I have been told by my gp that fibro is all in the mind 'and i need to go and see a mental health doctor 'Really worried am i going mad ?

[Jolie]

................

[chicme]

i feel the same i cant do this anymore you make sure you ask for help xx

[lynnecw]

If that is the case theres an awful lot of us on here that are going mad with you.

Find another GP - one that believes you, I have finally found one after seeing almost every other doctor in the practice.

[Hidden in reply to lynnecw]

I agree wity Lynne, how can we all possibly be imagining this??? Have we started some sort of brain washing cult. I, too would change my GP if I were you xx

[Jolie]

seen all the doctors in the practice now 'all told me to pull myself together .Cant register with another doctor have tried but they won't take me on !They have told me that if go into a mental health unit they will make me well 'Looks like thats what I will have to do ''Have told me other people with fibro have got well again 'once they admit its all in the mind ?

[Hidden in reply to Jolie]

Interesting take on fibro. So while neurologists and rheumatologists struggle to treat fibro patients, while some enlightened doctors are busy doing research into the causes and possible cures for the illness, the illness which is recognised by WHO, your GP has got the answer all along - how very clever of him! I'm sure the overworked staff at the mental hospital will be delighted to be overrun with fibro sufferers (who they can't help) while there are so many people suffering from mental illness who would really benefit from the bed-space! He's clearly a misunderstood genius, .... NOT!

I do hope you soon find someone who is prepared to listen, and offer you real help.

xx

[ladymoth]

Don't let your GP get away with this. Find another doctor, and make a fuss until you get a result.

It saddens me that we pay doctor's salaries through our taxes, and they get away with talking down to their patients.

Politely insist on a rheumatology referral, and take it from there. Don't ever let doctors put you down - you wouldn't do it to them, so why should they do it to you?

Best wishes and good luck with this journey! Moffy xxxx

[Hidden in reply to ladymoth]

Well said Moffy, this is the right thing to do. You are entitled to be seen and heard by a Doctor. Choose another practice and hopefully the GP will be much better than your current one. Ask for a referral to a Rheumatologist who will examine you and help you with the correct treatment and medications.

You have rights, please don't leave the situation as it is, it isn't acceptable nor correct.

Wishing you all the very best, please let us know how you get on. We are always here for you and will do all we can to help and support you the best we can.

(((hug))) xxx

Libs

[Jolie]

Have seen a rheumato doc and he told me the is no treatment for fibro ''and cant make a fuss as they have told me they will remove me from gp list' I will then be without a doctor so have to tread carefully .I am going to go down the mental health route and see if they can make me well 'will be interesting if nothing else ! Thank you all for the advice !

[Ozzygirl64]

Okay, maybe all of us fibromites need to register with your P, I think not, what a load of crock. Fibro is not all in the mind and you are certainly not mad. I would be telling your GP to get online and research it because he is the one needing to go into a mental health unit. Find another GP willing to take you on and I wish you well xxxxx

[Extremelygrumpy]

Nobody who has fibro could possibly imagine it why would you imagine something so painful debilitating and life changing... Having fibro isn't in your mind, it isn't even really living, it's just existing between bearable pain and unbearable pain

VG x

[VonnyM]

I know its not easy, but you need to change your gp for a more sympathetic one, one who will look into fibromyalgia/cfs, one that believes you. We struggle with believing this horrible condition ourselves we don't want some gp in on the doubting act as well.

[kellydavies9]

omfg what is ur gp playing at, i was diagnosed by a reamatologist ova 7 yrs ago hun and yes there is treatment for it, they can give u amitriptalyine to help with chronic pay managment and then there r a number of different pain killers they can give u to go along with that. ffs every doctor ive seen has never ever tried to tell me its all in my head, and ive been in a mental health ward and trust me they wud laugh at ur doctor if he tried to put u in one lol. u need to get a new doctor and make a formal complaint about ur doctors surgery

[hamble99b]

for something that is all in YOUR mind Jolie, Boots have set up several helpful web pages but none mention you! oh dear, maybe your gp and rheumy are wrong? hmmmm let me think. -

what arrogance! they make my blood boil!

You are entitled to an nhs dr and you might think about reporting them after you have registered with another practice.

you don't say the area where you live, but there are fibro support groups listed n the fibro action website, maybe someone in your area could reccomend a gp or rheumy. I'm in the norh west if that's near.

keep in touch,

sandra

webmd.boots.com/pain-manage...

[bbstport]

sorry to hear about your situation. if your GP is right then my GP, Rheumatologist, pain management consultant and physio are all wrong - you need a new GP who will understand you and treat your condition. i hope you can get a new GP soon and a referal to a Rheumi.

love to hear your update

Belinda

I have also read the link to Boots this is good information

[sue57]

Maybe we should all admit ourselves into mental health care!! OMG, wouldn't that be fun!! Maybe they'd take notice of us fibromites then eh?? XX

[tulips123]

Doctors like this make me so angry! I think they are in the wrong profession because clearly compassion is a concept they just dont get. More to the point, he doesn't care enough to do some research so how on earth can he confidently just tell you that when he clearly doesn't actually know anything about it. We know the info. is out there, he's just too lazy to go check on it!

[pondminstrel]

hi,it really amazes me that your doctor,and it would seem a lot of other docs on here dont reconise fibro!... as fibromyalgia means...fibro...muscle/tissue...and myalgia means pain!! so i cant see how they can say it doesnt exsist...and i see a mental health nurse so please dont worrynabout it,mine has changed my medication so they do more than just listen pet...xxx

[mollyanna]

I was treat much the same way in the late 1980s and early 1990s Told I was menopausal and I would be better when I was 50 .still waiting to be better, and only got a diagnosis June this year,and this was down to the practice getting a new lady GP.I had gone to see her about a sore throat .she then asked is there anything else you would like to ask me about. unheard of for a GP to offer anything .she then said come back in two weeks, at that appointment she again asked anything else I can help you with.and of course I had .She asked why haven't you been about these things before and my answer was because no body listens, and she has and although there is no cure it is good to have a name for what we have to endure.

.

[fairycazzie]

not read all the posts but it is far from in the mind due to for one why would thousands have all the same symptoms we have no contact with one another nor do we know each other out there and we present symptoms just as one does with a really bad migraine or a stomache upset..

i say imagine that broken leg that is visibile and you get all the sympathy , now imagine the pain inside all over but yet you can not see and it does not go away. something has to kind of trigger this illness.

i do not want to compare illnesses as it is not so the same at all.

But we all have a cancer with in us and some are so unlucky to get it as it comes from nowhere,

now we present symptoms like MS (well i have) and never knew what it was as getting on with life as normal and have an operation and all of a sudden one after another things happen which led Dr's to think possible fibro and then continues down line of Rheumo but i do have many other things from MRI proof and then i get another condition given which when born with it , to me is not possible to be the answer at all.

We suffer like any other human being with head problems or Arthritis but its not seen, so why have medication that is given to epilepsy and antiseizure patients to fibro patients, because it is the brain sending signals to different parts of the body unpredictably that is uncontrolable by us.

They would not give us such medication or pain injections if it was a false illness, why would anyone want to be in such pain and pretend???

get another Dr look up in your area google other surgeries or google Fibro specialists on NHS .

Thjere is more i want to explain but dont know how to because my brain cannot think properly anymore to do so , but the comments above are very good.

Ok Dr have you had a migraine?? Dr yes.... reply well its all in your HEAD!!!! its not there your faking it.. they dont mean it like this its because the brain is very sensitive its like a computer with all the information and if something goes wrong it plays up and thats whats happening .

huggs to you xxx caroline (probably made no sense haha) xx

[hamble99b in reply to fairycazzie]

a lot of sense well put caroline

[durga]

the mind is part of the body, so your GP is an ignorant uncaring unqualified bastard. Mine is just as bad, but i don't want their drugs anyway, they don't work much and cause side effects and are addictive. I can not change my GP as i live in a small rural village in wales and i am not eligable to change, so i just live with it. It only flares up badly every so often, so usually only bareable pain, but it does get me down. I also have a mechanical injury to my lower back, which constantly hurts, but i have IBS and drugs will make that worse, so i avoid them. I really feel angry towards my GP, and hope he gets it too, see how he likes being told his mad

[Ebony]

It's terrible to hea about these uncaring doctors, the first one i saw said I was just overweight but when I went back I saw a different GP and he was great and although I have moved twice and had to change GP I have not had problems with them and me having FMS.

There is no cure for FMS so there is no point in looking for one, to find a cure they need to find the cause and that is along way off. I have been told that I was probably born with FMS which does make alot of sense to me. I live my life as best as I can with this condition, i make the most of my good days and just put up with the bad days !!!!!

[kat8615]

your poor doctor! He obviously needs some mental health help!

[Tortie]

IMy nerologist told me that Fibromyalgia is what GPs tell their patients when they have run out of other options & can't find anything specific wrong.

[loopyloo1]

that GP is an idiot. Of course there is an element of mental illness, constantly being in pain and feeling exhausted all the time will undoubtedly promote poor mental health but this is not the cause of fibro it is because of the fibro.

Doctors want to know what causes fibro and related problems because it can help them treat it.

I have hypermobility syndrome, always been 'double jointed' and since an illness in 2009 and a cessation of exercise my fibro symptoms started, so my GP has linked it...the hypermobility becoming symptomatic has caused the fibro and chronic fatigue. im not a doctor but i do take control of my health and have abandoned medical doctors and am having myfascial release therapy ( recommended on this site), and osteopathy to treat the whole body. I seem to have it under control although i am still exhausted and can only work full time but have no social life to speak of as im in bed at 10 every night...but its a start.

The flare ups are further apart and less intrusive. As for my mental health, im still a bit down sometimes but have bought a SAD lamp for the dark mornings and talk myself out of negative thoughts. I do deep breathing at night in bed, slow my heartrate by controlling my breathing and concentrate on it..this makes me sleep, although not always so easily.

this works for me (mostly) this is a personal journey but i believe everyone can find their own way,

hugs to you

lucy xxx

[NordicNavajo]

If in doubt- blame the human mind! Boy has it got alot to answer for. Keep looking at GP's and you will one dat find the right one. In the meantime, (I have had to do this) play the GP at their own game and go seek mental health teams help. Some of what they can offer may help as sometimes they run pain clinics or offer CBT which can help with how your mind copes with the pain. Turn it on its head, think outta the box and go to the mental health folk for help. Ultimately if you present them with your fibro symptoms, the reality of it is they will have to say sooner or later that the remedy is not with them and get them to WRITE that back to your surgery. I did this and it helped me.

Good luck and warm thoughts NN

[shellf]

I used to have a doctor who was an Arab doctor,he didn't believe in fibro, when I asked him could I have it he said that I didn't want to be labeled with such a illness because no one would take me seriously,people with fibro are cuckoo! I suffered for long enough with no answers from that doctor so I changed to an English gp and she is much better,she diagnossed me and gave me meds to help, which arnt anti depressants,they are neuro tabs and help me loads. Fibro is mild damage to the brain by the nervous system but that does not make us all mad. Get a go who believes in the condition,not one that just believes in blood results. X

[panda87]

I had a similar experience with my previous GP surgery and all of the doctors were insistent that I had depression which was causing my back pain. While in the process of moving house, I went to an osteopath who advised me that it was highly likely that I had fibro. When I went to a new GP, I advised him of what my osteopath had said and he immediately began investigating my condition. After two years of various tests and consultants I finally got diagnosed in November.

My advice is go to see an osteopath and ask that they contact your GP on your behalf about your condition, it might help to have a professional on your side.

Good luck and big hugs x x

[Hidden]

I have also had the same problems. Was sent to a Fibro/ME clinic where this professor told me it was all in my head/depression. That i needed to pull myself together and stop being mardy. And to exercise 3 times a week(as you know thats impossible) and that he would refer me to the mental health team. I went for the assessment and told i was definatly not depressed but they would offer me cognative behavioural therapy. That was in December. I can't have the CBT for 8 months plus cus there is a waiting list. Yep! must be all us fibro people waiting for treatment

[michphil]

Mad the doctors are the mad ones I have suffered with this for 10 years so it can't be in my head pain, tiredness, depression, forget fullness , migraine if it was in my head my hubby would have put me in the mental unit years ago. Where are these doctors trained but I know it is hard to make people understand what we go through everyday but the doctors should have more understanding. It is about time the doctors had a refresher on this type of illness and see how it makes us disabled, and everything else that comes with it . These doctors should be sent to a hotel full of us suffers and made to listen to us mentally ill people talk about our lives then they may understand and believe that we are actually ill not mentally insane .Get a new doctor some one has to take you seriously and they can not refuse you . Now adays you can pick where you want to be seen and it doesn't matter if it is in the next town Good luck xx

[electricjaws]

GET AWAY FROM THIS STUPID G.P AS FAST AS YOUR LEGS WILL CARRY YOU!! if they say it is all in your head(yes most of us will be able to relate to this) thankfully there are some g.ps out there that do believe so try to find a g.p that believes in it, there may even be another one at your practice that does, but don't think it is you imaging it,you aren't . i mean if you were to imagine something surely we could alL come up with something like imagining we won the lottery, or imagining george clooney lives in our spare bedroom ,!!NO ONE WOULD WANT TO IMAGINE FIBRO, SO DOCTORS NEED TO GET REAL AND STOP STICKING THEIR HEAD IN THE SAND AND TRY TO HELP.. if there is another practice in you area ,you could make a appoint to see the head of the practice and say that you are looking for a g.p who believes in fibro, you can do this without changing practices straight away,it is just like getting a second opinion, the trouble with some doctors is they want a easy life,they just want to hand out a few pills then tell you to go home and you'll be fine in a week or so, if it is more compilcated than that i think some doctors are lazy and just say it is in your head,so you go away and don't go back ,which in turn saves them any work, that said not all docs want the easy life and big wage packet and actually do care about your well being ,i know it is a bit needle in a haystack,but there are some good ones out there good luck and once you have found the right one you will feel a lot happier ,tell you what if everyone with fibro is mad, going on statistics there are thousands of us worldwide still roaming the earth en- masse, perhaps we could take over the world like" planet of the apes" and torture all the non believers!!!! don't listen to all the docs say they are just people ,not gods..

[lovemydog]

My husband has recently started to get extreme pains in his muscles in his arms and calves, and pains in his hands and tops of his feet. I looks all this up and have come to diagnose that he must have Fibromalgia. It is really getting him down. He has had a scan on his liver, liver fine, an xray on his back, back fine. He is now waiting to see our GP to tell her we think it could be Fibromalgia, she is very understanding so we hope she can help. Has anyone tried Miaxial