is this fibro?!

[CaptainHowdy]

Hi everyone. I’ve ended up here in my 4 month search to try and find out what is wrong with me. I would greatly appreciate your advice! Doctors have tried to palm it off as anxiety and make me feel like a hypochondriac but there’s something wrong and I can’t figure out what it is. They want me to try 10mg amytriptiline but I don’t know if that’s a good idea.

MY SYMPTOMS

🤢 Severe nausea that lasts around 2 weeks. No vomiting. I can barely eat as feel too sick and I’m very weak.

👤 Ache in the back of the neck. A sensation on my scalp like someone has pulled my hair really hard, but only at the base of the skull.

💩 Loose bowels

🛌 Fatigue

I can deal with all the other symptoms but the nausea is really something else, it’s unbearable. This has happened to me 4 times since May and I can’t cope with this happening often. I’ve had dark thoughts at the worst of it because I’ve never felt so ill. I tried to make myself sick for relief but I couldn’t. My ears are fine and I’m not dizzy with the nausea.

In general (between these episodes) I constantly feel weak and like I need to sit down soon after standing. I get lightheaded. I have brain fog and zero energy. I’ve been like that for years.

Tests so far:

* Endoscopy - clear

* MRI of head & neck - clear

* Full blood count - clear

* Stool test for cryptosporidium & ova - clear

* Blood pressure - fine

Things I’ve tried for the nausea (none work):

* Ginger

* Sea bands

* Reliefband (electrical stimulation)

* Ondansetron

* Cyclizine

* Prochlorperazine

* Gaviscon

* Radical change of diet (very bland/basic)

* Mindful breathing

* Yoga

* Meditation

I also wondered if it could be hormone related but it doesn’t happen at the same stage of my cycle 🤷🏻‍♀️ I’m 35 with regular periods and no sign of perimenopause.

I would really really appreciate any advice! Healthcare here is abysmal at the moment so I’m doing my own detective work.

[PrettyinPink3436]

Hi. I have lived with fibromyalgia for 17 years. The head rheumatologist at Mayo Clinic (17 years ago) said that I have the worst case of fibro he had ever seen. I’m definitely not a health care professional but I probably know more about fibromyalgia than some doctors. Here are my first thoughts based on what you posted (again, not a doctor - just my experiences…) It doesn’t sound like fibromyalgia to me based mostly on the two following factors:

** FM comes with a lot of widespread pain EVERYWHERE. I understand the scalp thing but if it were fm you would have probably first mentioned all of the pain felt in nearly every cell of your body (of course some people have more intense pain than others but believe me, it would have reared its ugly head by now more than likely)

** Muscle spasms are a nightmare. That will definitely come with fibromyalgia

“Foggy head” and fatigue are definitely symptoms but those could be triggered by something else. There are no tests that prove or disprove you have FM. There are (I believe 18 is the correct number) “trigger points “ on your body that a skilled doctor can press with his fingers which if you have fibromyalgia will make you jump out of your skin from pain and/or discomfort and tenderness. You don’t have to necessarily respond to all 18 points in order to still have fm but it gives the Dr something to go on. Btw, if you don’t have fm, the trigger points won’t feel anything out of the ordinary.

It took me over a year to finally be properly diagnosed. I ended up going to Mayo Clinic who finally got to the bottom of the whole mess.

One more thing…I don’t think nausea would be such a huge issue with fibromyalgia

I hope I didn’t overdo my comments. I just want to help if I can.

Good luck to you and if you have any questions I’ll answer them as best as I can