.
Congratulations oldsoul, you have found you are deficient on magnesium not only that but you are taking a few BIOAVAILABLE forms of magnesium, and not just the usual less than unless Magnesium Oxide which is the form that sits in abundance on the shop shelves. The only type of magnesium worse than Magnesium Oxide is Magnesium Sulphate (Epsom Salts) with the proviso that this form is fine for adding to the bath,, not taking,,!
The most effective magnesium on the list is the Magnesium Glycinate this form is the most bioavailable there is, it is also expensive.
Effective Magnesium supplementation will not cure Fibromyalgia,,,, if however you are deficient in Magnesiun like most of the population today it will be causing problems in the body. Muscles cannot relax without magnesium being available. Muscle that cannot relax is very uncomfortable.
Magnesium is a co-factor in over 300 functions in the body regulating many kinds of biochemical reactions and must be got through the diet.
It is thought by many nutritionists that upto 90% of the population are very deficient in Magnesium.
Magnesium deficiency is a health problem of first cause. Magnesium is a nutritional element that is dangerously low today. Because of its essential role as a foundational building block of cell physiology, we have a huge health problem that our system of medicine is dragging its feet to address. Populations in the first world are dangerously deficient and are actually starving for Magnesium.
First symptoms of deficiency can be subtle – as most magnesium is stored in the tissues, leg cramps, foot pain, or muscle 'twitches' can be the first sign. Other early signs of deficiency can include loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, fatigue, and weakness. As magnesium deficiency worsens, numbness, tingling, seizures, personality changes, abnormal heart rhythms, and coronary spasms can occur.Magnesium deficiency can affect virtually every organ system of the body. With regard to skeletal muscle, one may experience twitches, cramps, muscle tension, muscle soreness, including back aches, neck pain, tension headaches and jaw joint (or TMJ) dysfunction.
Also, one may experience chest tightness or a peculiar sensation that he can't take a deep breath. Sometimes a person may sigh a lot
Symptoms involving impaired contraction of smooth muscles include constipation; urinary spasms; menstrual cramps; difficulty swallowing or a lump in the throat-especially provoked by eating sugar; photophobia, especially difficulty adjusting to oncoming bright headlights in the absence of eye disease; and loud noise sensitivity from stapedius muscle tension in the ear.
The central nervous system is markedly affected. Symptoms include insomnia, anxiety, hyperactivity and restlessness with constant movement, panic attacks, agoraphobia, and premenstrual irritability. Magnesium deficiency symptoms involving the peripheral nervous system include numbness, tingling, and other abnormal sensations, such as zips, zaps and vibratory sensations.
Symptoms or signs of the cardiovascular system include palpitations, heart arrhythmias, and angina due to spasms of the coronary arteries, high blood pressure and mitral valve prolapse. Be aware that not all of the symptoms need to be present to presume magnesium deficiency; but, many of them often occur together. For example, people with mitral valve prolapse frequently have palpitations, anxiety, panic attacks and premenstrual symptoms. People with magnesium deficiency often seem to be "uptight." Other general symptoms can include a salt craving, both carbohydrate craving and carbohydrate intolerance, especially of chocolate, and breast tenderness.
Magnesium is needed by every cell in the body including those of the brain. It is one of the most important minerals when considering supplementation because of its vital role in hundreds of enzyme systems and functions related to reactions in cell metabolism, as well as being essential for the synthesis of proteins, for the utilization of fats and carbohydrates. Magnesium is needed not only for the production of specific detoxification enzymes but is also important for energy production related to cell detoxification. A magnesium deficiency can affect virtually every system of the body.
I suggest everyone with fibro look to Magnesium before anything else.
I recommend eating lots of Magnesium rich foods daily, Lightly steamed spinach is my favourite.
I also supplement Magnesium as Magnesium Citrate Powder.
It can be got cheaply on an online auction site.
I recommend the powder over capsules as there is very little in the caps and they are expensive.
I know people think that 1000mg sounds like something really great but it is a marketing ploy.
Write it as 100,000ug and it looks like they are stuffing a lot more into those little capsules but it is still only 1000mg or a mere 1gm.
I like Magnesium Citrate as it is a nice clean form that is well tolerated and a bit more bio available than most of the common ones found,, including some amino acid chelated forms of Magnesium and it is still reasonably priced.
I use 1/3 tsp 3 times a day, breakfast, evening and before bed.
Just stir it in a half glass of water and drink,, not much taste to it.
The before bed is essential and you will rest more easily.
All Magnesium can soften the stool, I suggest when you first start using it only use about 1/4 tsp once or twice a day and step it up.
If you get a soft stool just cut back a bit, you will soon know how much is right for you.
It works rapidly you will not have to take it for months to see results,, but I say take it regular not just when you get sore or have a cramp in the middle of the night, see it not as a medication but a nutrient that is deficient in the diet!
For anyone taking medications to reduce or stop stomach acidity they will most likely have difficulty absorbing magnum via the digestive tract and I would recommend as many epsom salt baths as they can manage but dermal absorption really is a secondary and inferior way of getting magnesium into the body.
Sorry for the long post but I felt it necessary to try and explain a few of the issues.
I hope you find the information of benefit to your health and symptoms.
For those wanting to get it from diet along I would suggest eating 100 to 200 gms of lightly steamed spinach every day as a staple.
Wow Ray, you really believe in magnesium. Mine is an Australian organic brand and it contains all of the first types of magnesium. You must know it as the first breakdown is the one I am taking and it is Organic.. Total 200mg each twice a day to start with and whenever I feel I need the extra dose. Yes you can get it in powder form and it was recommended but I thought I might forget and wanted to take it away with me. I haven't been able to eat spinach or any rich green vegies for 5 years as I am on Warfarin, a blood thinner. I have had many of the ailments you describe above.
But it hasn't really helped Fibromyalgia pain in my back, as you note, but removed all the other associated muscle pain or even referred pain I was getting, so I know the source associated with my Fibro pain. I still take it twice a day. I am also at the tail end of anxiety with palpitations after a period of depression.
However can you comment on this point below please as you have never really mentioned desired amount except what you take but not the overall amount?
<I know people think that 1000mg sounds like something really great but it is a marketing ploy.
Write it as 100,000ug and it looks like they are stuffing a lot more into those little capsules but it is still only 1000mg or a mere 1gm.
>
This sounds as though 200mg twice a day is not enough. I would be interested to hear more?
It is not that I believe in Magnesium I believe in Nutrition.
Nutrition is necessary health and sadly much underestimated by those who think of themselves as the Dr.
I say do not become overly involved in the numbers, you are taking a good form of magnesium that is BIOAVAILABLE,, I consider this to be the way forward.
I also think consistency is more important than total amount.
Watch you are not being to ridged about avoiding greens,,,, some people on Warfarin get the idea that they cannot eat greens in an attempt to avoid vitamin K. Vitimain K is necessary.
If you are consistent in the amount and type of greens you are eating on a weekly basis it should not be a problem as long as you communicate this well with the person that monitors your blood.
Yes I tried to be consistent with the Vit K greens but I couldn't do it. I do tell my doctor when I have more than two serves a week and my INR is always way up. I love spinach but I do use Asian greens and these affect my INR.
I know someone who takes broccoli every day to maintain a consistency as it loves it and it works for him. Also my blood goes up when using anti-inflamatory cream. I eventually had to use it for a twisted ankle in the last couple of days but have an INR coming UP.
I try and achieve a balanced low GI diet. But my INR is a major concern with my doctor due to past stroke.
Oldsoul, it sounds like you are paying a lot of attention to diet anyway.
Have you considered starting to do your own fermented veg,,,, and eat a bit of it everyday. My thoughts are Intestinal Flora / Micro-biome, it would also assist in enabling your own body to produce it's own K2 which should not be a problem.
I would also consider keeping phytates low as they do effect the uptake of minerals. As your watching you GI foods it would not be hard.
I consider wheat unfit for human consumption the gluten is totally indigestible and puts your immune system on full alert.
No dont know what the foods are you mentioned. I really don't have time for anything else. But I was off wheat for years as it comes up as a big allergy and I got the injections over 6 months and lasted 15 years..
I really want to go back to this but a bit harder to arrange.
Fermented Veg is veg that you cut soak and store in air tight containers with friendly bacterial cultures. The friendly bacteria break down some of the food and multiply,,, great nutritionally and keeps the gut healthy. An abundance of Healthy gut bacteria can create Vitamin K2 on it's own, this is one of the vitamin K's
Separate thing
Gluten is totally indigestible!
The immune system starts attacking gluten when you eat it ,,, so the immune system sees it not as food but as a foreign body that has to be killed. Over Stimulated Immune System!
I think it better to avoid Gluten.
This is one of the reasons the Keto diet has become popular as people start to realise the problems many food are causing.
Google Dr Tom O'Bryan on utube and watch a few of his interviews.
The fact is that auto-immune disorders are now spiralling out of control and many of the brave who refuse to be kept in place by drug companies Dr's are getting together and asking WHY?
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