Research and Evidence based article is taken from Dr.Kevin Hackshaw MD
What are the most severe symptoms of fibromyalgia and how you can describe a fibromyalgia flare up? This is the most comprehensive guide on "How to recover from Fibromyalgia flare up", fibromyalgia flare up diet and what helps fibromyalgia flare ups.
Contents
You are making scrambled eggs on a fine Summer morning. Everything seems to be going fine but suddenly you feel this excruciating pain with stiffness on your Back. Then there is a possibility you are suffering from a fibromyalgia flare up. This article how to recover from Fibromyalgia flare up is research and evidence-based.
The Fibromyalg disorder affects an estimated 10 million people in the U.S. and an estimated 3-6% of the world population. While it is most prevalent in women -75-90 percent of the people who have FM are women. Fibromyalgia affects about 4 million US adults, about 2% of the adult population. Although fibromyalgia affects both men and women, approximately 90 percent of fibromyalgia sufferers are female.
"My pain does me no good unless I transform it into something that is. So I hope people watching it who do struggle with chronic pain know that they're not alone. It's freeing for me… and I want people that struggle with it to hear me," Gaga said.
"I have fibromyalgia pain in this arm, and the only thing that offers any relief is marijuana," Morgan Freeman said.
He revealed in 2012 interview with Esquire that he continues to experience nerve pain and now lives with fibromyalgia.
Have you been experiencing stabbing pain in muscles and bone of different parts of your body? Are they excruciating sometimes? Have you tried out some pain killers yet failed to recover from it completely?
If you affirm the above queries, then your fibromyalgia has flared up already.
Fibromyalgia flare-up may have been running in your physic system for a long time without you being unaware of it.
Let's take you through this article to know more about the fibromyalgia flare up and how to recover from it.
Fibromyalgia is a chronic musculoskeletal pain while its flare-up is the temporary increase stage of the condition where the victim goes through a series of agonizing achiness in the body.
In fibromyalgia flare-up condition, a person may suffer from the intensity of pain in bones and muscles for a few days or it may last up to a few weeks in some cases.
A person who has fibromyalgia may be prone to fibromyalgia flare-up under stressful condition. To some people, it may surge without any warning.
If you know about the possible triggers due to which fibromyalgia condition gets worse, it may be easier for you to nurse your pain.
Without knowing specifically about the triggers or causes, you may end up deteriorate your condition.
It's important to be careful since even doctors or physicians sometimes find it hard to diagnose and pin-point the cause of such pain.
Potential fibromyalgia flare-up triggers may be as follows:
It is undeniable that healthy and nutrient diet plays a pivotal role in keeping our muscle and bone well.
According to research, a vegetarian diet is beneficial for fibromyalgia flare-up. It keeps your fibromyalgia condition in check while providing your body with fiber, amino acid, minerals, and vitamins.
Below are some of the beneficial food types for fibromyalgia flare-up:fibromyalgia flare up diet list
The amino acid is a major and significant component in building human muscles and cells. Those who intake diet of low amino acid may fall victim to fibromyalgia flare-up.
Foods that are rich in amino acid are:
Every pouch of SOUL is crammed with 8-10 servings of fruit, 8-10 servings of vegetables, and 2-3 servings of healthy fats. The reason RAIN soul supplements are so powerful is because of the extremely high nutrition value of seeds.
If your body contains the proper amount of antioxidants, it can keep away the free radicals and reduce oxidation. It is necessary to intake diets that are rich in antioxidants to prevent fibromyalgia flare-up.
Foods that are rich in antioxidants are:
It is yet not conclusive but a diet properly maintained with iron may help in decreasing fibromyalgia flare-up. Iron is responsible for the serotonin and dopamine in the brain which acts as pain perception. Slow Fe is an ironsupplement for iron deficiency and iron-deficiency anemia
It provides high potency iron while being gentle on your stomach, so you experience fewer GI side effects (nausea and abdominal discomfort) common to iron use
Foods that are rich in iron are:
Read More on what happens if fibromyalgia is left untreated
Are you suffering from fibromyalgia and sleep apnea then this article would help you- how to get deep sleep with fibromyalgia
Fibromyalgia may become a part of your life ever since due to various reasons such as genetic inheritance, severe injury, an appropriate diet, daily work habit, etc.
Once it is inside your body, it may give you a roller coaster ride now and then throughout your life. That's why it is classified as a chronic ache condition.
A patient of fibromyalgia flare-up may go one day without any spasm; the next day might by opposite with an overwhelming experience of pain.
Your joints (such as spinal cords, knees, elbows, shoulders, or ankles ) may suffer from a constant or intermittent ache throughout the day.
On the other hand, your muscles won't let you relax due to their tremor and contraction.
Only stressing upon fibromyalgia flare-up conditions won't help you if you don't adapt to certain activities in life do deal with it.
" If a woman with fibromyalgia spends too much time stressing about her condition, she uses up precious energy, " says Scott Glaser, M.D., a Chicago-area interventional pain specialist and diplomate of the American Board of Interventional Pain Physicians. [Source: About Scott E. Glaser, M.D., DABIPP] http://www.painchicago.com/doctors/scott-e-glaser/
Below we shall see how fibromyalgia flare-up can put your various phases of life at risk:
So far, there hasn't been any conclusive research that says fibromyalgia is fully curable. It's a lifelong chronic pain condition that most women have to bear with.
Knowing how to reduce, prevent, and check the symptoms may help you only keeping fibromyalgia flare-up at bay longer than others who have less knowledge about it.
You should know how to deal with your fibromyalgia condition so you can live with it. Following are a few things you may try:
What would you do if you are facing stress and fatigue at work due to fibromyalgia?
Numerous working men and women have this experience, yet they find it a little significant to deal with it sooner.
Your work is important but not over your health. There is also a reciprocal effect between these two components; a healthy mind and body can surpass almost any pressure at work.
You may follow a few tips to cope with your fibromyalgia symptoms. These are:
So talk to your employer with the recent prescription or a document of appointment with the doctor, current diagnosis or test reports, etc.
So they realize your problem and cooperate with you in your work schedule and necessary resources.
You might wonder how worse fibromyalgia flare-up can get!
Well, it's not life-threatening, yet fibromyalgia may restrict your life like living in a cage at its worst effects.
Patients suffer from physical to emotional imbalances in their daily lives due to intolerable pain almost all over the body. Many patients are reported to admit that they felt an ache in almost every joint of their body.
Let's learn what the conditions are a patient might experience with fibromyalgia at its worst symptoms:
At last, there is hope in the troubled world of fibromyalgia as researchers have very recently succeeded in marking the biological properties of fibromyalgia by a blood test.
Prof. Kevin Hackshaw, from the College of Medicine at Ohio State University, has published this groundbreaking research on the Journal of Biological Chemistry.
The journal is titled as "Metabolic fingerprinting for diagnosis of fibromyalgia and other rheumatologic disorders" [Source: http://www.jbc.org/content/early/2018/12/06/jbc.RA118.005816.full.pdf].
They hope this new research will make way for the modern and new treatment of fibromyalgia in the next 5 years.
"Fibromyalgia often gets worse, and certainly doesn't get better, with opioids." said Hackshaw . [Source: https://www.sciencealert.com/ ]
MORE ON: https://wexnermedical.osu.edu/departments/internal-medicine/rheumatology/team/kevin-hackshaw-md
The blood test Prof. Hackshaw and his team have developed can seclude the fibromyalgia markings from the other diseases coexisting in the body. This would enable doctors to diagnose the fibromyalgia accurately than ever.
Prof. Hackshaw doesn't recommend opioid application on fibromyalgia patients as it may worsen the condition and lead patients to addiction.
Prof. Hackshaw led his team in analyzing blood samples of a combined volunteer group by Vibrational Spectroscopy. This technology is known to measure the energy of molecules. The volunteer group consisted of patients of 50 people with fibromyalgia, 29 with rheumatoid arthritis, 19 with osteoarthritis, and 23 with lupus.
The team analyzed all 121 blood samples while successfully differentiated the fibromyalgia blood samples from other diseases by accurately detecting its biological markings.
Prof. Hackshaw and his team are optimistic about the potential of this result in a larger scale.
They urge to do more research on a larger group of patients with pain as mentioned above conditions. Hence they would be able to find more accurate results which in the coming years may establish this blood test in the medical diagnosis arena successfully.
Moreover, new drugs may be researched and manufactured for treating fibromyalgia effectively based on this present and future findings.
"Thus," the authors conclude , "our studies have great importance both from development of a reproducible biomarker as well as identifying potential new therapeutic targets for treatment." [Source: https://www.sciencealert.com/scientists-have-devised-a-blood-test-that-can-accurately-diagnose-fibromyalgia]
Till now, doctors get confused about diagnosing fibromyalgia in patients. It is vastly due to other painful conditions such as osteoarthritis, lupus, gouts, etc. coexisting in patient.
So, it makes more difficult to seclude the Fibro from other pain conditions.
While visiting a specialist, you may encounter the following symptom-questions so your condition may be detected appropriately as clearly as possible:
You might feel your energy fuels are exhausted and your whole body is too tired to move. It seems you cannot even do the simplest tasks at hand such as cleaning your desk or arranging your books and sit or lay idly all day long.
Fibro may cause such conditions in which a long night sleep cannot play a role of a mind-booster. Everything may seem so heavy to deal with and you may find you can never recover from this fatigue condition.
A patient with fibromyalgia may feel all types of pain in his or her body: deep, sharp, dull, stabbing, or aching.
There's no escaping pain when you have fibromyalgia. You may feel pains similar to arthritis, osteoarthritis, bursitis, tendinitis, etc.
There's no escaping pain when you have fibromyalgia. You may feel pains similar to arthritis, osteoarthritis, bursitis, tendinitis, etc.
Others without fibromyalgia symptoms may feel close to nothing when their tender points are pressed (points around joints that hurt) while a fibro patient would feel that point searing with pain.
The tissues around the joints are felt with pain rather than the joints themselves.
Sleep doesn't help in fibromyalgia rather it becomes a problem itself due to constant stress and pain.
Patients are tested in a lab during their sleep and it shows their neural activities were busy just like their activeness when they were awake. Fibro victims pass a shallow sleep time at night and they are easily disturbed during sleep.
Another common side effect of fibromyalgia is tension headache and sometimes it turns into a migraine.
Contracted neck muscles accompany headache where tender points at the back of the neck aches.
A Fibro patient can hardly see sunup smilingly. Various joints in the body feel stiff.
Muscles and bones are hardly loosened up and you may feel numb. Often the stiffness may feel like what a rheumatoid arthritis patient would feel.
A tingling sensation often known as 'Paresthesia' may occur in the muscles and bones. Following the morning stiffness, a patient may experience this tingling temporarily or continuously.
Swelling may take in some regions of the body. Such symptoms of fibromyalgia may not come in the way of doing regular chores but it may feel awkward and uncomfortable.
About 70% of the Fibro patients may suffer from various abdominal complications like gas, abdominal pain, bloating, or diarrhea.
They may often experience acid reflux and feel nauseated.
Women share the majority in number among the Fibro victims. Unfortunately, their regular menstruation cycle becomes even more painful if they have fibromyalgia.
Their menstrual cramps may trigger sharply and such condition may last for months after months sometimes.
If you have fibromyalgia, your urination function may go through an ordeal.
The leaky bladder, urinal burn, increased urge to urinate, etc. may occur as symptoms of fibromyalgia.
You should know that such symptoms may also occur due to infectious kidney or bladder.
Experiencing a foul mood is a natural symptom due to fibromyalgia. Constant fatigue will get you every time you want to do something and as a result it would make your mood swing and deter every moment you pass.
You may also go through a series of dull memory, learning difficulty, or lack of motivation.
22 Signs You Grew Up With Fibromyalgia | The Mighty
G rowing up With Fibromyalgia: 19 Signs You Grew Up With
It is hard to diagnose or say the causes of fibromyalgia accurately but there may be a combination of various grounds based on which this condition may develop.
The possible causes could be:
[Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6158621/, https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/147083.php]
All these causes individually or in combination may develop into a fibromyalgia condition in people. Proper nursing of these issues may help prevent fibromyalgia symptoms in the long run.
If you have fibromyalgia, your brain may send "itch" signals to the nerves in your skin. This can cause your skin to become oversensitive, triggering a sensation of itchiness. While this is not proven to occur with fibromyalgia, repeatedly scratching your skin can cause a rash.
There may not be any permanent treatment yet for fibromyalgia but you may apply these following home remedies to ease the pain:
Reduce sleep disturbance by ensuring noise-free bedroom. Make a habit of going to bed and waking up at the fixed schedule every day. Avoid sleeping in the daytime, reduce alcohol and smoking, eat at least 2-3 hours before going to bed.
Don't put the burden on yourself of extra work or intense workout. Overwork may put you in distressful condition and later your pain may last for a longer time. So rest as much as you can and whenever you can.
Aerobic exercises like swimming, cycling, walking, movements, etc. may improve fibromyalgia condition. It may take time to make it a habit, but with time your muscle and bone shall cope with it.
According to Dr. Daniel Lewis, a rheumatologist from Australia, meditation may help improving fibromyalgia symptom [ https://www.healthline.com/health/fibromyalgia-natural-remedies#meditation].
A research review was published in the Current Pain and Headache Reports under the title The effects of meditation-based interventions on the treatment of fibromyalgia which said that meditation can improve brain wave for relaxation and calming your mind [Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22717699].
Ancient sages from Indian subcontinent and Chinese tradition have influenced the natural remedial field with yoga and meditation. Yoga helps ease the pain caused by fibromyalgia.
A 2010 study showed yoga can alleviate pain in women suffering from Fibro [Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20946990].
Another study published in 2011 showed how an 8 week yoga practice had improved physical and psychological condition in 22 women while changing their cortisol level [Source: https://www.dovepress.com/an-eight-week-yoga-intervention-is-associated-with-improvements-in-pai-peer-reviewed-article-JPR]. These women too were grieving with fibromyalgia pain.
As mentioned earlier about beneficial diet habit for fibromyalgia, it is important to add green vegetables to your daily diet. Amino acid, antioxidants, iron, etc. should exist in your foods.
Avoid alcohol, smoking, caffeine, and other addictions in order to lead a healthy life.
Moreover, if needed and prescribed by the doctor, you may intake certain dietary supplements as follows:
National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health has claimed about the above supplements to be effective in fibromyalgia pain release [Source: https://nccih.nih.gov/health/pain/fibromyalgia.htm].
Try to apply these following natural remedies besides the above home remedies for getting better results:
Though more conclusive research is required but acupuncture is reported to have positive impact on the patients with fibromyalgia.
A few special massages can alleviate joint and muscle pains.
A review back in 2014 named Massage Therapy for Fibromyalgia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials showed that a 5 week or more of massage therapy may reduce pain, anxiety, and depression and improve fibromyalgia condition [Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3930706/].
A well-known spa therapy named Flotation can lessen pain and stress in the body caused by fibromyalgia, according to one study named The Effects of Flotation REST on the Symptoms of Fibromyalgia [Source: https://www.calm-water.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/2013-flotation-fibromyalgia-pilot-study-full.pdf].
Another ancient Chinese treasure is Tai Chi. This involves slowly moving your limbs in various poses.
Ancient Chinese healers and masters believed this movement develops a harmony of the human body and muscle with nature's atmosphere while flows energy within the body.
Modern researchers have found somewhat substantial pieces of evidence about this highly claimed physical exercise. A 2010 random trial had come out with some promising results on fibromyalgia symptoms [Source: https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa0912611].
Your willpower to release stress may help you a big-time from fibromyalgia mourning. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is such a tool you can train on to deal with your pain and stress.
Avoid too much noise, crowd, or dispute that takes brain-racking talks. Work only as much as you can do.
Researchers have found out links between fibromyalgia and psychological stress, and how to deal with it [Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC416451/].
Though no scientific studies have yet established any proof for this, many claims that Reiki, involving a touch and transfer of energy to the next person, can be effective in healing fibromyalgia pain.
"Her (Patient) present complaint include wide spread and persistent pain in all 4 quadrants of the body, sleep disturbances, excessive fatigue, periodic migraine headache, stiffness and headaches, concentration problem/short term memory, clinical depression, difficulty getting pregnant. She also complaint of bilateral hip pain that is severe in nature, neck pain with radiation to the bilateral last two fingers, low back pain with radiation to bilateral ankle. She also has complaint of frequent swelling on the bilateral ankle and wrist."
Above is an excerpt of Agaezi Sonya, CEO and President of the Sonya Health Mart and Chiropractic Inc., Murrieta, California, United States, of one of her cases with a South-Asian fibro patient [Source: https://www.ecronicon.com/ecan/pdf/ECAN-04-00065.pdf]
This lady met an auto accident in which she acquired sustaining pain in the body which she never recovered from no matter what treatment she tried out.
The treatment goal of the Sonya Health Mart and Chiropractic Inc. was to decrease pain and fatigue while improving muscle and joint function, and apply stress management, depression management, and trigger factors management.
Detail information can be acquired from the above link.
"The therapeutic protocol is a strict diet. It was devised to facilitate Trp absorption, and thus guarantee its bioavailability as a substrate for 5-HT synthesis. In order to sustain 5-HT synthesis, it is mandatory to remove molecules that could negatively affect the fate of Trp in the gastrointestinal tract."
"Dietary modifications resulted in a rapid improvement of the patient's condition after only a few days up to the full resolution of the majority of symptoms in few weeks. Symptoms of depression disappeared. Fatigue unrelieved when rest disappeared and she regained restorative sleep. Chronic musculoskeletal widespread pain and morning stiffness had a marked improvement up to no longer present. She recovered her energy and vitality."
Above are the two statements made by Silvia Maria Lattanzio who treated a 34 year old Caucasian lady with fibromyalgia condition for about 5-6 years.
This patient was treated based on her diet habit for a certain period of time which ultimately gained her positive results [Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5936760/].
"Mrs. DW entered my clinic in October 2007 for evaluation and treatment of multiple conditions including fibromyalgia and CFS, although these conditions had not been officially diagnosed. Mrs. DW, age 52, was working as a nurse in a local hospital. She stated that she had a difficult childhood that caused her to leave home at the age of 16. In her early 20s, she became ill with endometriosis and urinary infections which led to ovarian cysts, weight gain, depression, oopherectomy and appendectomy."
Above statement was made by Dr. Kenneth Muhich who practices at Stetson Chiropractic Clinic in Scottsdale, Ariz.
The patient, Mrs. DW, age 52, a nurse in a hospital, was treated by Dr. Kenneth for about 3 years and got relieved from her chronic fibromyalgia complications [Source: https://www.dynamicchiropractic.com/mpacms/dc/article.php?id=55090].
The question cannot be answered so simply and directly. Getting full recovery from fibromyalgia depends on the patient's mental strength, proper treatment, and diet habit.
Besides, regular check-up and follow-up with medical tests and medications are important too.
According to many cases, fibromyalgia condition may stick to your life like forever. Some may suffer for 10 years, some 20, or some unfortunate people may carry this condition to death.
There's no End Road sign for this atrocious chronic pain condition. Accurately diagnose and treatment is yet to be conclusively researched and established.
Ultimately, it's the regular natural treatment, home remedies, doctor's prescription, and your mental strength that would help deal with this condition.
Healthful food is a major factor in treating fibromyalgia condition.
A sincere patient of fibromyalgia should never lookout for the foods like below:
By all the studies, treatments, and feedback, it can be claimed safely that a fibromyalgia patient may not go disabled for life. Appropriate exercise, lifestyle, diet, and medication can improve the quality of life.
Patients with fibromyalgia can easily do whatever they need to do, given that the works don't involve immense physical strain.
Still, various factors may contribute even to lose walking or moving ability in some cases. Old age, lack of care, improper medication, deep infection, weak mentality, etc. may turn a patient to that unwanted immobility sometimes.
Well, it's not- if you can carry yourself through the series of daily work and your life confidently.
It may occur to many that fibromyalgia is a complete disability while it's not. With maximum care and proper treatment, fibromyalgia can be alleviated with time.
Even officially, you may not qualify for being disabled due to having fibromyalgia condition. Your past medical history, current test reports, and work condition would prove at what stage you are to be classified regarding fibromyalgia.
Additional symptoms may also occur during flare - ups these flare - ups, including poor sleep, trouble thinking (cognitive dysfunction), digestive difficulty (such as acid reflux), swollen extremities, and numbness and tingling. These fibromyalgia attacks can last from a couple of days to several weeks, or even months. Fibromyalgia Flare-Ups & Fibro Flare Treatment | Vital Motion
Fibromyalgia is not generally considered a progressive disorder, but in some cases, it does get worse over time. It's not, however, a condition with a predictable course. In most people, fibromyalgia symptoms go through flares (when symptoms are severe) and remissions (when symptoms are minimal or absent). Does Fibromyalgia Get Progressively Worse? - Verywell Health
The Prognosis for Fibromyalgia PatientsJust as there is no cure for ME/CFS, there is no treatment that cures fibromyalgia. But, as with ME/CFS, some patients experience a spontaneous recovery and many experience notable improvement. Will I Get Better? Tilting the Odds in Your Favor | CFIDS
The research was taken from Dr.Kevin Hackshaw MD
Fibromyalgia flares: Warning signs, tips, and treatments
Fibromyalgia Flares - Coping Physically - Fibromyalgia Center
Fibromyalgia Pictures: Flare Ups, Rash, Trigger Points
Fibromyalgia Flare-Ups: 10 Tips to Speed Your Recovery
Fibromyalgia pain: Options for coping - Mayo Clinic
Fibromyalgia Flare-Ups & Fibro Flare Treatment | Vital Motion
Fibromyalgia Flares: Symptoms, Triggers and Treatment
48-Hour Recovery Period in Fibromyalgia and ME/CFS
Great Ones for You